News & Features

The director of the Florida Freedom to Read Project discusses expectations for 2024, plus a look at new book-related laws for 2024, a Massachusetts police chief apologizes for an officer searching for a book at middle school, and the story of a Russian librarian who called out the fascism of removing LGBTQIA+ books.

From censorship and AI to book fairs and the state of middle grade publishing, it's been an eventful year. Among those driving SLJ's most viewed posts of 2023: Jeff Kinney, Moms for Liberty, and stellar librarians. Ah, and those Best Books.

Remembering those who died this year.

A complaint to the police sent a plainclothes officer to the school in Great Barrington, MA, but Gender Queer was not there; hundreds of books get removed in a Florida district; and Books Save Lives Act was introduced in Congress.

From petting zoos to field trips, these initiatives forge strong ties with communities.

When it’s executed well, the unreliable narrator device can turn a story around in memorable and highly satisfying ways. Here are 13 stellar examples of recent books with narrators who mislead, misdirect, or even outright lie to readers, waiting for just the right moment to reveal the truth.

From intellectual freedom to AI, there was plenty to learn and discuss at the 2023 SLJ Summit in Atlanta. Here are just some of the ideas that came from those on panels and in breakout sessions.

These nine works for elementary students to teenagers use visual strategies to convey inner thoughts, feelings, and emotions. 

Panel discussions, breakout sessions, and candid conversations marked the 2023 SLJ Summit. Here are some pictures of the weekend in Atlanta, GA.