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Episode 39:
Chat With Two Librarians On What Makes Great Page Turns In Picture Books

Episode 39
00:00 / 01:04

Kat interviews librarians Amanda Bosky and Mary Ostrander about what makes for an engaging and page-turning children’s story - what captures the audience when a book is read out loud? Between the two of them, Amanda and Mary have read thousands of picture books, and by page spread three, if not sooner, they can tell if a story will be worth a share or not. Listen in as they discuss different tools an author can use to keep the reader turning the page, how to marry picture book text and illustrations, and other tips to keep kids and parents coming back to your story again and again.

Picture books mentioned in this episode:

Penelope Rex series by Ryan T. Higgins

Is Everyone Ready for Fun? by Jan Thomas

Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard

Baby Goes to Market by Atinuke

Guess Again! by Mac Barnett

A Big Mooncake for Little Star by Grace Lin

Exclamation Mark by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

Lola series by Anna McQuinn

Black is a Rainbow Color by Angela Joy

Julián is a Mermaid by Jessica Love

The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors by Drew Daywalt

Farmyard Beat by Lindsey Craig

Laundry Day by Jessixa Bagley

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Meet our guests

Amanda Bosky headshot.jpg

Amanda Bosky

Amanda Bosky is the Adult Services Librarian at the Stoughton Public Library near Madison, WI. Before moving to Adult Services, she was a Children's Librarian for many years. In her current position, she still gets to oversee Teen Services and enjoy the antics of the middle schoolers who hang out at her library every day after school. She loves to write middle grade and young adult novels that ask big questions with no easy answers.

Mary Ostrander headshot.jpg

Mary Ostrander

Mary Ostrander is the Children's Services Librarian at Stoughton Public Library. She loves performing picture books at story time, sharing graphic novels with elementary school kids, and reading horror, fantasy, and science fiction. When she's not at work, she is crafting, gaming, watching movies, and hanging out with her partner and 3 dogs.

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