Girl Power!

Once upon a time 20 years ago, there was an all-girl pop group from the UK called the Spice Girls. While I'm sure there were other all-female acts around that time, the Spice Girls were the only ones that reached (maybe even surpassed?) the level of fame the boy bands had. I didn't really listen to them because I was super into grunge and alternative music and I just could *not* listen to pop. Despite that though, I still found myself occasionally putting on a fake British accent, throwing up a peace sign, and yelling out "Girl Power!"

While we want all our children to succeed, there is something that hits home with specifically saying "You. Girl. You are strong and bold, and you can do anything!" Perhaps its because women are still making firsts. It took 200 years, but we finally got our first female vice president. How long will it be before we get the first woman president? During a time when many girls nationwide have had to watch as their mothers gave up jobs to stay home with them, perhaps we should give girls extra encouragement.

Be sure to tune into our LIVE story time on March 2nd @ 12pm (for ages 3-7). The theme is, of course, Girl Power! You'll see us read some of the books featured below. If you still can't get enough - be sure to check out a Story Time in a Bag the week of March 15th when we feature the same theme.

As always, this is not an exhaustive list. I stayed away from featuring biographies, but we have plenty in our collection and on OverDrive if you wish to check some out. Hopefully you can find a book here for any age girl in your life.

 

 

Beginning Readers

Emerson is a Mighty Girl by Meredeith Rusu - Playing a much-enjoyed game of Garden Superheroes while picnicking with her fellow WellieWishers, Emerson gets carried away in her role as Mighty Girl and spoils the fun, upsetting her friends in the process and challenging her to figure out how to make amends. Original. - (Baker & Taylor)

I Am Brave by Suzy Capozzi - On a family vacation a young girl shows bravery by trying new experiences, including surfing, horseback riding, and hiking. - (Baker & Taylor)

I Am Kind by Suzy Capozzi - Looking to follow in her mother's footsteps, a young girl shares all the ways her thoughtfulness and kindness helps her friends, family, and community. - (Baker & Taylor)

I Am a Super Girl by Kelly Greenawalt - In rhyming text Princess Truly, super girl, uses her super powers to help her friend Lizzie celebrate her cat's first birthday, and when things go a little wrong, she gives Lizzie the confidence to believe that she too is a super girl.

 

 

 

Board Books

A is for Awesome: 25 Iconic Women Who Changed the World by Eva Chen - Instagram superstar Eva Chen, author of Juno Valentine and the Magical Shoes, is back with an alphabet board book featuring spirited illustrations that depict 23 feminist icons. - (Baker & Taylor)

I Can Do It Myself by Stephen Krensky - A young girl shares the things she can do herself, from picking out her clothes and blowing her nose to finding a snack and reaching a high shelf. - (Baker & Taylor)

I Like Myself by Karen Beaumont - High on energy and imagination, this ode to self-esteem encourages kids to appreciate everything about themselves--inside and out. Messy hair? Beaver breath? So what! Here's a little girl who knows what really matters.- (Houghton)

This Little Trailblazer by Joan Holub - Rhyming text presents the contributions of such trailblazing women as Ada Lovelace, Rosa Parks, Sonia Sotomayor, and Malala Yousafzai. - (Baker & Taylor)

 

 

 

Juvenile Fiction

The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle by Christina Uss - Introverted Bicycle has lived most of her life at the Mostly Silent Monastery in Washington, D.C. When her guardian, Sister Wanda, announces that Bicycle is going to attend a camp where she will learn to make friends, Bicycle says no way and sets off on her bike for San Francisco to meet her idol, a famous cyclist, certain he will be her first true friend. Who knew that a ghost would haunt her handlebars and that she would have to contend with bike-hating dogs, a bike-loving horse, bike-crushing pigs, and a mysterious lady dressed in black. Over the uphills and downhills of her journey, Bicycle discovers that friends are not such a bad thing to have after all, and that a dozen cookies really can solve most problems. - (Random House, Inc.)

Ban This Book by Alan Gratz - A fourth grader fights back when From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg is challenged by a well-meaning parent and taken off the shelves of her school library. Amy Anne is shy and soft-spoken, but don't mess with her when it comes to her favorite book in the whole world. Amy Anne and her lieutenants wage a battle for the books as they start a secret banned books locker library, make up ridiculous reasons to ban every single book in the library to make a point, and take astand against censorship. - (Baker & Taylor)

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson - Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, each line a glimpse into a child's soul as she searches for her place in the world. Woodson's eloquent poetry also reflects the joy of finding her voice through writing stories, despite the fact that she struggled with reading as a child. -(The New York Times Book Review)

Finding Serendipity by Angelica Banks - When Tuesday McGillycuddy and her beloved dog Baxterr discover that Tuesday's mother--the famous author Serendipity Smith--has gone missing, they set out on a magical adventure. In their quest to find Serendipity, they discover the mysterious and unpredictable place that stories come from - (Baker & Taylor)

The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Perez - Malú is struggling with the aftermath of her parents' divorce: she misses her laid-back, artsy, white father, and feels pressured by her academic mother, who she calls "SuperMexican." And on the first day at her new school, the

school's queen bee calls Malú a "coconut": brown on the outside, white on the inside. But when Malú gets a band started with some fellow misfits, she'll do anything to keep it together — even if it means standing up to the world! - (Mighty Girl)

The Ordinary Princess by M.M. Kaye -Along with Wit, Charm, Health, and Courage, Princess Amy of Phantasmorania receives a special fairy christening gift: Ordinariness. Unlike her six beautiful sisters, she has brown hair and freckles, and would rather have adventures than play the harp, embroider tapestries . . . or become a Queen. When her royal parents try to marry her off, Amy runs away and, because she's so ordinary, easily becomes the fourteenth assistant kitchen maid at a neighboring palace. And there -- much to everyone's surprise -- she meets a prince just as ordinary (and special) as she is! - (Mighty Girl)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Non-fiction

Code Like a Girl: Rad Tech Projects and Practical Tips by Miriam Peskowitz - Coding is about creativity, self-expression, and telling your story. It's solving problems and being curious, building things, making the world a better place, and creating a future. It's about you: whoever you are, wherever you're at, whatever you want.

Nearly everything you encounter on a screen is made from code. You see, with code you can have an idea and put it into action: it's your voice and your vision. From the outside, tech and code may seem puzzling and mysterious, but when you get through the door and past the first few beginner steps and your code starts to work, it feels like magic.

In this book, you'll learn how to: Code with Scratch--projects like making a dog walk through the park, sending your friend a card, and devising a full-scoring game! Build your own computer! Create your own digital fortune-teller, with the Python language. Make your own smartphone gloves. Make light-up bracelets. Code a motion sensor that tells you when someone enters your room. - (Random House, Inc.)

Girl, 13 by Starla Griffin - Explores the lives of thirteen-year-old girls as they live in their native lands in twenty countries around the world, comparing their similarities, presenting their differences, and celebrating this new generation through the young women's own unique perspectives.Explores the lives of thirteen-year-old girls as they live in their native lands in twenty countries around the world, comparing their similarities, presenting their differences, and celebrating this new generation through the young women's own unique perspectives. - (Baker & Taylor)

Girl Code: Gaming, Going Viral, and Getting It Done by Andrea Gonzales - The two teens behind the viral video game "Tampon Run" share the story of their experience at Girls Who Code and their rise to fame, sharing insider perspectives into today's startups, the influence of women in technology, and the power of coding. - (Baker & Taylor)

The International Day of the Girl: Celebrating Girls Around the World by Jessica Dee Humphreys - The International Day of the Girl features nine inspiring stories based on real girls' experiences with gender inequality around the word. From Brazil to Afghanistan to Canada, each story highlights issues faced by girls -- including gender-based violence, illiteracy, sanitation and child marriage -- and how they've overcome their adversities using intelligence, creativity, bravery and kindness. A celebration of the UN's International Day of the Girl Child, a day committed to supporting every girl in the world, this book reminds us that we can all overcome challenges and make positive changes in our communities and beyond -- not just one day a year, but every day."-- Provided by publisher.

Smart Girl's Guide series - This is a book series produced by American Girl Publishing. Each book covers one topic, of which there is a broad range, including: travel, manners, cooking, friendship troubles, boys, middle school, babysitting, going vegetarian, liking yourself, and more!

33 Things Every Girl Should Know About Women's History: From Suffragettes to Skirt Length to the ERA - Here’s

the perfect book for anyone interested in learning more about girls and women in the United States from the 18th century to the present. Featuring contributions from a wide variety of women, including well-known nonfiction writers, a children’s librarian, historians, and many more, this latest addition to the 33 Things series provides an engaging, inspiring, informative look at the role women have played in shaping American history. - (Random House, Inc.)

Wild Girl: How to Have Incredible Outdoor Adventures by Helen Skelton - From kayaking the length of the Amazon to biking to the South Pole and running an ultramarathon across the Namib desert, Helen Skelton shares the stories of her most daring feats of endurance and grit in some of the world's most extreme wildernesses, overcoming challenges, embracing her fears, and finding the positives in the toughest situations. Alongside each exciting account are ideas for outdoor adventures readers can have closer to home, as well as gear lists, information about Helen's support teams, statistics, tips for physical and mental preparation, and a Wild Girl Wall of Fame featuring the diverse women who inspired Helen with their own achievements. A likable, no-nonsense tone paired with a combination of photographs and fun art will inspire young people to get outside and dream big. - (Random House, Inc.)

 

 

 

Picture Books

Dress Like a Girl by Patricia Toht - Explores the concept of dressing "like a girl," in which girls dress in space suits, police officer uniforms, and laboratory coats to prove that girls can be anything they want to be.- (Baker & Taylor)

A Girl Like You by Frank and Carla Murphy - Encourages every girl to embrace all of the things that make her unique, to be strong and kind, to stand up for herself, and more.- (Baker & Taylor)

Grace for President by Kelly DiPucchio - Excited by the idea of becoming the country's first female president, Grace joins the school's presidential campaign to get her career on track, but when her competition seems to have the support of all the male voters, Grace must use all her campaigning skills to win them over by showing how she is truly the best person for the job. New jacket art. - (Baker & Taylor)

Ho'onani Hula Warrior by Heather Gale - An empowering celebration of identity, acceptance and Hawaiian culture based on the true story of a young girl in Hawai'i who dreams of leading the boys-only hula troupe at her school. Ho'onani feels in-between. She doesn't see

herself as wahine (girl) OR kane (boy). She's happy to be in the middle. But not everyone sees it that way. When Ho'onani finds out that there will be a school performance of a traditional kane hula chant, she wants to be part of it. But can a girl really lead the all-male troupe? Ho'onani has to try . . . - Provided by publisher.

I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings - From the time she was two years old, Jazz knew that she had a girl's brain in a boy's body. She loved pink and dressing up as a mermaid and didn't feel like herself in boys' clothing. This confused her family, until they took her to a doctor who said that Jazz was transgender and that she was born that

way. Jazz's story is based on her real-life experience and she tells it in a simple, clear way that will be appreciated by picture book readers, their parents, and teachers. - (Random House, Inc.)

I Will Be Fierce by Bea Birdsong - A young girl tackles a typical day like a brave explorer embarking on a fairytale quest of conquering the Mountain of Knowledge at the library, forging new bridges of friendship and leading a victorious charge back home on her school bus steed. Illustrated by the creator of the Pashmina graphic novel. - (Baker & Taylor)

Lucia the Luchadora by Cynthia Leonor Garza - Lucia zips through the playground in her cape just like the boys,

but when they tell her 'girls can't be superheroes', suddenly she doesn't feel so mighty. That's when her beloved abuela reveals a dazzling secret: Lucia comes from a family of luchadoras,the bold and valiant women of the Mexican lucha libre tradition. But when she's confronted with a case of injustice, Lucia must decide if she can stay true to the ways of the luchadora and fight for what is right, even if it means breaking the sacred rule of never revealing the identity behind her mask. - (Baker & Taylor)

Raise Your Hand by Alice Paul Tapper - When the author notices the girls in her class were not participating as much as the boys, she discusses it with her Girl Scout Troop and comes up with a creative way to encourage classroom participation in girls. - (Baker & Taylor)

Stephanie's Ponytail by Robert Munsch - A little girl who is determined to strike a blow for nonconformity manages to arrive at school every day with a hairdo more outraegous than the day before. And each time, the cast of copycats grows and grows... - (Firefly Books Ltd)

Originally Posted by StephanieT on February 25, 2021