Kid & Tween Zone

Welcome to the Kid & Tween Zone!

Your library is just as awesome as you are — and that's really awesome! We have tons of books, movies, and music to check out. We have super fun programs, online storytimes, and take-home maker kits. Read our blog for exciting new subjects, a virtual makerspace, book recommendations and more.

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Request a Mystery Bag

Do you want to be surprised with awesome books, movies and audiobooks from our Youth Services staff members? Kid's Mystery Bags are sets of materials (books, audiobooks, DVDs, music CDs, etc.) catered towards your child.

  • Available for babies to 8th grade
  • 5 items in each bag, limit one bag per child per week

Just call with your library card handy, let us know the age of your child/children, and we will put together a bag of materials for you, specially picked by our awesome YS team! Once your bag is ready to go, you will get a call to pick it up during curbside hours.

You can reserve your Mystery Bag by calling us at 815-485-2605, press 5 to be connected to Youth Services.

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The Library has so many ways to help you with your homework — even online! Visit the library to talk to staff, search our catalog for books, and visit our Homework Help page for awesome online resources.

Need more resources? Check out all of our digital services at A–Z Online Resources.

This Just In!

February 21–27

The wonderful things you will be / Emily Winfield Martin.
Seven golden rings : a tale of music and math / by Rajani LaRocca ; illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan.
One summer up north / John Owens.
We will rock our classmates / Ryan T. Higgins.
Cityscape : where science and art meet / April Pulley Sayre.
Dads / John Coy ; photographs by Wing Young Huie.
Champ and Major : first dogs / by Joy McCullough ; illustrated by Sheyda Abvabi Best.
Freda and the blue beetle / by Sophie Gilmore.
Good-bye, winter! Hello, spring! / Kazuo Iwamura ; English translation by David Henry Wilson.
You are never alone / written by Elin Kelsey ; artwork by Soyeon Kim.
Two dogs on a trike / by Gabi Snyder ; illustrated by Robin Rosenthal.
A thousand no's / written by DJ Corchin ; illustrated by Dan Dougherty.
Porcupine Cupid / by Jason June ; illustrated by Lori Richmond.
Danbi leads the school parade / by Anna Kim.
The boy and the gorilla / Jackie Az{u00FA}a Kramer ; illustrated by Cindy Derby.
Eva in the spotlight / Rebecca Elliott.
Blue's clues & you!. Blue's sing-along spectacular
Ty's travels : zip, zoom! / by Kelly Starling Lyons ; pictures by Nina Mata.
Chancho el pug / Aaron Blabey ; translated by Juan Pablo Lombana.
Wash your hands! / Pinkfong.
Paw patrol.
The name jar / Yangsook Choi.
You are (not) small by Anna Kang ; illustrated by Christopher Weyant.

February 14–20

The eighty-dollar champion : the true story of a horse, a man, and an unstoppable dream / Elizabeth Letts.
Making their voices heard : the inspiring friendship of Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe / words by Vivian Kirkfield ; art by Alleanna Harris.
Breaking through : how female athletes shattered stereotypes in the roaring twenties / Sue Macy ; forwarded by Muffet McGraw.
Modern art explorer : with 30 artworks from the Centre Pompidou / Alice Harman ; illustrated by Serge Bloch.
Disney villains : the essential guide to the evilest of them all / written by Glenn Dakin and Victoria Saxon.
It's a numbers game! : basketball : the math behind the perfect bounce pass, the buzzer-beating bank shot, and so much more! / James Buckley, Jr. ; foreword by NBA superstar Kobe Bryant.
Learn to draw Marvel Avengers.
Music and how it works : the complete guide for kids / written by Charlie Morland ; illustrated by David Humphries.
Music is... / words, sounds & pictures by Stephen T Johnson.
Turn it up! : a pitch-perfect history of music that rocked the world / Joel Levy.
Enchanted treasury / [written by Julia March].
Cute food : step-by-step / Isobel Lundie.
Cute mythical creatures : step-by-step / Isobel Lundie.
Tigerbot saves the day! / adapted by Kristen L. Depken ; illustrated by Donald Cassity.
Nitro Circus : scooter / editor, Jordie R. Orlando ; text by Carrie Bolin.
Weather : all true and unbelievable / editor, Jordie R. Orlando ; writer Korynn Freels.
Misty Copeland : principal ballerina / Heather E. Schwartz.
I am! : affirmations for resilience / Bela Barbosa ; [illustrated by] Edel Rodriguez.
The tale of the Mandarin duck : a modern fable / story by Bette Midler ; photographs and afterward by Michiko Kakutani ; with illustrations by Joana Avillez.
A family for Faru / Anitha Rao-Robinson ; illustrations by Karen Patkau.
A sweet meeting on Mimouna night / Allison Ofanansky ; illustrated by Rotem Teplow.
The secret of the tattered shoes / Jackie Morris, Ehsan Abdollahi.
Spectacular adventures! 3 books in 1 (Falcon: fight or flight, Star-Lord: knowhere to run, and Ant-Man: zombie repellent) / by Chris Doc Wyatt
Blaze and the monster machines. Nickelodeon.
Sesame Street. Things Elmo loves.
Ricky zoom.
Ride with Ricky presented by Entertainment One.
Best of Peppa Pig
Lena & Snowball Grindstone Entertainment Group presents ; Koch Films presents ; an Almost Never Films production ; producers, Sebastian Brummer, Werner Kienberger, Danny Roth, Jamie R. Thompson ; story by Sebastian Brummer & Werner Kienberger ; written by Sean Michael Arogo and B. Dave Walters ; director, Brian Herzlinger.
Shimmer and Shine.
Peek-a-who? / by Nina Laden.
Brave Little Camper saves Christmas! / written by Holly Berry-Byrd ; illustrated by Jen Taylor.
Where is baby's valentine? : a lift-the-flap book / Karen Katz.
Think big, little one / Vashti Harrison.
Llama Llama I love you / Anna Dewdney.
The very hungry caterpillar's snowy hide & seek : a finger trail lift-the-flap book / Eric Carle.
Do cows meow? : a lift-the-flap book / [text and illustrations] Salina Yoon.
ABCs of kindness / by Samantha Berger ; illustrated by Ekaterina Trukhan.
ABC dance! : an animal alphabet / story by Sabrina Moyle ; pictures by Eunice Moyle.
The stone giant / Anna H{u00F6}glund ; [translation, Julia Marshall].
From my window / written by Ot{u00E1}vio J{u00FA}nior ; illustrated by Vanina Starkoff ; translated by Beatriz C. Dias.
Your house, my house / Marianne Dubuc.
This is baby / Jimmy Fallon ; illustrated by Miguel Ord{u00F3}{u00F1}ez.
Do cats moo? / Salina Yoon.
Do crocs kiss? / Salina Yoon.
The paper boat / Thao Lam.
Do sharks bark? / Salina Yoon.
Pajama time! / by Sandra Boynton.
A last goodbye / written by Elin Kelsey ; artwork by Soyeon Kim.
The little ghost who lost her boo! / words by Elaine Bickell ; illustrations by Raymond McGrath.
When Molly drew dogs / written by Deborah Kerbel ; illustrated by Lis Xu.
I promise / written by LeBron James ; illustrated by Nina Mata.
Eyes that kiss in the corners / by Joanna Ho ; illustrated by Dung Ho.
Little Bear's treasures / Stella Dreis.
A is for awesome : 23 iconic women who changed the world / written by Eva Chen ; illustrated by Derek Desierto.
Sense & sensibility : an opposites primer / Jennifer Adams ; art by Alison Oliver.
Addy's cup of sugar / a Stillwater story by Jon J. Muth.
Old MacDonald had a farm / Jane Cabrera.
Hand, hand, fingers, thumb / by Al Perkins ; illustrated by Eric Gurney.
Clean-up time / by Elizabeth Verdick ; illustrated by Marieka Heinlen.
Feet are not for kicking / by Elizabeth Verdick ; illustrated by Marieka Heinlen.
Words are not for hurting / by Elizabeth Verdick ; illustrated by Marieka Heinlen.
Bye, penguin! / Seou Lee.
Teeth are not for biting / by Elizabeth Verdick ; illustrated by Marieka Heinlen.
Manners time / by Elizabeth Verdick ; illustrated by Marieka Heinlen.
Kamala and Maya's big idea / by Meena Harris ; illustrated by Ana Ram{u00ED}rez Gonz{u00E1}lez.
Voices are not for yelling / Elizabeth Verdick ; illustrated by Marieka Heinlen.
One happy tiger / by Catherine Rayner.
Chicky chicky chook chook / illustrated by Cathy MacLennan.
Over the moon / by James Proimos ; illustrated by Zoey Abbott.
Around the world in 80 Days : a transportation primer / by Jennifer Adams ; art by Alison Oliver.
Mayhem at the museum : a book in pictures / illustrated by Luciano Lozano.
Goodnight bear / Joshua George; illustrated by Zhanna Ovocheva.
Play with paint! / Jenny Pinkerton.
Play with clay / Jenny Pinkerton.
Raj's rule (for the bathroom at school) / by Lana Button ; illustrated by Hatem Aly.
Oona / words by Kelly DiPucchio ; pictures by Raissa Figueroa.
Arlo : the lion who couldn't sleep / Catherine Rayner.
Shy Willow / Cat Min.
The suitcase / Chris Naylor-Ballesteros.
Boo! / this book made by Lindsey Sagar, Aim{u00E9}e Chapman, Hannah Cockayne, and Kylie Hamley.
I love you to the moon and back / text by Amelia Hepworth ; illustrated by Tim Warnes.
How do dinosaurs stay friends? / Jane Yolen ; illustrated by Mark Teague.
Cool cuts / written & illustrated by Mechal Renee Roe.
Mom's sweater / Jayde Perkin.
I always wanted one / Olivier Tallec.
How do dinosaurs stay friends? / Jane Yolen ; illustrated by Mark Teague.
The seedling that didn't want to grow / Britta Teckentrup.
Meesha makes friends / Tom Percival.
Unstoppable! / written by Adam Rex ; illustrated by Laura Park.
Dandelion's dream / Yoko Tanaka.
Jabari tries / Gaia Cornwall.

February 7–13

The beast and the Bethany Jack Meggitt-Phillips ; illustrated by Isabelle Follath.
Survival in the wilderness by Steven Otfinoski.
Just like Rube Goldberg : the incredible true story of the man behind the machines / written by Sarah Aronson ; illustrated by Robert Neubecker.
Little seeds / by Charles Ghigna ; illustrated by Ag Jatkowska.
Nancy and the nice list / adapted by Krista Tucker ; based on the episode written by Andy Guerdat ; illustrated by the Disney Storybook Art Team.
Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! / by Bob Barner.
When pumpkins fly / by Margaret Lawrence ; illustrated by Amanda Sandland and Margaret Lawrence.
Sugar in milk / by Thrity Umrigar ; illustrated by Khoa Le.
There's a skeleton inside you! / Idan Ben-Barak and Julian Frost.
No reading allowed : the worst read-aloud book ever : a confusing collection of hilarious homonyms and sound-alike sentences / Raj Haldar & Chris Carpenter ; pictures by Bryce Gladfelter.
Puppy in my head : a book about mindfulness / Elise Gravel.
The runaway no-wheeler / by Peter Stein ; illustrated by Bob Staake.
A fort on the Moon / by Maggie Pouncey ; pictures by Larry Day.
Kitty's cuddles / Jane Cabrera.
Attack of the underwear dragon / written by Scott Rothman ; illustrations by Pete Oswald.
Together / Charles Fuge.
Moose, Goose, and Mouse / by Mordicai Gerstein ; illustrated by Mordicai Gerstein and Jeff Mack.
Bedtime for Superheroes / written by Katherine Locke ; illustrated by Rayanne Vieira.
Emergency Monster Squad / by Dave Horowitz.
Tomorrow I'll be brave / words & pictures by Jessica Hische.
The alphabet's alphabet / written by Chris Harris ; art by Dan Santat.
Blanket : journey to extreme coziness / Loryn Brantz.
Smashy town / by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino.
From Archie to Zack / written and illustrated by Vincent X. Kirsch.
Bedtime for Albie / Sophie Ambrose.
The boy who loved everyone / Jane Porter ; illustrations by Maisie Paradise Shearring.
No nap! yes nap! / by Margie Palatini ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino.
The most amazing bird / written by Michael Arvaarluk Kusugak ; illustrated by Andrew Qappik, CM.
Ma{u00F1}analand / Pam Mu{u00F1}oz Ryan ; translated by Alberto Jim{u00E9}nez Rioja.
El tren del zoo/ Wild Zoo Train
Selena : Reina de la m{u00FA}sica Tejana / Silvia Lopez ; ilustrado por Paola Escobar ; traducido por Nuria Mendoza.
The mitten : a Ukrainian folktale / adapted and illustrated by Jan Brett.
Beach day! / by Candice Ransom ; illustrated by Erika Meza.
Amo el rosa! / Frances Gilbert ; traducci{u00F3}n de Polo Orozco ; ilustrado por Eren Unten.
Eating the alphabet : fruits and vegetables from A to Z / by Lois Ehlert.
The most beautiful thing / Kao Kalia Yang ; illustrated by Khoa Le.
The best worst poet ever / Lauren Stohler.
I talk like a river / words by Jordan Scott ; pictures by Sydney Smith.
Now you see me, now you don't / by Patricia Hegarty ; illustrated by Jonny Lambert.
The Passover guest / written by Susan Kusel ; illustrated by Sean Rubin.
Animals brag about their bottoms / Maki Saito ; translated by Brian Bergstrom.
Let's play monsters! / Lucy Cousins.
The couch potato / written by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald.
The Hanukkah magic of Nate Gadol / Arthur A. Levine ; illustrated by Kevin Hawkes.

February 1–6

Pokémon 4Ever
Archaeology for kids digging up the past.
Wum und Bum und die Damen ding dong
Kick it, Mo! / by David A. Adler ; illustrated by Sam Ricks.
Elephants / Avery Elizabeth Hurt.
Read all about cats / by Jaclyn Jaycox.
School around the world / by Mary Meinking.
Veo avispas / por Genevieve Nilsen.
Dogs / by Joanne Mattern.
Welders / by Gary Sprott.
Food around the world / by Wil Mara.
Mechanics / by Gary Sprott.
Octopuses / by Joanne Mattern.
Monsters / by Ruth Owen.
Should the voting age be lowered? / Leslie Beckett.
Respect / by Amber Bullis, MLIS.
If you like exploring, adventuring, or teamwork games, try this! / Daniel Maule{u00F3}n.
Mallory Pugh : World Cup champion / by Matt Chandler.
Street fair / by Julie Murray.
Sonic the Hedgehog music from the motion picture / music by Tom Holkenborg.
Sammy Keyes and the power of Justice Jack / by Wendelin Van Draanen.
Sammy Keyes and the killer cruise / Wendelin Van Draanen ; jacket art and interior illustrations by Dan Yaccarino.
Sammy Keyes and the Sisters of Mercy / Wendelin Van Draanen.
Ziji and the very scary man / Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche and Torey Hayden ; illustrated by Charity Larrison.
Girls' lacrosse fun / by Imogen Kingsley.
Boys' lacrosse fun / by Imogen Kingsley.
Filipino children's favorite stories : fables, myths and fairy tales / retold by Liana Romulo ; illustrated by Joanne De Leon.
Bearded dragons / by Jaclyn Jaycox.
Surviving social media : shut down the haters / by Eric Braun ; consultant Matthew Meyers.
HVAC Techs / by Gary Sprott.
Listening / by Mari Schuh.
Have no fear! Halloween is here! / by Tish Rabe ; based on a television script by Patrick Granleese ; illustrated by Tom Brannon.
Matthew Henson / by A.M. Reynolds.
Susan B. Anthony / by Laura K. Murray.
Dorothy Vaughan : NASA's leading human computer / by Deirdre R.J. Head.
Facing bullying / by Stephanie Finne.
You can be kind, Pout-Pout Fish! / Deborah Diesen ; pictures by Greg Paprocki, based on illustrations created by Dan Hanna.
Farm machines / by Tessa Kenan.
Clean it up! / by Mary Boone.
10-minute drawing projects / by Christopher Harbo ; illustrated by Lucy Makuc.
Roller bears / by Eric Seltzer ; illustrated by Tom Disbury.
Interrupting Cow / by Jane Yolen ; illustrated by Jo{u00EB}lle Dreidemy.
Rocking the tide / by Jane Yolen ; illustrated by Mike Moran.
Pete the cat : Super Pete / by Kimberly & James Dean.
Clark the Shark gets a pet / written by Bruce Hale ; illustrated by Guy Francis.
25 women who protected their country / by Emma Carlson Berne.
I love being me! / written and illustrated by Mechal Renee Roe.
I love pink! / by Frances Gilbert ; illustrated by Eren Unten.
Double the dinosaurs / by Diana Murray ; illustrated by Mette Engell.
The Evil Princess vs. the Brave Knight take turns / by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm.
I love my grandma! / by Frances Gilbert ; illustrated by Sue DiCicco.
Ty's travels : all aboard! / by Kelly Starling Lyons ; pictures by Nina Mata.
Fly Guy presents : insects / Tedd Arnold.
The Polar Express Castle Rock Entertainment presents in association with Shangri-La Entertainment, a Playtone/ImageMovers/Golden Mean production ; a Robert Zemeckis film ; produced by Steve Starkey ... [and others] ; screenplay by Robert Zemeckis & William Broyles, Jr. ; directed by Robert Zemeckis.