I just wanted to say that finding your newsletter this year has been such a wonderful thing for me as a stay at home mom. You have inspired me to become a regular at our library, helped me to expose my kids to so many wonderful books, to rethink and find success in our reading habits, and to most importantly continue to foster the love of books and reading in my kids! FWIW, I adore your seasonal book guides and get so excited to load them all into my “for later” list at the library so I can put them on hold each month of that season. Seriously brings me (and my kids!) so much joy. My plan for 2025 is to use the poetry almanac! I am in the “reads literally every word” camp and am here for whatever you are up for sharing. Your hard work and passion does not go unnoticed!! Also, my kids are getting a lot of Can We Read? recs for Christmas—some that we loved so much from the library that we had to own them (Bee Bim Bop, Baby Goes to Market, Dogger, etc etc etc), some that I have a hunch we’re gonna love (Bear on a Bike, The Alfie and Annie Storybook Collection by Shirley Hughes, etc etc etc). In short, THANK YOU!
Good luck with your book proposal, even if it feels detached! I’m heading back out into proposal land soon and the waiting can be brutal. Your attitude is inspiring! 💫
Thank you for sharing your "failures" and your attitude toward them. It's what I needed to hear as I'm in the midst of Mom Olympics (also known as "the holidays"). I appreciate your candor, your honesty, your realness. And, yeah, the books are nice, too ;-)
As someone also in the midst of the Mom Olympics — having failed my children on multiple fronts this year, and not just as it relates to the December holidays, but other ones as well — all we can do is our best. What our children will remember is the love and the joy (and someday they’ll also probably understand all the effort). Hang in there.
Echoing the thanks for this work! Just about every book we've bought on your recommendation for my 2.5 year old has been a huge hit (like Jamberry, Bee Bim Bop, The Boy Who Wouldn't Go to Bed, and a bunch of your new sibling recs on your Bookshop page)! (Side note, the few that haven't are typically ones that she's just a bit too young for, I think -- fully expecting them to hit in the coming months and years!) I absolutely love your posts and your recs and I am so thankful for them. I loved to read as a child, still do, and these books are sparking the same love in my child. It's so nice to have some "off the beaten path," older, diverse, and/or just plain interesting books to add to our routine. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
At risk of sounding overly positive (is there such a thing?), I'm scratching my head at "failures." Staring around—in awe of you—and wondering what in tarnation you mean. What failure(s)? Where? How? What in G-d's Driftless Region could possibly be a failure of any part of your life of that of anyone reading this? It's a M-F'ing miracle that we get to live this life, and thank goodness for the parts that go and don't go our way. You are amazing, everyone is amazing, and thank you for continuing to put your essence into Al Gore's Internet.
As always, you see me in a better light then I see myself — and your words mean all the more because you more than anyone else see it ALL (as you know). Thank you, my dear, sweet friend.
I truly love this newsletter, I work in books and it's such a pleasure to read a newsletter where the true love of books shines through. I always find your recommendations so thoughtful and unique - we've found a few family favorites in your lists and I always recommend the newsletter to new and not-quite-so-new parents. I wish you the best for the holidays and the new year, thank you so much for all that you do!
I am one of those who reads every word, passes on posts to others who will find them useful, and even post them on Social Media like my homeschooling page, where hopefully more eyeballs with both read, find encouragement and support! (I'm one of those old veterans now.)
Also...you never know when you'll come across a gem like this: "Anyone who claims they’re not failing in some way, often if not constantly, is either completely delulu or a total asshole and maybe even both." LOL
I love your newsletter! It's such a good resource. I quibble with the word 'failure' because we are making this up as we go along and Substack is always changing. I personally lost a bunch of paid readers lately. Did I personally offend them? Did everyone's credit cards lapse? Or was Substack miscounting in the first place? I'd rather not know. (and just cross my fingers the money part will shake out somehow in the end.)
You are so incredible, Sarah. I am rooting for your (continued) success so hard. And I really appreciate your transparency. Brava, friend. Immensely grateful to have gotten to know you. Also, weirdly, this post showed up in my inbox today! Substack is being weird.
Sarah, you're incredible! I love how transparent you are. Even with mild success on Substack, I often think that it doesn't come close to how much time and money goes into making these articles happen every month. But I guess we do it for different reasons. My feelings toward this platform are not in a good place, but I am unsure what my next move is—probably more in-person stuff. Thank you for always providing well-written, helpful, and important posts for parents, children, teachers, librarians, etc.. And I'm sending you the best on your book proposal. What an accomplishment!
Thank you, Taylor 🩷 I am also not in a good place re: Substack and will probably make a move, it’s just a matter of when. And how. (Things I can figure out but that take time and focus and effort, all of which I don’t feel like spending right now.)
I love reading these honest behind-the-scenes posts from you! Thank you for another great year of recommendations in this category and major congratulations on getting to the point of submission with your future book!
Thank you, Sarah! People marvel that I still read to Blythe (almost 10) and Claire (6) every night and I can (and do) truthfully say it is the best part of my day. I love the stories, I love the connection it creates, and I love the conversations we have... and, of course, the closeness and snuggling. Thank you for providing so many interesting books to read. You're awesome!
Same, same. I’ll do it as long as they let me, even if that means🤞 I’m reading to high schoolers. You have been such a steadfast and supportive friend to me these years, Darcy — I hope you know how grateful I am to you and for you.
Thank you for continuing to publish this newsletter and try new things. It's been a joy to read your work. Your bookshop.org booklists are my go-to place for new books to check out at the library...I put a few books on hold mid-week, and then I know when we go to the library on Saturday we will have books that I'm excited about, in addition to our typical books about boa constrictors and dump trucks.
Thank you for all you do, Sarah. ✨❤️
Thank YOU for all your support and friendship, Jolene ❤️
I just wanted to say that finding your newsletter this year has been such a wonderful thing for me as a stay at home mom. You have inspired me to become a regular at our library, helped me to expose my kids to so many wonderful books, to rethink and find success in our reading habits, and to most importantly continue to foster the love of books and reading in my kids! FWIW, I adore your seasonal book guides and get so excited to load them all into my “for later” list at the library so I can put them on hold each month of that season. Seriously brings me (and my kids!) so much joy. My plan for 2025 is to use the poetry almanac! I am in the “reads literally every word” camp and am here for whatever you are up for sharing. Your hard work and passion does not go unnoticed!! Also, my kids are getting a lot of Can We Read? recs for Christmas—some that we loved so much from the library that we had to own them (Bee Bim Bop, Baby Goes to Market, Dogger, etc etc etc), some that I have a hunch we’re gonna love (Bear on a Bike, The Alfie and Annie Storybook Collection by Shirley Hughes, etc etc etc). In short, THANK YOU!
Grace, this makes my whole day. Thank you so much 🩷🩷
Reflection is always a beneficial exercise. And I send all the good vibes to getting that book into the world...!
Thanks, Amy!
Love this so much. I'm grateful for YOU.
Right back at you, friend.
P.S. I am wrapping TOOLS NOT RULES for my 5th grader’s teacher as we speak!
Eeeee!!! Oh my gosh, I’m gonna tell my cowriters and they’re gonna be so stoked!
Good luck with your book proposal, even if it feels detached! I’m heading back out into proposal land soon and the waiting can be brutal. Your attitude is inspiring! 💫
Thank you! It’s a blessing to have a full life with so much going on — extra good things are just a bonus.
Thank you for sharing your "failures" and your attitude toward them. It's what I needed to hear as I'm in the midst of Mom Olympics (also known as "the holidays"). I appreciate your candor, your honesty, your realness. And, yeah, the books are nice, too ;-)
As someone also in the midst of the Mom Olympics — having failed my children on multiple fronts this year, and not just as it relates to the December holidays, but other ones as well — all we can do is our best. What our children will remember is the love and the joy (and someday they’ll also probably understand all the effort). Hang in there.
Echoing the thanks for this work! Just about every book we've bought on your recommendation for my 2.5 year old has been a huge hit (like Jamberry, Bee Bim Bop, The Boy Who Wouldn't Go to Bed, and a bunch of your new sibling recs on your Bookshop page)! (Side note, the few that haven't are typically ones that she's just a bit too young for, I think -- fully expecting them to hit in the coming months and years!) I absolutely love your posts and your recs and I am so thankful for them. I loved to read as a child, still do, and these books are sparking the same love in my child. It's so nice to have some "off the beaten path," older, diverse, and/or just plain interesting books to add to our routine. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
This thrills me, Meredith. Thank you, and happy holidays to you and your family 🩷
At risk of sounding overly positive (is there such a thing?), I'm scratching my head at "failures." Staring around—in awe of you—and wondering what in tarnation you mean. What failure(s)? Where? How? What in G-d's Driftless Region could possibly be a failure of any part of your life of that of anyone reading this? It's a M-F'ing miracle that we get to live this life, and thank goodness for the parts that go and don't go our way. You are amazing, everyone is amazing, and thank you for continuing to put your essence into Al Gore's Internet.
As always, you see me in a better light then I see myself — and your words mean all the more because you more than anyone else see it ALL (as you know). Thank you, my dear, sweet friend.
I truly love this newsletter, I work in books and it's such a pleasure to read a newsletter where the true love of books shines through. I always find your recommendations so thoughtful and unique - we've found a few family favorites in your lists and I always recommend the newsletter to new and not-quite-so-new parents. I wish you the best for the holidays and the new year, thank you so much for all that you do!
Thank you so much! You too.
I am one of those who reads every word, passes on posts to others who will find them useful, and even post them on Social Media like my homeschooling page, where hopefully more eyeballs with both read, find encouragement and support! (I'm one of those old veterans now.)
Also...you never know when you'll come across a gem like this: "Anyone who claims they’re not failing in some way, often if not constantly, is either completely delulu or a total asshole and maybe even both." LOL
Cheers to your new year. <3
I truly appreciate your support (and sharing with your network—wow!) Happy holidays and a happy New Year!
I love your newsletter! It's such a good resource. I quibble with the word 'failure' because we are making this up as we go along and Substack is always changing. I personally lost a bunch of paid readers lately. Did I personally offend them? Did everyone's credit cards lapse? Or was Substack miscounting in the first place? I'd rather not know. (and just cross my fingers the money part will shake out somehow in the end.)
Happy New Year to you Sarah!
Thank you, Claire 🩷 Your kindness and support has meant so much. Happy New Year!
You are so incredible, Sarah. I am rooting for your (continued) success so hard. And I really appreciate your transparency. Brava, friend. Immensely grateful to have gotten to know you. Also, weirdly, this post showed up in my inbox today! Substack is being weird.
Thanks for all your encouragement and support this year, Sri 🩷
Sarah, you're incredible! I love how transparent you are. Even with mild success on Substack, I often think that it doesn't come close to how much time and money goes into making these articles happen every month. But I guess we do it for different reasons. My feelings toward this platform are not in a good place, but I am unsure what my next move is—probably more in-person stuff. Thank you for always providing well-written, helpful, and important posts for parents, children, teachers, librarians, etc.. And I'm sending you the best on your book proposal. What an accomplishment!
Thank you, Taylor 🩷 I am also not in a good place re: Substack and will probably make a move, it’s just a matter of when. And how. (Things I can figure out but that take time and focus and effort, all of which I don’t feel like spending right now.)
I deeply appreciate you 🙏
I love reading these honest behind-the-scenes posts from you! Thank you for another great year of recommendations in this category and major congratulations on getting to the point of submission with your future book!
Thank you!
Thank you, Sarah! People marvel that I still read to Blythe (almost 10) and Claire (6) every night and I can (and do) truthfully say it is the best part of my day. I love the stories, I love the connection it creates, and I love the conversations we have... and, of course, the closeness and snuggling. Thank you for providing so many interesting books to read. You're awesome!
Same, same. I’ll do it as long as they let me, even if that means🤞 I’m reading to high schoolers. You have been such a steadfast and supportive friend to me these years, Darcy — I hope you know how grateful I am to you and for you.
Thank you for continuing to publish this newsletter and try new things. It's been a joy to read your work. Your bookshop.org booklists are my go-to place for new books to check out at the library...I put a few books on hold mid-week, and then I know when we go to the library on Saturday we will have books that I'm excited about, in addition to our typical books about boa constrictors and dump trucks.
That makes me very happy, Michelle — thank you for your kind words and for using your library. Happy holidays to you and your family!