Thankfulness is, in a world filled with uncertainty, undoubtedly knowing that there are those special people in your life who will always be there for you – no matter what, no questions asked. I am incrediboy thankful to have so many of those people in my life, and I could not imagine it without any of them.

Of course, I'm also thankful for other things.  I am thankful for the time I got to spend on this earth with my father, although it was cut much shorter than I ever expected. I am thankful for my mother's strength and determination while battling against cancer. I am thankful for being able to discover so many other parts of the world – and thus find my true self – so early in life. I am thankful that I have the opportunity to continue my education beyond four years of undergrad. I am thankful for my job at my local library. I am thankful that I found what I believe is my calling and purpose in life: to share the joy and importance of literacy with those who might not find it otherwise. 

And, of course, I am thankful for books.

Books can make all the difference in a person's life, and today seems like a good of day as any to share with you this list of books that proves reading can change lives. 

I, like many others, have food to eat and people to be with on this delicious day, so I'll leave you with that.
I'm wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving! May your lives, cups and bellies be full today and every other day of the year!

Last week, the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events, Daniel Handler – better known as Lemony Snicket – issued an apology after being blasted for making a racially insensitive comment about about a black author at the National Book Awards.

I have purposely omitted the racist remark in this blog post (you can click the above link for more details), but I think it's important to talk about how Handler handled the issue. Here's part of his public apology:

Handler did more than issue a rote apology on Twitter. He went on to pledge $10,000 of his own money to an online fund to diversify children’s literature (#WeNeedDiverseBooks), and offered to match contributors’ money for 24 hours up to $100,000. The campaign on Indiegogo, which has been running since October 23, has raised a total of $170,574 as of today.

I have seen more race-related hate broadcast on social and professional media than ever before in the wake of yesterday's grand jury ruling in the Michael Brown case. And in efforts of sending some much needed positivity into the world, I think it's important to highlight the proactive actions taken by Handler and to celebrate what makes us difference instead of allowing it to further divide us. 

According to The Guardian, "of the 3,200 children’s books published in 2013, only 93 were about black people, 34 about Native Americans, 69 about Asians and 57 about Latinos." 

Talk about misrepresentative. 

The British newspaper put out a list of the 50 best culturally diverse children's books earlier in October, and I think it's extremely important to share that list with you. 

So much of what individuals think today is shaped by what they see and learn as children. When you share diverse books with kids from a young age, you are helping foster a better childhood understanding of what the world is like for other groups of people in other parts of the world. Besides reading, I can think of few things that have that sort of power. 

So without any further ado, here are some of my favorites from The Guardian's list that I hope you share with the children in your life. Books can make all sorts of differences for kids, but their ability to help create more understanding when it comes to diversity is possibly one of their most important capabilities.

To view The Guardian's full list of the top 50 diverse children's books, click here. To show your support for diversity in literature, please use #WeNeedDiverseBooks on social media or donate to the Indiegogo page.

With under a week left in its Kickstarter campaign, the Russell family is trying to finish fundraising $35,000 to write and illustrate The ABC's of Activism, a book aiming to inspire children to be activists.

As one of the founding members behind the nonprofit Invisible Children, Jason Russell has teamed up with his wife, Danica, to create a book empowering children to start thinking about kindness and pro-active problem solving from a young age.

"We wanted to write this book for our own children, Gavin Danger & Everley Darling, as a way of explaining to them what we believe is worth fighting for, while teaching and empowering them to do the same. That they may realize: We are doing our best as parents – to give them the world, and we are doing our best as people – to make that world something worth having," wrote the couple on the project's Kickstarter page. 

The couple goes on to explain that, "after spending over a decade teaching people to fight injustice by taking action, we decided to write about our lessons learned, in the form of a fun children’s book. It is our hope that this book will also prompt questions, conversations, (and more!) in your home."

I have had the pleasure of meeting Jason and listening to him speak on multiple occasions, and I cannot say enough about how wonderful he is. He's a dreamer – and more importantly, a doer – in a world where people consistently tell you to play it safe and go with the norm. The fact that he has found a way to incorporate his whole family into this project is truly a statement of his character.


 Jason and Danica have decided to create this book without using a publisher because they, "believe a book about grassroots needs be grassroots," and I couldn't agree more.

If you could spare any amount of money, this is an excellent and extremely important project to support. Not only is it a children's book (which I obviously love), but the book has a message that I think is grossly underrepresented in books – for all ages – in today's literary world. 

The Russells still have six more days to raise the remaining $11,748 to meet their fundraising goal. To help fund this project and show your support, click here.

When I was a little girl, there was nothing I looked forward to more than the Scholastic Book Fair. Getting to flip through the magazine with my mom and circling which books I wanted was better than Christmas. So when I found out in March that I would be working at Scholastic as a publishing intern this past summer, you could only imagine my excitement. After all, working at Scholastic is was rekindled my love for children's books and ultimately inspired me to become a public librarian. 

Even just being at Scholastic was incredible. I was surrounded by people like me all day – people who love books; people who dedicate their lives to promoting childhood literacy. Toward the end of my internship, Scholastic's CEO Dick Robinson announced that company would be launching a new mission statement, "Open a World of Possible," and I instantly became even more proud to work there.

'"Open a World of Possible points to independent reading as a doorway to imagination and discovery – 
a way to motivate children to read and learn and realize themselves,'" said Robinson in his message about the new mission statement on the Scholastic website.

Open a World of Possible and the idea that it encapsulates is reflected in massive amounts of research. But simply launching a new mission statement isn't enough, and Scholastic knows that. That's why they've started a new social media campaign to promote their message using the hashtag, #sharepossible.

Scholastic is encouraging people to participate in the social media campaign on its website, stating:

"Open a World of Possible drives social engagement in classrooms, at home and online, so teachers, 
parents and children can connect and share the pleasure of reading with each other. We’re connecting 
and enabling you to help each other by sharing your best ideas and advice – like favorite books and 
authors, ideas for read alouds, creative reading experiences – all the wonderful and inventive ways you 
are encouraging independent reading in your classroom and at home. Share your best ideas and advice 
at #sharepossible."

This revamped and updated mission statement reminds me that there are so many likeminded people out there who see the value in inspiring children to love reading. It reminds me why I am doing what I'm doing. It makes me hopeful, it makes me proud, and it makes me want to go pick up a book. So I think I'll leave you with an extended excerpt about the mission statement and go and do just that.

Have you ever been to a bookstore that just completely blew your mind? I'm not talking about Barnes & Nobel here, folks – I'm talking small, local and independent bookstores.

I recently saw this BuzzFeed Books article called "44 Great American Bookstores Every Book Lover Must Visit," and it got me thinking about some of the most unique and interesting bookstores I've ever been to.

Number one on my personal list of favorites is probably City Lights Books in San Francisco – a bookstore and publishing house that I had the pleasure of visiting for the first time back in September. City Lights is best known for publishing Allen Ginsberg's "Howl" and defending the work against obscenity charges in a high-profile legal case in the '50s. The eclectic bookstore sits across the alley from Vesuvio Café, a bar where high-profile writers such as Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Dylan Thomas and more used to get drunk and write (sounds like a pretty good time to me)!

Complete with an entire upstairs floor dedicated to poetry alone, City Lights is definitely a must-visit bookstore on the Golden Coast. One of the best things about the store is its attitude – which is so easily reflected in its second-floor windows, as seen in the photo below.

Another one of my favorite independent bookstores is much closer to home. NovelTea Bookstore, located located at 5700 6th Ave. in the heart of downtown Kenosha, Wis., combines two of my favorite things: books and tea! 

The small local business offers great deals on used and new books, as well as fresh and delicious looseleaf tea and tea accessories (last time I was there I had an amazing plum oolong, which I highly recommend). Another plus about the shop? You can donate your "unwanted" or already-read books to the store to get a hefty discount off your next purchase! 

What are some of your favorite bookstores? Share them with me in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter using #TessaFoxReads. 

It's that time of year again: the Goodreads Choice Awards! With the semifinal round now open for voting, I spent my morning hours researching the contenders and casting my ballots. 

If you're unfamiliar with Goodreads and its Choice Awards, let me catch you up to speed. Goodreads is a social cataloging website and every book lover's dream. The site allows you search an extensive user-populated database of books, annotations and reviews. You can sign up and register books to generate library catalogs and reading lists, or create your own groups of book suggestions and discussions. Sounds pretty stellar, right? Right!

The Goodreads Choice Awards is an annual contest where Goodreads users vote on their favorite books in a variety of categories. Historically, the winners of the contest go on to be extremely successful, but who is to say whether it's causation or correlation? Here's a few of this year's nominees and their categories.

This year's competition brought a slew of new books onto my radar (and onto my to-read list)! Here are the stories I hope to see in the next round of voting. To learn more about each book, simply click the title below. I'll let you read the description for yourself – maybe you'll discover why I selected these nominees! Have any favorites of your own? Share them with me in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter using #TessaFoxReads. Happy voting! 

FICTION:
The Pearl that Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi

MYSTERY & THRILLER: 
The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

HISTORIAL FICTION: 
Dollbaby by Laura Lane McNeal

FANTASY: 
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

ROMANCE: 
Transcendence by Shay Savage

SCIENCE FICTION: 
California by Edan Lepucki

HORROR: 
Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix

HUMOR: 
Not That Kind of Girl: A Young Woman Tells You What She's "Learned" by Lena Dunham

NONFICTION: 
The Underground Girls of Kabul: In Search of a Hidden Resistance in Afghanistan by Jenny Nordberg

MEMOIR & AUTOBIOGRAPHY: 
My Salinger Year by Joanna Rakoff

HISTORY & BIOGRAPHY: 
Elephant Company: The Inspiring Story of an Unlikely Hero and the Animals Who Helped Him Save Lives in World War II by Vicki Croke

BUSINESS BOOKS: 
The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change by Adam Braun

FOOD & COOKBOOKS: 
Eating Wildly: Foraging for Life, Love and the Perfect Meal by Ava Chin

GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS: 
Tomboy: A Graphic Memoir by Liz Prince

POETRY: 
Motherland Fatherland Homelandsexuals by Patricia Lockwood

DEBUT GOODREADS AUTHORS: 
Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

YOUNG ADULT FICTION: 
I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

YOUNG ADULT FANTASY & SCIENCE FICTION: 
Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

MIDDLE GRADE & CHILDREN'S: 
El Deafo by Cece Bell

PICTURE BOOKS: 
What Do You Do with an Idea? by Kobi Yamada

As I'm sure you've realized by now, children's books have a special place in my heart (and on my bookshelf)! Children's books are what got me hooked on literature as a youngster, and I couldn't be more thankful to have found my passion for reading so early in life.

When it comes to children's books, I often chose my childhood favorites not because of the words on the pages, but the pictures that accompanied them. Picture books are so important because they're oftentimes what get children interested in books before they're old enough to read for themselves. Plus, picture books are a great way for parents and children to interact with each other while doing something that is fun, inexpensive and educational.

Since November is National Picture Book Month, I'd like to share my top five favorites with you!

What are some of your favorite picture books and why? Share them with me in the comments, on Facebook or on Twitter by using #TessaFoxReads.

Tessa Fox Reads is a proud Picture Book Month Ambassador. Visit picturebookmonth.com to learn more.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends all parents should read to children from birth, but the group also says children under two should not spend any time in front of a screen. With the eReader craze in full effect, are some of these messages getting mixed?

Last month The New York Times ran an article questioning how toddlers are being read to and what sort of effects different methods have longterm. The answer? There isn't one – yet.

Because of the newness of digital readers and tablets, not enough data exists on the subject, according to The New York Times. It is for that reason that the American Academy of Pediatrics intentionally did not mention eBooks when issuing its statement in June about the importance of reading from birth.

'"There’s a lot of interaction when you’re reading a book with your child,"' as Pediatrician Dr. Pamela High was quoted saying in The Times. '"You’re turning pages, pointing at pictures, talking about the story. Those things are lost somewhat when you’re using an eBook."'

App developers claim the interactivity of tablets help children pick up language skills faster, but according to the article, researchers in a 2013 study found children ages 3 to 5 who were read to from an eBook had lower reading comprehension than children whose parents used traditional books.

The Times article goes on to discuss both sides of the argument, but ultimately says that children learn language best when they are being talked with, not talked at. So until there is any concrete data proving otherwise, I'm going to go ahead and say good, old-fashioned books win this battle, once again. 

For me, the best part of the article came at the end, and it is a point that only further pushes me to continue on my path of public librarianship:

'"Lilly definitely has an iPad, and there are education apps she uses," Amy Reid, a publicist at CNBC, said of her 4-year-old. "But for her, there is nothing like the excitement of choosing her own book and bringing it home from the library."'