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B Is for Bookworm: A Library Alphabet
Libraries, like books and kids, come in all shapes and sizes and are as individual as every story and freckled face. Readers will learn about Kenya's Camel Library Service, Zimbabwe's Donkey Libraries, and Northern Europe's Book Boats. There is so much to discover and celebrate about the history and inner workings of our community libraries -- How do libraries keep track of all the volumes? Where was the first library and who was its first librarian? How many miles of books are housed in the Library of Congress? And what is the scriptoria?
40 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
50 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
February 17, 2015
I assume (perhaps wrongly?) that this is intended to be used in an educational setting, perhaps to prepare children for their first trip to the library. Sadly, it is probably true that many children won't be taken early on by their parents and will go for the first time during elementary school. Certainly this book doesn't seem likely to inspire any child to go on his or her own. Both the art and the text are pretty boring -- and I speak as someone who loves libraries, books, and factual information.
First off, I think it was a mistake to format this as an ABC book. The constraints of the alphabet result in some important topics being skipped while other almost random items are inserted to fulfill necessary letters. Y is for Yellow: A ruby red rose or a bright blue sky/ show us colors so lovely to see./ But yellow's the color librarians love,/ 'cause they wear it to get their degree. Is that really important for small children to know? It's not like librarians wear yellow sashes to make themselves identifiable to the public.
That's not even the least relevant entry. Zestful? Really? And although Quest is a good word it is misleading, I think, to describe a quest as "a special search to find something important" and then have all the examples be about genealogical research (I'm guessing that's a pet interest of the author's).
Also, let me throw tact to the wind and state that these verses suck ass. I'm no poet and I could write a better-metered stanza when I was 9. The art work is more competent but similarly blah.
I did like the idea of having two texts for children at different reading levels. There is one bad four-line verse per letter, like the one above, and then side bars with considerably more information. The information was interesting in and of itself, although the dull writing made it a chore rather than a pleasure to read.
Instead of reading this book, kids, just look "Online" for information about libraries near you. "Online", in case you don't know, "is a new word that you'll want to learn." It takes quotation marks around it, apparently.
The tone of the whole thing reminded me cringe-inducingly of that fake-excited, talking-down voice that some educators use with kids to try to make them interested. Your library opens a door to the world,/ to the wonders of earth, sea, and sky./ And your Library Card is the key to that door./ When you use it, get ready to fly!
First off, I think it was a mistake to format this as an ABC book. The constraints of the alphabet result in some important topics being skipped while other almost random items are inserted to fulfill necessary letters. Y is for Yellow: A ruby red rose or a bright blue sky/ show us colors so lovely to see./ But yellow's the color librarians love,/ 'cause they wear it to get their degree. Is that really important for small children to know? It's not like librarians wear yellow sashes to make themselves identifiable to the public.
That's not even the least relevant entry. Zestful? Really? And although Quest is a good word it is misleading, I think, to describe a quest as "a special search to find something important" and then have all the examples be about genealogical research (I'm guessing that's a pet interest of the author's).
Also, let me throw tact to the wind and state that these verses suck ass. I'm no poet and I could write a better-metered stanza when I was 9. The art work is more competent but similarly blah.
I did like the idea of having two texts for children at different reading levels. There is one bad four-line verse per letter, like the one above, and then side bars with considerably more information. The information was interesting in and of itself, although the dull writing made it a chore rather than a pleasure to read.
Instead of reading this book, kids, just look "Online" for information about libraries near you. "Online", in case you don't know, "is a new word that you'll want to learn." It takes quotation marks around it, apparently.
The tone of the whole thing reminded me cringe-inducingly of that fake-excited, talking-down voice that some educators use with kids to try to make them interested. Your library opens a door to the world,/ to the wonders of earth, sea, and sky./ And your Library Card is the key to that door./ When you use it, get ready to fly!
May 18, 2010
I really enjoyed this, but I am especially interested in libraries, books, and history. As far as a child picking up this book and reading it, I suspect it’s more likely to be for schoolwork than for pure pleasure. Also, much of the information presented will most likely be known by many children old enough to want to read this, or have it read to them, but almost everyone will learn some things; I did. And, this book is definitely working as a recruiting tool to entice more readers to become librarians, and I might have been inspired had I read it when I was a child.
This is part of a series of informational “alphabet books” and this one is about libraries. Each letter has a 4 line long poem and then additional information on the page(s).
My Goodreads friend Abigail might have a twitching fit were she to read this book, given that A includes information about Aesop, the “scholar” “who wrote many fables.” Thanks to Abigail, I realized immediately that there might be some misinformation in this book. But, most of the information is most likely correct and much of it is interesting.
Just to give a flavor for what’s included: A is for Author, B is for Bookworm, C is for Library Card, D is for Dewey, E is for Early Books, F is for Fact and Fiction, G is for Gutenberg, H is for Historic, I is for Illustrations, J is for Juvenile Books, K is for Knowing, L is for Library of Congress, M is for Media Center, N is for Call Number, O is for Online, P is for Presidential Libraries, Q is for Quest, R is for Reference, S is for Storytelling, T is for Traveling Libraries, U is for Useful parts of a book, V is for Vocabulary, W is for Winner, X is for Xylograph, Y is for Yellow, Z is for Zestful. There are 2 pages at the end with additional facts and, while all are interesting, all the information could have probably been easily included in the A-Z pages.
The illustrations fit really well with the book’s content.
This is part of a series of informational “alphabet books” and this one is about libraries. Each letter has a 4 line long poem and then additional information on the page(s).
My Goodreads friend Abigail might have a twitching fit were she to read this book, given that A includes information about Aesop, the “scholar” “who wrote many fables.” Thanks to Abigail, I realized immediately that there might be some misinformation in this book. But, most of the information is most likely correct and much of it is interesting.
Just to give a flavor for what’s included: A is for Author, B is for Bookworm, C is for Library Card, D is for Dewey, E is for Early Books, F is for Fact and Fiction, G is for Gutenberg, H is for Historic, I is for Illustrations, J is for Juvenile Books, K is for Knowing, L is for Library of Congress, M is for Media Center, N is for Call Number, O is for Online, P is for Presidential Libraries, Q is for Quest, R is for Reference, S is for Storytelling, T is for Traveling Libraries, U is for Useful parts of a book, V is for Vocabulary, W is for Winner, X is for Xylograph, Y is for Yellow, Z is for Zestful. There are 2 pages at the end with additional facts and, while all are interesting, all the information could have probably been easily included in the A-Z pages.
The illustrations fit really well with the book’s content.
December 1, 2023
B Is for Bookworm functions like a dual book about US American public library systems. On the one hand, you can read the "B is for bookworm" and its rhyme, admire the pictures and their detail, and move along. On the other hand, you can pause for the sidebar text providing more detail about call numbers, the Dewey Decimal system, and library studies. B Is for Bookworm teaches children how to use libraries to their fullest extent, become a librarian,* and explore book history. I love books that champion reading and libraries. Usually they lean more towards stories, but the factual focus of this one is really special. I can see this making an extra-special library storytime with a tour of the facilities.
*There are so many false assumptions about librarians and archivists, and I will cheer any book that helps folks understand that librarians/archivists undergo a ton of training, have specialized degree programs, and do more than alphabetize. I do not work in this field but I am an avid public library user, and the ignorance from folks who don't use libraries astounds me. Get a library card and thank your librarian for their outstanding service.
*There are so many false assumptions about librarians and archivists, and I will cheer any book that helps folks understand that librarians/archivists undergo a ton of training, have specialized degree programs, and do more than alphabetize. I do not work in this field but I am an avid public library user, and the ignorance from folks who don't use libraries astounds me. Get a library card and thank your librarian for their outstanding service.
August 2, 2010
We didn't finish reading this. I could tell before we even got to 'D' that Julia was truly bored. I've always told that if she gives a book an honest shot and still doesn't like it to put it down. So she wanted to stop and stop we did. To be totally honest, I was also bored.
There is a plethora of information included here I was still bored. Most of the information are little tidbits that most people won't know off the top of their heads. While that's all good and fine I don't see a child being interested at all. I found the information on the few pages we read to be interesting. But I'm also 32 years old. Maybe this was stuck in the wrong section? It seems to me to be for children older than the rest of the books that were with this one. Maybe a 7, 8, 9 or 10 year old could get more out of this. I don't know any toddler who could.
From what I saw each letter has been given 1-2 pages and a short rhyme about the letter is also given.
F is for fact or Fiction
Is it fact or Fiction? Do you know
the difference between the two?
One of the world of make-believe,
while the other tells tales that are true.
It goes on to tell about how the library has the different catergories. It also details the differences between the two.
I'm not sure what else the book has to offer because, like I said above, we never finished it and I neglected to look through it myself like I had planned.
There is a plethora of information included here I was still bored. Most of the information are little tidbits that most people won't know off the top of their heads. While that's all good and fine I don't see a child being interested at all. I found the information on the few pages we read to be interesting. But I'm also 32 years old. Maybe this was stuck in the wrong section? It seems to me to be for children older than the rest of the books that were with this one. Maybe a 7, 8, 9 or 10 year old could get more out of this. I don't know any toddler who could.
From what I saw each letter has been given 1-2 pages and a short rhyme about the letter is also given.
F is for fact or Fiction
Is it fact or Fiction? Do you know
the difference between the two?
One of the world of make-believe,
while the other tells tales that are true.
It goes on to tell about how the library has the different catergories. It also details the differences between the two.
I'm not sure what else the book has to offer because, like I said above, we never finished it and I neglected to look through it myself like I had planned.
April 30, 2017
I'd have given this one 5 stars if the text had mentioned DVDs with its description of media, as DVDs are quite common in libraries now, and if the pictures of the computers hadn't looked so antiquated. Those monitors looked so huge and clunky (see the letter K)! Smaller and flat-screened monitors, not to mention laptops, were certainly around when this book was written in 2005. Nevertheless, it has a lot of good information, including a few small things that I didn't know, and the pictures were colorful but muted, like the peace of a library. I really appreciated the letter U, which described the parts of a book, which is not often dealt with in children's books on the subject. I also really liked the extra facts at the end of the book. This is another book I'll have to purchase for my own personal library! Highly recommended!
February 21, 2017
I was tutoring a very bright young man, who read this book and submitted this Reflection to his teacher. I am posting these Reflections as my reviews as I believe children who write honest reviews will attract more people to read the book! His question on the Reflection was to write about the most important passage in the book. Below is his review.
To me, this is the most important passage in the book:
“A bookworm is someone who loves to read. Benjamin Franklin was a bookworm. During his life he was a printer, an author, a librarian, a statesman, and an inventor. Ben Franklin collected books. But books were expensive, and most people couldn’t afford them. So Franklin and some of his friends started the Leather Apron Club. They gave the club that name because they were printers, carpenters, blacksmiths, silversmiths, and candle and soap makers -- they wore leather aprons when they worked to protect their clothing.
The Leather Apron Club members bought lots of books, and in 1731, they opened the first subscription lending library. People became members of the library by paying a fee of 40 shillings to join and 10 shillings every year. Forty shillings was a lot of money at that time; but that didn’t stop people from joining the library. Thanks to Ben Franklin, his friends, and the lending library, more people could enjoy books.”
This book taught me that books were considered to be very important to people who lived in the past. Now, we can go to the public library and check out as many as 50 books at one time. We get to take them home and read them. It is also important to remember to return the books on time!
I wonder what Benjamin Franklin would think if he could see me checking out that many books from the public library, using my library card? I bet he would be smiling!
I guess I am a bookworm too because I really enjoy reading books.
To me, this is the most important passage in the book:
“A bookworm is someone who loves to read. Benjamin Franklin was a bookworm. During his life he was a printer, an author, a librarian, a statesman, and an inventor. Ben Franklin collected books. But books were expensive, and most people couldn’t afford them. So Franklin and some of his friends started the Leather Apron Club. They gave the club that name because they were printers, carpenters, blacksmiths, silversmiths, and candle and soap makers -- they wore leather aprons when they worked to protect their clothing.
The Leather Apron Club members bought lots of books, and in 1731, they opened the first subscription lending library. People became members of the library by paying a fee of 40 shillings to join and 10 shillings every year. Forty shillings was a lot of money at that time; but that didn’t stop people from joining the library. Thanks to Ben Franklin, his friends, and the lending library, more people could enjoy books.”
This book taught me that books were considered to be very important to people who lived in the past. Now, we can go to the public library and check out as many as 50 books at one time. We get to take them home and read them. It is also important to remember to return the books on time!
I wonder what Benjamin Franklin would think if he could see me checking out that many books from the public library, using my library card? I bet he would be smiling!
I guess I am a bookworm too because I really enjoy reading books.
August 28, 2017
In a bag of free books, I wanted to see if it was worth adding to the collection.
Like so many of these thematic alphabet books, this is written for children but has no kid appeal. Terribly dated. The history of libraries remains the same, but the changes in library services and programs since the book was published in 2005 are pretty monumental. We've come a long way! Fun to read as a librarian, but this one won't make it to the shelf.
Like so many of these thematic alphabet books, this is written for children but has no kid appeal. Terribly dated. The history of libraries remains the same, but the changes in library services and programs since the book was published in 2005 are pretty monumental. We've come a long way! Fun to read as a librarian, but this one won't make it to the shelf.
January 9, 2018
This book was better in theory than in actuality. For young kids, it wasn't super catchy overall. As I was sharing this with a young child, the lengthy passages giving more information aren't engaging enough for little kids.
As an adult though, the lengthy passages make this book. That was my favorite part of the book!
As an adult though, the lengthy passages make this book. That was my favorite part of the book!
Read
November 5, 2019Why did I request this? Dunno. But there it was, waiting for me, so I read it. The illustrations are poor, the typeface does not work in italic, and although its contents are not entirely without merit, C is not for "library card" nor N for "call number."
June 6, 2018
An interesting book using many literary terms and providing lots of information about different libraries around the world. Great information.
July 21, 2019
An A to Z about libraries. There's the main story text and some more information about each subject. I don't know if it's the illustration or something but it seems a bit outdated.
March 20, 2024
I read the main story line which was really good.
There are several paragraphs on each page that could be read by older children.
Very educational read on libraries!
There are several paragraphs on each page that could be read by older children.
Very educational read on libraries!
June 4, 2014
B Is for Bookworm: A Library Alphabet by author Anita C. Prieto I only looked at the cover of this book when I picked it up, I was expecting the kind of alphabet book that I am used to with a few words per page and highly colored illustrations. This book is completely different. It has the letters of the alphabet as you would expect and also a word for each letter but the words are defiantly not for the very young reader. There are pages such as L is for Library of Congress. Then it gives a three-paragraph definition of the library of congress. G is for Gutenburg does not seem like a lesson that learners that are studying their letters will quite grasp. Y is for yellow seems a stretch also. Yellow for the color of the stripe on the robe of master’s degree recipients in library science? That just seems odd for a children’s book. I thought the book was interesting though. I just do not know if a first grade classroom will.
January 14, 2011
Wow! This book will appeal to book lovers of all ages. Each letter is introduced by "__ is for ____", followed by a 4-line rhyming verse. But for readers who are ready for more, much additional information awaits in the sidebars. Learn about the history of libraries worldwide and specifically how Ben Franklin began a lending library with his fellow craftsmen. You'll be introduced to library systems and practices (like the Dewey decimal system), and you'll meet famous book lovers. Of course the basic book components will be covered too and readers will see that today's libraries have become "media centers", with information available electronically, not just in traditional print form.
July 13, 2012
This is a sophisticated alphabet book that details all the glorious things associated with libraries and books. The story has two layers; a simple alphabetical feature (a is for author) but is also accompanied by rich, detailed descriptions of the items listed for each letter (detailed historical information about the beginning of libraries, etc).
October 3, 2014
This one is thorough, but almost too thorough for the audience. Since the topic is broad, the authors stretch far to include all of the alphabet. However, I think this more of a weakness of this entire series. These hardly serve as introductions to the topics at hand; instead, I think they're appreciated by adults who have a connection to the subject at hand.
February 15, 2009
AWESOME. This book makes me giddy. I bought this as a gift for myself, although I am reading it to my daughter, now almost eight months. She actually sat all the way through S before we had to take a baby break.
June 17, 2015
Touching on everything from proper library behavior to library history to services your library has to offer, this book is a great ABC book for kids and adults alike. I plan on buying a copy for myself, as I want to be a librarian, and will definitely be reading it to my kids!
March 22, 2025
This beautiful book – beautiful in illustrations and the excellent presentation of information – is a story in rhyme and riddles, an alphabet book, and filled with fascinating educational facts about books, libraries, and historical facts. Wonderful!
September 11, 2009
A nice basic alphabet picture book about the library (what's available and a little history too) with more in depth information for older children in the sidebars.
October 14, 2012
It was love at first sight the moment I stepped into my neighborhood library. This book is for people, young and old, who love libraries.
December 13, 2012
Fabulous history of libraries for a variety of age groups -- even adults, quite frankly! Giving to my niece for Christmas this year.
April 23, 2013
Love the illustrations. We read this during National Library Week 2013, after we dropped off cookies for the librarians.
October 24, 2015
This was one of the discards I looked through before putting it in the faculty lounge for any interested takers.
It's cute.
It's cute.
May 24, 2016
A lot has changed in the library since this book was published in 2005!
September 22, 2012
An amazing array of information about books and libraries...a mini-course for us all!
October 28, 2014
A lot has changed in the library since this book was published in 2005!
April 3, 2017
Here is a book that will appeal to children from the very young to those through first grade. "B is for Bookworm" is basically an alphabet book - "c" is for library card - and a quick and easy read for small children. On each page, however, there is much information for the older child and the parent about libraries in general, how they came to be, the different types of libraries, and all they have to offer. The story line by Anita C. Prieto with illustrations by Renee Graef are both entertaining and beautiful. A nice addition to your child's library, for sure.
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