HPL Kids
The Kidzone has programs galore as well as books, movies, and other cool stuff. Read our blog below for more information and check out our upcoming events to get an idea of what's happening at the Kidzone! Our main phone number is 205.444.7830.
Kidzone Blog
World Elephant Day
August 12, 2020 is World Elephant Day! The first step in protecting elephants and their habitat? You guessed it -- reading books about these amazing creatures! Here are some of my favorite newer titles.
Beyond Words: What Elephants and Whales Think and Feel by Carl Safina (2019)
The Elephant by Jenni Desmond (2018)
The Elephant Keeper: Caring for Orphaned Elephants in Zambia by Margriet Ruurs (2017)
Elephant Rescue: True-Life Stories by Louisa Leaman (2017)
The Elephant Whisperer: My Life with the Herd in the African Wild by Lawrence Anthony with Graham Spence (2017)
How to Be an Elephant by Katherine Roy (2017)
If Elephants Disappeared by Lily Williams (2019)
Natumi Takes the Lead: The True Story of an Orphan Elephant Who Finds Family by Gerry Ellis (2016)
I Wish I Was an Elephant by Jennnifer Bove (2018)
A Passion for Elephants: The Real Life Adventure of Field Scientist Cynthia Moss by Toni Buzzeo (2015)
The Truth About Elephants by Maxwell Eaton III (2018)
Throwback Thursday: Magic School Bus
Today was originally supposed to be the first day of school for Hoover City Schools. Today is also Thursday. So it is the perfect opportunity to write a school-inspired Throwback Thursday post! And, of course, I went with the most obvious choice -- Magic School Bus!
Ms. Frizzle, the red-haired teacher with the amazing fashion sense, took field trips to the next level in Joanna Cole's Magic School Bus book series. The first book, At the Waterworks, came out in July 1986, the summer after my Kindergarten year. My favorite title, Inside the Human Body, came out in 1989. I was still living in Germany, so I didn't get to read it until we moved back to the States in 1990. The series debuted as a TV show on PBS in 1994, and it was revamped on Netflix in 2017 -- The Magic School Bus Rides Again. And, of course, the books have kept coming the entire time! Newer spin-offs have included chapter books and nonfiction books that feature stunning photos as well as the character illustrations. (And, yes, you can find all of them at Hoover Public Library!) The original author, Joanna Cole, had much to be proud of. Unfortunately, as I was preparing to write this blog, I learned that she passed away on July 12, 2020. With more than 93 million copies in print across 13 countries and a live-action film in the works, she definitely left a legacy. Well done, Ms. Cole. Well done.
