Wouldn't it be great if kids all over Nebraska were talking about books? The Nebraska Library Commission & the Regional Library Systems have a program where kids can all read and discuss the same book. And tell us what you think about the selections.

2023 One Book for Nebraska Kids

"The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich

This National Book Award finalist by Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Louise Erdrich is the first installment in an essential nine-book series chronicling 100 years in the life of one Ojibwe family, and includes beautiful interior black-and-white artwork done by the author.

She was named Omakayas, or Little Frog, because her first step was a hop. Omakayas and her family live on an island in Lake Superior. Though there are growing numbers of white people encroaching on their land, life continues much as it always has. But the satisfying rhythms of their life are shattered when a visitor comes to their lodge one winter night, bringing with him an invisible enemy that will change things forever—but that will eventually lead Omakayas to discover her calling. By turns moving and humorous, this novel is a breathtaking tour de force by a gifted writer.

The beloved and essential Birchbark House series by Louise Erdrich includes The Birchbark House, The Game of Silence, The Porcupine Year, Chickadee, and Makoons.

  • Find a copy of the book @ your library®—audio, eBook, and print editions.
  • Check out a Book Club Kit from the Nebraska Library Commission.
  • Discussion Prompts from Scholastics
  • Sounds of The Birchbark House
  • Lisa Harkrader

    About the Author: Louise Erdrich, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, is the author of twelve novels as well as volumes of poetry, children’s books, and a memoir of early motherhood. Louise Erdrich lives in Minnesota with her daughters and is the owner of Birchbark Books, a small independent bookstore. Learn more about Louise at https://www.harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/louise-erdrich

    Activities:
    Alphabet Soup
    Snowball Fight
    Tribes of Nebraska Map
    Mini Book Review Sheet



    2023 One Book for Nebraska Teens

    "Not If I Save You First" by Ally Carter

    Maddie thought she and Logan would be friends forever. But when your dad is a Secret Service agent and your best friend is the president's son, sometimes life has other plans. Before she knows it, Maddie's dad is dragging her to a cabin in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness. No phone.No Internet.And not a single word from Logan. Maddie tells herself it's okay. After all, she's the most popular girl for 20 miles in any direction. She has wood to cut and weapons to bedazzle. Her life is full.Until Logan shows up six years later . . . And Maddie wants to kill him. But before that can happen, an assailant appears out of nowhere, knocking Maddie off a cliff and dragging Logan to some unknown fate. Maddie knows she could turn back- and get help. But the weather is turning and the terrain will only get more treacherous, the animals more deadly. Maddie still really wants to kill Logan. But she has to save him first.

  • Find a copy of the book @ your library®—audio, eBook, and print editions.
  • Check out a Book Club Kit from the Nebraska Library Commission.
  • Discussion Guide from The Little By Little Home
  • Book Website
  • Ally Carter

    About the Author: Ally Carter is the New York Times bestselling author of the Gallagher Girls, Heist Society, and Embassy Row series. Not If I Save You First is her first stand-alone novel. Her books have been published all over the world, in over 20 languages. She grew up on a farm in Oklahoma and has never caused an international incident (to her knowledge).
    Learn more about Ally at www.allycarter.com

    Activities:
    Mad Libs
    Headbands Game
    Snowball Fight
    How to Make an Axe Throwing Game from I Like To Make Stuff
    Mini Book Review Sheet



    Beginning in 2013 we select both a One Book for Nebraska Kids and a One Book for Nebraska Teens every year. Prior to 2013 we alternated choosing titles. The "Kids" book is aimed at grades 4-6 or so and the "Teens" title is often aimed at high school age readers.

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    The Birchbark House

    Copyright: 2021
    Publisher: HarperCollins
    ISBN-13: 978-0063064164
    272 pages

    Get the book club kit

    "Omakayas and her family live on the island of the Golden Breasted Woodpecker in Lake Superior in 1847. Based on her own family history, Louise Erdrich has crafted a richly textured historical novel...In this carefully crafted story, we intimately feel the effect of the Westward Expansion of the United States from the point of view of a loving Ojibwa family. Listeners who prefer action to descriptive narration will find the pace slow. The first of a projected series of books, this audiobook will be a fine addition to school and public libraries."

    School Library Journal 

     

     

    Not if I Save You First

    Copyright: 2019
    Publisher: ‎ Scholastic Press
    ISBN-13: 978-1338134155
    304 pages

    Get the book club kit

    The son of the U.S. president and the daughter of a Secret Service agent wind up in a fight for their lives in this tense romantic thriller from Carter (the Embassy Row series). When they were young, Maddie Manchester was Logan’s only friend amid the isolation and strict protocols of the White House. But after her father was shot during an attempted abduction of the first lady, Maddie and her father moved to the wilderness of Alaska. For years, Maddie wrote Logan letters, but they went unanswered. So she’s furious when Logan’s antics get him sent to their tiny Alaskan cabin after six years of silence—she barely knows this suddenly tall (and handsome) boy. When Logan is kidnapped, Maddie—using her finely honed survival skills—sets out to rescue him so she can kill (or kiss) him herself. The characters are dynamic and engaging: Maddie’s hypercompetence and all-business attitude contrast deliciously with Logan’s jokey sarcasm. The teens’ childhood friendship evolves into a sweet romance, and the fast-paced thrills will keep readers up late.

    Publishers Weekley


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