Libby Inductions: Now that the s1s have received their iPads, we visited s1 English classes to deliver Libby inductions. Pupils were given their library card numbers and given step by step instructions on how to access and navigate the eBook app suing their School Library cards.  Pupils loved the ease of access and range of topics and genres available on the app. For more information, visits the Glasgow Life Libraries Libby page.

Black History Month: We compiled scores of books by Black British authors as part of an S3s English reading project for Black History Month. Pupils were presented with a range of fiction and nonfiction books for junior, Young Adult, and Senior audiences to select from.

Pupil Library Committee: Our new Pupil Library Committee recruits successfully completed their first task of helping to process a huge six-box delivery. They helped stamped the date labels with the school library logo, sorted and arranged each book according to genre or subject, and helped shelved the books into the appropriate places.

Creative Writing Contest: Our Creative Writing Contest submission date was the 31^st October, and we received six excellent entries from pupils across all year groups. They have been handed over to our pupil judges who will select and announce the winner come Monday, 18^th November during Book Week Scotland.

 

New Book Highlights

The History of the Computer: People, Inventions, and Technology That Changed Our World by Rachel Ignotofsky

The Secret World of Plants: Tales of More Than 100 Remarkable Flowers, Trees, and Seeds by Ben Hoare

Lonely Planet Kids The Ocean Book: Explore The Hidden Depth of Our Blue Planet by Derek Harvey

 

Books of the day

02.10.24: Black Artists Shaping the World by Sharna Jackson

04.10.24: Dragonracers by Peter Bunzl, illustrated by Lia Visrin

07.10.24: Horrible Histories: Ghosts by Terry Deary, Illustrated by Martin Brown

09.10.24: Hidden Figures: the True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Shetterly

11.10.24: Kemosha of the Caribbean by Alex Wheatle

21.10.24: Wrath by Marcus Sedgewick

23.10.24: An Illustrated History of Ghosts by Adam Allsuch Boardman

25.10.24: Science Museum: The Book of Discoveries: Incredible Breakthroughs That Changed the World by Time Cooke and Drew Bardana

28.10.24: Black and British: An Illustrated History by David Olusoga, Illustrated by Melleny Taylor

30.10.24: Haunted Dolls by Martha London

 

Author of the Week:

01.10.24: Tom Mitchell

07.10.24: Ross Welford

21.10.24: Gill Lewis

28.10.24: Efua Traore

 

Series of the Week

01.10.24: Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

07.10.24: My laugh Out Loud Life by Burhana islam

21.10.24: Strangeworlds Detective Agency by LD Lapinski

28.10.24: Thousand Worlds by Yoon Ha Lee

 

Literary and Cultural Celebration Book Lists and Displays for October

Dyslexia Awareness Week Scotland (Sept 20^th – Oct 6^th)

World Space Week (Oct 4^th – 10^th)

Black History Month (Throughout October)

Mental Health Day (Oct 10^th)

Diwali (Oct 31^st)

Halloween/Samhain (Oct 31^st – Nov 1^st)

Trending Book Lists:

Epic Reads New Releases | The Guardian Children’s Book Roundup | LoveReading4Kids Books of the Month | Scholastic Books of the Month | Scottish Book Trust Book Lists |Toppsta Monthly Highlights | Waterstones Books of the Month

Book Awards

Winners: Diverse Book Awards | Forward Prizes for Poetry | Polari Prizes

Shortlist: Baillie Gifford Prize for Nonfiction

With the Library back into full swing after last month’s S1 Library inductions, it has been one of the busiest months to date! We’ve issued over 700 books to our BGE classes this month alone.

Creative Writing Competition: We’re receiving some excellent piece for our Quills Creative Writing Competition on the theme of ‘Hope’ and/or ‘Scotland’. The winners will be selected by our Pupil Library Committee panel judges and announced during Book Week Scotland.

New Book Highlights:

The Djinns Apple by Djamila Morani

Girl, Goddess, Queen by Bea Fitrzgerald

 

Book of the Day:

02.09: Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell

04.09: Sky Dancer by Gill Lewis

06.09: The Big Ask by Simon James Green

09.09: Cat Kid Comic Club by Dav Pilkey

11.09: Hijab and Red Lipstick by Yousra Imran

13.09: The Upper World by Femi Fadugba

16.09: Meesh the Bad Demon by Michelle Lam

18.09: Kane Rules by Simon Mugford

20.09: We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal

23.09: Usborne Politics for Beginners by Rosie Hore, Alex Firth, and Louie Stowell

25.09: Super Fake Love Song by David Yoon

 

Author of the Week:

WB 2^nd: Brittney Morris

WB 9^th: Elizabeth Wein

WB 16^th: Nick Lake

WB 23^rd:  Kacen Callander

 

Series of the Week:

WB 2^nd: Daevabad by SA Chakraborty

WB 9^th: Enemy by Charlie Higon

WB 16^th: Train to Impossible Places by PG Bell

WB 23^rd:  Imposters by Scott Westerfeld

 

Literary and Cultural Celebration Book Lists for September:

East and South East Asian Heritage Month: September is East and South East Asian (ESEA) Heritage Month with the aim to celebrate and honour people of ESEA heritage and their culture, and everything in between.

Trending Book Lists:

Epic Reads New Releases | The Guardian Children’s Book Roundup | LoveReading4Kids Books of the Month | Scholastic Books of the Month | Scottish Book Trust Book Lists |Toppsta Monthly Highlights | Waterstones Books of the Month

 

Recent Awards: UK book award winners, shortlists, and longlists

Winners: Klaus Flugge Prize, McIlvanney Prize Scottish Crime Book of the Year, Wainwright Prize, The Week Junior Book Awards

Shortlist: Booker Prize

Longlist: UKLA Book Award

 

Book Buzz: Latest book news from major media outlets and websites

BBC | Book Riot | Buzzfeed | Epic Reads | The Guardian | Huffpost

 

S1 Inductions: What a delight it was to meet all the new S1s in our library inductions this year! We managed to cover all 10 of our S1 English classes in August meaning as of September, we can begin our regular book borrowing periods. Throughout August, our S1s have borrowed 160+ books for class and personal reading.

Reading Challenges: We’re launching three reading challenges this year. Bookopoly encourages pupils to read out with their comfort zone, challenging them to select books on different themes and genres they wouldn’t normally choose. Pupils have a chance for their names to be enter into a quarterly prize draw when the book is read and returned. Our 4 Word Book Review slips are a super easy way to get pupils to review and recommend books using only four words to describe the book. Each completed slip earns and entry into the quarterly prize draw. We’ve brought back Ask Me What I’m Reading challenge to encourage discussion around books and reading for leisure. Each completed form earns an entry into the prize draw.

Creative Writing Competition: The School Librarian is collaborating with the members of the Pupil Library Committee on launching our Quills Creative Writing Competition. We’re accepting any form of creative writing, maximum 500 words on the theme of ‘Scotland’ and/or ‘Hope’. Deadline is Friday, November 1^st.  Senior members of our Pupil Library Committee are judging the competition and we’ll announce the winner and three runner ups on Monday, 18^th November during Book Week Scotland.

AHE Gale Literature Resource Centre Workshop: We visited Miss McDonald’s Advanced Higher English class to deliver the Gale Literature Resource Centre workshop to help them with their upcoming dissertation. Gale Literature Resource Centre provides up-to-date biographical information, overview, full-text literary criticism and reviews for 13K+ writers, offering high quality source of information useful for Advanced Higher English pupils. Glasgow Libraries subscribes to Gale and pupils can access the resources with their school or community library card.

Games in the library: In last year’s pupil survey, respondents requested that the School Library have board games. We now have the following board games in stock to borrow during breaks and lunchtime: Catastrophe, Chess, Disney Villainous, Exploding Kittens, Lost Worlds, Monopoly: Glasgow Edition, Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza, Throw Throw Burrito, Uno

Creation Station: The School Library now offers borrowable creation packs containing a selection of felt tipped pens, pencil crayons, mechanical pencil, sharpener, ruler, eraser and glue sticks to help pupils get crafty and creative.

Monthly Newsletter: We’ve relaunched our monthly newsletters this year, featuring new book and eBook highlights, current book award information, short books lists, genre spotlight, librarian recommendations, monthly book lists, and author and book birthday calendar. The interactive newsletter is in PDF format on the Library Channel in Teams.

New Book Highlights:

The Evolving Truth of Ever-Stronger Will by Maya MacGregor

Four Eids and a Funeral by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé and Adiba Jaigirdar

Gwen and Art are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

The Hills of Estrella Roja by Ashley Franklin

Medicine: A Magnificently Illustrated History by Briony Hudson, illustrated by Nick Taylor

Unlocking the Universe by Stephen Hawking

 

Book of the Day:

19.08: Thornhill by Pam Smy

21.08: Frankie’s World by Aoife Dooley

23.08: Sisters by Raina Telgemeier

26.08: Little White Lies by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

28.08: Brilliant Black British History by Atinuke, illustrated by Kingsley Nebechi

30.08: A Trip to the Future: How Today’s Science Will Shape Tomorrow’s World by Moira Butterfield, illustrated by FagoStudio

 

Author of the Week:

WB 19^th: Susin Nielsen

WB 26^th: Katherine Woodfine

 

Series of the Week:

WB 19^th: Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

WB 26^th: Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

 

Literary and Cultural Celebration Book Lists for August:

South Asian Heritage Month: South Asian Heritage Month (July 17^th-August 17^th) celebrates the heritage of people with roots in South Asian countries. This year’s theme is ‘Free to be me’.

Trending Book Lists:

Epic Reads New Releases | The Guardian Children’s Book Roundup | LoveReading4Kids Books of the Month | Scholastic Books of the Month | Scottish Book Trust Book Lists |Toppsta Monthly Highlights | Waterstones Books of the Month

 

Recent Awards: UK book award winners, shortlists, and longlists

Winners: Arthur C Clarke Award for Science Fiction | CWA Daggers Awards | James Tait Black Memorial Prize | UKLA Book Awards | Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, YA Book Prize | Young Quills Award for Historical Fiction

Shortlists: Forward Prize for Poetry | Little Rebels Award | Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing

Longlists: Booker Prize | Diverse Book Awards

 

Book Buzz: Latest book news from major media outlets and websites

BBC | Book Riot | Buzzfeed | Epic Reads | The Guardian | Huffpost

Library Mascot: We welcome our new School Library mascot, Maximus, designed by ‘C’ in S4 who’s winning design was voted by pupils and made by the talented Miss West, School Librarian at John Paul Secondary School. As mascot, Maximus will be our sidekick for the upcoming school year and will help promote reading for pleasure on our displays at during activities as well as appear in future School Library Twitter photos.

 Bookmarks: Our winning bookmark designs have arrived in time for the 2024-25 school year, and we can’t wait to show them off. The bookmarks will be revealed and available come August.

 Zine Workshop: We had a fabulous time with Martha from Glasgow Zine Library who delivered an engaging lunchtime zine making workshop in the School Library. Pupils enjoyed browsing the selection of the GZL collection which inspired them to create their own. We really look forward to more collaboration with the GZL in the future.

 Senior Libby Refreshers: We visited some English classes to deliver Libby refreshers for our senior pupils in hopes of inspiring them read for leisure over the summer. Libby by Overdrive is an app subscribed to by Glasgow Life Libraries which has thousands of fiction, nonfiction, and magazine titles. There is something for everyone.

Swatch: The Summer issue of Swatch, the Glasgow School Libraries’ eMagazine is now live. Packed with booklists, an exclusive interview with Maisie Chan, and lots of fun stuff including a recipe for salt and chilli wedges, an origami paper fan craft, and a quiz. Interactive back issues are available on the Library Channel on Teams.

Book of the Day:

03.06: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

06.06: Lionheart Girl by Yaba Badoe

07.06: An Amazing Animal Atlas of Scotland by Anders Frang

10.06: Furthermore by Darren Simpson

13.06: Guardians of the Wild Unicorns by Linday Littleson

14.06: Magical Boy by Vincent Kao

17.06: All about Eid: Things to Make and Do by Sarah Shaffi and Aaliya Jaleel

20.06: I Kick and I Fly by Ruchira Gupta

21.06: Windrush Child by Benjamin Zephaniah

 

Author of the Week:  Chosen by pupils

03.06: Patrick Ness

10.06: Camryn Garrett

17.06: Krystal Sutherland

 

Series of the Week: Chosen by pupils

03.06 Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld

10.06: The Extinction Trials by SM Wilson

17.06: Rugby Academy by Tom Palmer

 

Literary and Cultural Celebration Booklists for June:

Read with Pride: June i Pride month, an internationally recognised celebration of the LGBT+ community. We’ve compiled a list of LGBT+ fiction and nonfiction for all ages.

Empathy Day: Empathy Day (June 6^th) ‘inspires children to learn more about empathy, have transformational experiences through stories, and to put empathy into action’ by shining a ‘light on book’s role in raising an empathy-generated generation’. Check out Empathy Lab’s Primary and Secondary booklists, the majority of titles are available in the school library.

Refugee Week: Refugee Week (June 17^th-23^rd) is ‘the world’s largest arts and cultural festival celebrating the contributions, creativity, and resilience of refuges and people seeking sanctuary. This year’s theme is ‘Our Home’. Our booklists features fiction and nonfiction for Junior and Young Adult readers.

Windrush Day: Windrush Day (June 22^nd) honours the contributions of British Caribbean communities and marks the arrival of passengers of the Empire Windrush to the UK. Our booklist includes fiction and nonfiction for all ages.

South Asian Heritage Month: South Asian Heritage Month (July 17^th-August 17^th) celebrates the heritage of people with roots in South Asian countries. This year’s theme is ‘Free to be me’. Our booklist come a month early to ensure it is promoted within the school term and includes fiction and nonfiction for all ages.

 

Trending Booklists:

Epic Reads New Releases | The Guardian Children’s Book Roundup | LoveReading4Kids Books of the Month | Scholastic Books of the Month | Scottish Book Trust Book Lists |Toppsta Monthly Highlights | Waterstones Books of the Month

Recent Awards: UK book award winners, shortlists, and longlists

Winners: Branford Boase Award, Excelsior Awards, FCBG Children’s Book Awards,  Jhalak Prize, The Kitchies, Orwell Prizes, Sports Book Awards, Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, Women’s Prize for Fiction and Nonfiction, YOTO Carnegies.

Shortlists: The Week Junior Book Awards, YA Book Prize

Competitions:

Foyles Young Poets of the Year Award

 Book Buzz: Latest book news from major media outlets and websites

BBC | Book Riot | Buzzfeed | Epic Reads | The Guardian | Huffpost

 

Book Returns: As exams took place throughout May, the School Librarian visited all S1-3 English classes to distribute lists of books on loan. There are over 900 books on loan to S1-3 pupils, highlighting the brilliant readership of our pupils and support from our English department in Shawlands. The lists have proved to be a helpful reminder to the pupils of the books they have borrowed and the library book return boxes are located in each classroom make it easy for them to return their loans. So far, pupils have returned 200 books, with more being returned each day. This is a tremendous effort on behalf of our department and the young people who truly value their library service and love reading for pleasure. Great work everybody, keep them coming!

Creative Writing Contest: Our seasonal creative writing contest is underway with ‘Summer’ as the theme. Any form of creative writing is accepted, maximum 500 words.

International Museums Day: International Museums Day was celebrated May 18^th. We uploaded an interactive list of 50 famous international museums and a list of 20 Glasgow museums on our Library Channel for pupils to explore, featuring famous art galleries and national museums who’ve digitised pieces from their collections. Visit the Glasgow Life Museums page for information on local museums and galleries or try one of these highlights from our international list:

Anne Frank House – Amsterdam, Netherlands

The Louvre – Paris, France

The Metropolitan Museum of Art – New York City, USA

Natural History Museum – London, England

Smithsonian Museum of Natural History – Washington, USA

Sistine Chapel – Vatican City

National Walking Month: May was National Walking Month. On our Library Channel, we’ve uploaded a list of local community libraries in the catchment area all within a walking distance of an hour or less from the school.  Community Libraries nearby the school include:

Langside Library, 2 Sinclair Drive (0.8 miles, 19 mins walking time)

Pollokshaws Library, 60 Shawbridge Street (0.8 miles, 19 mins walking time)

Pollokshields Library, 30 Leslie Street (0.9 miles, 21 mins walking time)

Govanhill Library, 170 Langside Road (1.1 miles, 25 mins walking time)

Couper Library, 84-86 Clarkston Road (1.8 miles, 40 mins walking time)

Gorbals Library, 180 Crown Street (2.0 miles, 45 mins walking time)

Ibrox Library, 1-5 Midlock Street (2.0 miles, 45 mins walking time)

Pollok Library, Pollock Civic Realm, 2EN Cowglen Road (3.0 miles, 1 hour walking time)

Poe or Young Adult Quiz: Pupils were invited to take part in our Poe or Young Adult quiz on Teams as part of World Goth Day. Participants had to decide whether the quotes were from a YA novel or from the ‘Father of Goth’, Edgar Allan Poe.

Waterstones Haul: We received a fantastic haul from Waterstones, selected by our very own Glasgow School Librarians. Here are some highlights:

The Attack of the Robot Librarian by Sam Copeland and Jenny Pearson, illustrated by Robyn Boyden and Katie Kear

Bite Risk by SJ Wells

The Ramadan Family Cookbook by Anisa Karolia

Roar: A Guide to Dreaming Big and Playing the Sport you Love by Beth Mead

Explanatorium of Science by Robert Winston

Human 2.0: A Celebration of Human Bionics by Patrick Kane and Samuel Rodriguez

Swatch: The Summer issue of Swatch, the Glasgow School Libraries’ eMagazine is now live. Packed with book lists, an exclusive interview with Maisie Chan, and lots of fun stuff including a recipe for salt and chilli wedges, an origami paper fan craft, and a quiz. Interactive back issues are available on the Library Channel on Teams.

Author of the Week:  Chosen by pupils

06.05: Benjamin Zephaniah

13.05: Sue Wallman

20.05: Bali Rai

27.05: Samira Ahmed

Series of the Week: Chosen by pupils

06.05: Pandava (Aru Shah) by Roshani Chokshi   

13.05: Young Elites by Marie Lu

20.05: Pages & Co by Anna James

27.05: Pizazz by Sophy Henn

Literary and Cultural Celebration Book Lists for May:

Gothic Book List: Featuring all ages gothic fiction to tie in with World Goth Day festivities.

Shelf Help Book List: Mental Health Awareness Week took place from 13^th-19^th May on the theme of “Movement: Moving more for our mental health”. Our book list features some helpful titles on mental health for Young People that are available in the School Library.

 Trending Book Lists:

Epic Reads New Releases | The Guardian Children’s Book Roundup | LoveReading4Kids Books of the Month | Scholastic Books of the Month | Scottish Book Trust Book Lists |Toppsta Monthly Highlights | Waterstones Books of the Month

Recent Awards: UK book award winners, shortlists, and longlists

Winners: International Booker Prize | British Book Awards | CrimeFest Awards | Dylan Thomas Prize | Jhalak Prize

Shortlists: CLiPPA Poetry Award | CWA Daggers Awards | Klaus Flugge Prize | Sports Book Awards |

Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction

Competitions:

Foyles Young Poets of the Year Award

 Book Buzz: Latest book news from major media outlets and websites

BBC | Book Riot | Buzzfeed | Epic Reads | The Guardian | Huffpost

 

What’s On in June

Zine Workshop: Glasgow Zine Library will be popping by Thursday, June 20th during lunchtime to host a zine workshop. Pupils will; learn how to create their very own zine from scratch.

 Picnic in the Library: The School Library will host a special ‘picnic in the library’ during lunchtime as part of National Picnic Week. Music, books, and snacks will be provided.

Libby refreshers for seniors: The School Librarian will make her rounds to S4, 5, and 6 English classes to deliver Libby refresher sessions to promote reading for leisure throughout the summer holidays. The Libby app has thousands of fiction and nonfiction books, audiobooks, and eMagazines that can be accessed on their iPads

Book Lists for June: Interactive book lists available on the Library Channel on Teams

Read with Pride: June is Pride month, an internationally recognised celebration of the LGBT+ community. We’ve compiled a list of LGBT+ fiction and nonfiction for all ages.

Empathy Day: Empathy Day (June 6^th) ‘inspires children to learn more about empathy, have transformational experiences through stories, and to put empathy into action’ by shining a ‘light on book’s role in raising an empathy-generated generation’. Check out Empathy Lab’s Primary and Secondary book lists, the majority of titles are available in the school library.

Refugee Week: Refugee Week (June 17^th-23^rd) is ‘the world’s largest arts and cultural festival celebrating the contributions, creativity, and resilience of refuges and people seeking sanctuary. This year’s theme is ‘Our Home’. Our book lists features fiction and nonfiction for Junior and Young Adult readers.

Windrush Day: Windrush Day (June 22^nd) honours the contributions of British Caribbean communities and marks the arrival of passengers of the Empire Windrush to the UK. Our book list includes fiction and nonfiction for all ages.

South Asian Heritage Month: South Asian Heritage Month (July 17^th-August 17^th) celebrates the heritage of people with roots in South Asian countries. This year’s theme is ‘Free to be me’. Our book list come a month early to ensure it is promoted within the school term and includes fiction and nonfiction for all ages.

 

 

 

 

It’s exam time for our senior phase pupils which means that our school library will be used throughout the exam period. However, the School Librarian has taken this opportunity to reach out to our S1-3 classes to deliver a list of books out on loan. It’s fantastic to see that over 950 books are issued to our BGE pupils alone!

In lieu of the library being closed for exams week beginning 22^nd April, we’ve uploaded some fun quizzes and activities to our Library Channel in each year group Teams. For Talk Like Shakespeare Day, we shared our ‘Shakespeare Dictionary’ and Shakespeare Phrases’ information sheets for pupils to learn more about the common words the Bard invented that are still in use today.  Our quizzes include National Pet Month, World Art Day, and International Guitar Month. Pupils were encouraged to complete one or all three quizzes for a chance to be entered into our monthly prize draw.

What’s Trending: Popular and recently borrowed books this month

Imogen, Obviously by Becky Albertalli – ‘This is the best book I’ve ever read’.

Book of the Day: Featured pupil recommendations

15^th: A Different Kind of Freedom: A Romani Story by Richard O’Neill

18^th: Lil’ Muffin Drops the Mic by Romesh Ranganathan, illust. James Lancett

19^th: The Marvels by Brian Selznick

Author of the Week: Chosen by pupils

WB 15^th: Chris Priestly

WB 22^nd: Robin Talley

WB 25^th: Jenny McLachlan

Series of the Week: Chosen by pupils

WB 15^th: Onyeka by Tola Okogwu

WB 22^nd: Summoner Trilogy by Taran Matharu

WB 25^th: Burn for Burn by Jenny Han

Recent Arrivals: New Book Highlights

Awful Animals by John Wood, Illust. Jasmine Pointer

Barb and the Shadow Army by Daniel Raj Abdo, illust. Jason Linwood Patterson

The Impossible City: Vol 1 by Jed MacKay, illust. Carlos Villa

Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi Nazemian

Pandora Perfect by Roger Langridge, illust. Brett Parson

Literary and Cultural Celebration Book Lists for April: Book lists to tie into various literary and cultural celebrations. Interactive book lists available on the Library Channel on Teams

Planet Vs Plastics Book List: The theme for this year’s Earth Day is Planet vs Plastics to raise awareness of the health and environmental risks of plastics.

Stress Book List: Stress Awareness Month calls for a greater awareness of the negative impact of stress. Our book List features some nonfiction titles to help young people manage their stress.

Autism Book List: World Autism Month and Autism Awareness Day (April 2^nd) aims to celebrate Autism awareness and acceptance. Our Junior, Young Adult, and Senior + Staff book list feature nonfiction and fiction titles.

Trending Book Lists: Monthly highlights and new releases

Epic Reads – New Releases

The Guardian – Children’s Book Roundup

Love Reading for Kids – Books of the Month

Scholastic – Books of the Month

Scottish Book Trust – Book Lists

Toppsta – Our Favourite New Children’s Books This Month

Waterstones – Books of the Month

Recent Awards: UK book award winners, shortlists, and longlists

British Science Fiction Awards – Winners

Branford Boase Award – Shortlist

CWA Daggers Awards – Longlists

Granta Best of Young British Novelists – Winners

Jhalak Prize – Shortlists

Women’s Prize for Fiction – Shortlist

Competitions: Writing competitions for young people

Foyles Young Poets of the Year Award

Henrietta Branford Writing Competition

Young Writers Competition

Book Buzz: Latest book news from major media outlets and book websites

BBC

Book Riot

Buzzfeed

Epic Reads

The Guardian

Huffpost

The New York Times

 

What’s On in May

Shawlands Academy School Library Quills Prize for Creative Writing Contest: Our final seasonal creative writing contest of the school year in time for National Share a Story Month. Any form of creative writing is permitted, 500 words or less. Deadline May 31^st.

International Museums Day: Take a virtual tour and explore some artefacts held by some of the world’s famous museums and galleries using our interactive documents available on the Library Channel on each year group Teams.

National Walking Month: National Walking Month is a campaign launched by Living Streets. This year, Living Streets invites people to discover the #MagicOf Walking to celebrate the many health and happiness benefits of walking and wheeling. To celebrate, the School Library has created an interactive guide to local Glasgow Life Community Libraries all within walking distance to Shawlands Academy which will be available in the Library Channel on each year group Teams.

Teams Quizzes:

World Goth Day – Poe or Young Adult quiz: World Goth Day is observed annually on May 22^nd. We’re hosting a quiz on Teams featuring none other than the father of gothic literature, Edgar Allan Poe. Pupils are invited to guess whether the quotes are from Young Adult Gothic novels or from one of Poe’s works.

Book Lists for May: Interactive booklists available on the Library Channel on Teams

Gothic Book List: Featuring Junior, Young Adult, and Senior + Staff gothic fiction to tie in with World Goth Day festivities.

Shelf Help Book List: Mental Health Awareness Week takes place from 13^th-19^th May on the theme of “Movement: Moving more for our mental health”. Our book list features some helpful titles on mental health for Young People that are available in the School Library.

Mental Health websites:

Children’s Mental Health Scotland

Mental Health Foundation

Mind.org

Rethink.org

Scottish Action for Mental Health

See Me

Young Minds

Young Scot

Events: Events and activities that took place in the School Library during March

 We delivered a range of events and activities lined up for this year’s World Book Day week. We teamed up With the English department’s literature trail scavenger hunt for S1s. Pupils were given a list of clues and tasked to find posters of book covers displayed in various windows around the school for a chance to be entered into a prize draw.

We hosted our own World Book Day activities in the School Library as well:

• World Book Day 5 Word Book Review: Pupils were invited to write a review about any book of their choice using only five words for a chance to be entered into the School Library prize draw. We received over 50 submissions and the reviews can be read on our 5 Word Book Review post.
• World Book Day Quiz: Our annual quiz saw over 30 people in attendance. There were three rounds: a general literature knowledge, emoji book titles, and a Shakespeare or Young Adult quote taster round in preparation for our Shakespeare week quiz.
• Annual Bookmark Design Competition: Our annual bookmark design contest is now in its 5^th Designs were uploaded onto Teams and voted on by pupils. The design with the most votes becomes our official Shawlands Academy School Library bookmark for 2024-25 school year. We received six brilliant bookmark designs and it has been a very close competition. Winner will be revealed April 15^th after the Spring break.

Shakespeare Week Quiz and choice board: We uploaded an interactive choice board for pupils to explore more of Shakespeare’s works and hosted our first Shakespeare Week quiz. Pupils were to guess whether a quote was from a Shakespeare play or a Young Adult novel. We’ve included a selection of quotes below, can you guess which ones were from a Young Adult novel and which ones were from one of Shakespeare’s plays? Answers are at the end of this blog post.

1. “Courage does not always roar. Valor does not always shine”

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi or William Shakespeare?

2. “No legacy is so rich as honesty”

One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus or William Shakespeare?

3. “So wise so young they say, never do live long”

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera or William Shakespeare?

4. “You’re not living if you’re not regretting”

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon or William Shakespeare?

5. “Even death has a heart”

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak or William Shakespeare?

Swatch: Our Spring 24 issue of Swatch, the Glasgow School Libraries eMagazine is now available. Here are some links to our previous issues: Winter 23, Autumn 23, Summer 23, Spring 23, Winter 22, Autumn 22, Summer 22, Spring 22, Winter 21, Autumn 21, Summer 21, Spring 21, Winter 20, Autumn 20.

 

What’s Trending? Popular and recently borrowed books this month

Assassination Classroom by Yusei Matsui – ‘This is the best manga series’

The Body by Stephen King – ‘We’re watching Stand By Me in English. I want to see how the book is different’.

Carrie by Stephen King – ‘My grandmother recommended Stephen King to me’.

Cobra Kai: the Graphic Novel by Denton J. Tipton – ‘I wanted a book about martial arts and found this. Now I’m going to watch the show’.

Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis – ‘I thought this was really creepy’.

 

Book of the Day: Featured pupil recommendations

4^th: Finding My Voice by Aoife Dooley 

7^th: Jays Guide to Crushing It by Ruby Clyde 

8^th: Sad Ghost Club by Liz Meddings 

11^th: American Born Chinese by Gene Leun Yang 

14^th: The Changing Man by Tomi Oyemakinde 

15^th: Murder On A School Night by Kate Weston 

21^st: Girl From the Well by Rin Chupeco 

22^nd: The Headmaster’s List by Melissa De La Cruz 

25^th: Ellie Pillai is Brown by Christine Pillainayagam

27^th: Thieves by Lucie Byron

28^th: Booked by Kwame Alexander 

 

Author of the Week: Chosen by pupils

WB 4^th: Vashti Hardy

WB 11^th: Alice Oseman

WB 18^th: Jason Reynolds

WB 25^th: Louisa Reid

 

Series of the Week: Chosen by pupils

WB 4^th: Dork Diaries by Rachel Renee Russell

WB 11^th: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

WB 18^th: Who Let the Gods Out? by Maz Evans

WB 25^th: Maze Runner by James Dashner

 

Recent Arrivals: New Book Highlights

An Emerald Sky by Aneesa Marufu

Groosham Grange: The Graphic Novel by Anthony Horowitz

Horrible Homes by John Wood

Kismet Connection by Anany Devarajan

Murder on a School Night by Kate Weston

 

Literary and Cultural Celebration Booklists for March: Booklists for various literary and cultural celebrations. Interactive booklists available on the Library Channel on Teams

Anti-Racism Book List: Anti-Racism fiction and nonfiction.

International Women’s Day Book List: Fiction and nonfiction books about women’s history, feminism, and equal rights.

Neurodiversity Book List: Nonfiction and fiction books featuring neurodiverse characters.

Ramadan Reads Book List: Fiction and nonfiction books by Muslim authors and featuring Muslim characters.

STEM Nonfiction Book List: STEM nonfiction.

Trans & Gender Nonconforming Book List: Nonfiction and fiction books featuring transgender and gender nonconforming characters.

 

Trending Booklists: Monthly highlights and new releases

Epic Reads – New Releases

The Guardian – Children’s Book Roundup

Love Reading for Kids – Books of the Month

Scholastic – Books of the Month

Scottish Book Trust – Book Lists

Toppsta – Our Favorite New Children’s Books This Month

Waterstone’s – Books of the Month

 

Recent Awards: UK book award winners, shortlists, and longlists

Inclusive Books for Children Award – Winners

British Book Awards – Shortlist

UKLA Book Award – Shortlist

Women’s Prize for Fiction – Longlist

Women’s Prize for Nonfiction – Longlist

YOTO Carnegie Medals – Shortlists

 

Competitions: Writing competitions for young people

Foyles Young Poets of the Year Competition

Henrietta Branford Writing Competition

Poetry By Heart Competition

 

Book Buzz: Latest book news from major media outlets and book websites

BBC

Book Riot

Buzzfeed

Epic Reads

The Guardian

Huffpost

The New York Times

 

What’s On in April

Pop-Up Library: Exams will be taking place in the library starting April and throughout May, but pupils can visit our Pop-Up Library stall (location TBA) for book returns and collections as well as weekly activities.

Talk Like Shakespeare Day Activities: We’ll be creating Shakespeare masks and Elizabethan ruffle collar using the templates from Talklikeshakespeare.org and uploading a list of Shakespearean phrases still commonly used today.

Teams Quizzes: Our Quizzes will be uploaded to Teams using MS Forms in lieu of exams.

National Pet Month Quiz: Learn fun facts about our furry, feathered, and leathered friends.

World Art Day Quiz: Test your knowledge of artists, paintings, and styles. Comes with an accompany list of links to famous museums and galleries from around the world.

International Guitar Month Quiz: For serious guitar aficionados, this quiz is packed with facts about one of the world’s most popular instruments. The interactive answer sheet included is jammed with links with further information and videos.

 

Displays and Booklists for April: Interactive booklists available on the Library Channel on Teams

Planet vs Plastics Book List The theme for this year’s Earth Day is Planet vs Plastics to raise awareness on the health and environmental risks of plastics.

Stress Book List: Stress Awareness Month calls for a greater awareness of the negative impact of stress. Our booklist features some Nonfiction titles to help young People manage their stress.

Autism Book List: World Autism Month and Autism Awareness Day (April 2^nd) aims to celebrate Autism awareness and acceptance. Our Junior, Young Adult, and Senior + Staff booklists feature nonfiction and fiction titles featuring Autistic characters.

Shakespeare Quiz answers:

1. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
2. All’s Well That Ends Well by Shakespeare
3. Richard III by Shakespeare
4. Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
5. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

As part of our World Book Day festivities, pupils were invited to write a five word book review for a chance to be entered into a prize draw.

We received over 50 submissions. Below is a list of the books they’ve reviewed.

1. Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner: Decadent, multi-faceted, opulent, feverish, majestic 
2. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins: Dystopian, love., page turner sad, tragedy 
3. The Beast of Buckingham Palace by David Walliams: Royal, dystopian, funny, British, rebellious 
4. The Boy in Stripped Pyjamas by John Boyne: Sad, dramatic irony, realistic, friendship, abuse
5. The Boy in Stripped Pyjamas by John Boyne: War, WW2, Germany, death, Jewish
6. The Call by Peadar O’Guilin: Brutal, myth, retelling, satisfying, intriguing 
7. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon: Weird, surprising, mysterious, sad, entertaining
8. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon: Simplistic, slightly mind numbing, Kafkaesque, martyr complex, original 
9. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Funny, easy to read, relatable, family, interesting 
10. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Funny, grumpy, relatable, happy, entertaining
11. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Comedy, family, friends, drawings, funny 
12. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Funny, school-life, diary, wants to be rich 
13. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney: Wimpy, sporty, dilemma, funny, humorous
14. Face by Benjamin Zephaniah: Intriguing, interesting, thrilling heartwarming 
15. Face by Benjamin Zephaniah: Prejudice, judging, acceptance, interesting 
16. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore by JK Rowling and Kloves, Steve: Mysterious, adventure, script, complete
17. Five Survive by Holly Jackson: Mysterious, funny, suspenseful, thrilling, dark
18. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling: Witchcraft, wizardry, pain, power, death 
19. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling: Magical, Fantastic, frightening, remarkable, thrilling
20. Haikyu! By Haruichi Furudate: Sporty, exciting, engaging, amazing, thrilling
21. Homegrown Herbs by Tammi Hartung and Holt, Saxon: Informative, DIY, creative, medicinal, herbal
22. Huda F Are You? By Huda Fahmy: Creative, interesting, funny, insisting, lovely 
23. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins: Exciting, dystopian, survival, death, very good
24. Keep This to Yourself by Tom Ryan: Thrilling, mystery, eerie, immersive, exciting 
25. Last One to Die by Cynthia Murphy: Suspense, thriller, historic, mysterious, romance 
26. The Last Wild by Piers Torday: Beautiful, classic, nature, mythical, depressing
27. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by JRR Tolkien: Exciting, action, suspense, absorbing, addictive 
28. My Hero Academia by Kohei Horikoshi: Exciting, fast, cool, fun, superpowers 
29. My Hero Academia Vigilantes by Hideyuki Furuhashi: Funny, mystery, suspicious, villains
30. Naked Lunch by William S Burroughs: Disgusting, traumatising, trippy, transcendent, beautiful 
31. Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman: Dramatic, frustrating, gut-wrenching, melancholy, missed opportunity
32. The Nowhere Emporium by Ross Mackenzie: Thrilling, heart wrenching, entertaining, understanding, magical 
33. One of Us is Lying by Karen M McManus: Trilling, intriguing, suspenseful, exhilarating, fast-paced 
34. One Piece by Eiichiro Oda: Treasure, pirates, devil fruit, swords, overpowered 
35. One Piece by Eiichiro Oda: Treasure, friendship, pirates, marines, map
36. The Outsiders by SE Hinton: engrossing, interesting, unique, emotional, entertaining 
37. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster: Mysterious, strange, funny, action-packed, exciting 
38. Renegades by Marissa Meyer: Sci-Fi, dystopian, sad, action, tragic 
39. A Single Thread of Moonlight by Laura Wood: Love, romance, crush, cold, heart 
40. Scarlet and Ivy by Sophie Cleverly: Intriguing, mysterious, phenomenal, mischievous, engrossing 
41. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo: Teen, fantasy, dramatic, page turner, entertaining
42. The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han: Summer, beach, love, holiday, family
43. The Brilliant World of Tom Gates by Liz Pichon: Amazing. Interesting. Funny, kind, cool
44. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Interesting, detailed, surprising, lots of characters, exciting 
45. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Brilliant, exhilarating, heart stopping, you never know what’s next, realistic
46. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Adventurous, poor, dumpsite, money, stealing 
47. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Boring, time wasting. Dramatic, stealing 
48. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Interesting, trash, poverty, dull, adventures 
49. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Adventure, suspense, mystery, police brutality, death
50. Trash by Andy Mulligan: Poverty, corruption, teamwork 
51. Ultimate Football Heroes: Bellingham by Matt and Tom Oldfield: Funny, dramatic, inspirational, sportive 
52. The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli: Heartwarming, cute, comfort, romantic, predictable 
53. What Beauty There Is by Cory Anderson: Thriller, romance, real world, crime, heart-breaking
54. What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli: Love, crush, cute, universe, meant to be 

Here’s a roundup of what’s been happening in Shawlands Academy School Library during February.

MYSP meet and greet: Our LGBT Youth Scotland MSYP representative held their first drop-in surgery during lunchtime, where pupils could come and discuss important issues.

Shawlands Acaddemy Anti-Racism Association: Shawlands Academy’s Anti-Racism Association group meets in the Library every Thursday during lunchtime where they discuss issues and plan events for the school. They were excited to unbox the new books we ordered as part of our participatory selection which will be added to our Equality and Empowerment collection:

Hot Comb by Ebony Flowers

Let Me Hear A Rhyme by Tiffany D Jackson

War Girls by Tochi Onyebuchi

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

City of Stolen Magic by Nazeen Ahmed Pathak

Brown Girl Like Me by Jasprett Kaur

American Born Chinese by Gene Lurn Yang

Stolen History: The Truth about the British Empire and How it Shaped Us by Sathnam Sanghere

Whale by Myeong-Kwan Cheong

Black Skin, White Mask by Frantz Fanon

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

SfL Book Group: Our S3 book group in collaboration with Support for Learning continues as we select different short stories from Horowitz Horrors, a collection of spooky stories by Anthony Horowitz.

Pupil Library Committee: Members of our Pupil Library Committee have been busy helping tidy the library this month and prepping for our upcoming March display for International Women’s Day, British Science Week, Anti-Racism Day, Ramadan, and Neurodiversity Celebration Week

School Library Mascot reveal: Congratulations to Candice for the winning design of our School Library mascot! Each participant received a small prize for their amazing entries.

What’s Trending: Popular and recently borrowed books this month.

One of Us is Lying by Karen M McManus – ‘Saw this on TikTok and wanted to read it’

Heartstopper 5 by You Are A Champion: How to be the best you can be Alice Oseman –  ‘I’ve been waiting ages to read this book! So excited to see it in the Library’

My Hero Academia by Kohei Horikoshi – ‘My favorite Manga series’

Glitter Boy by Ian Eagleton – ‘I laughed. I cried. Great book for LGBTQ+ teens!’

You Are A Champion: How to be the best you can be by Marcus Rashford, Carl Anka, and Katoe Warriner – “This is a nice book”

 ‘Book of the Day’ chosen by pupils: Featured pupil recommendations.

Huda F Are You? by Huda Fahmy

Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun by Tola Okogwu

Diary of a Confused Feminist by Kate Weston

The Weirn Books, Vol 1: Be Wary of the Silent Woods by Svetlana Chmakova

Five Nights at Freddy’s: The Silver Eyes by Scott Cawthon

A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll

Queen of the Tiles by Hanna Alkaf

 

Recent Arrivals: New book highlights.

Stand Up by Nikesh Shukla

All About Romance by Daniel Tawse

I Feed Her to the Beast by Jamison Shea

Mythopedia: An Encyclopedia of Mythical Beasts and their Magical Tales by Good Wives and Warriors

City of Stolen Magic by Nazeen Pathak

 

Trending Booklists

Epic Reads – New Releases

The Guardian – Children’s Book Roundup

Love Reading for Kids – Books of the Month

Scholastic – Books of the Month

Scottish Book Trust – Book Lists

Toppsta – Our Favorite New Children’s Books This Month

Waterstone’s – Books of the Month

 

Recent Awards

Excelsior Award – Shortlist

Klaus Flugge Prize – Shortlist

Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize – Shortlist

YOTO Carnegie Medals for Writing and Illustration – Longlist

 

Book Buzz

BBC

Book Riot

Buzzfeed

Epic Reads

The Guardian

Huffpost

The New York Times

 

What’s On – March

World Book Day week:

Annual Book Mark Contest – Each year during World Book Day week, the School Library hosts a book mark design contest. Submissions are posted anonymously on the Teams Library Channel for pupils to vote their favorite design. The design with the most votes becomes the official School Library bookmark for 2024.

5 Word Book Review Prize Draw – This year, we’re encouraging pupils to submit book reviews of some of their favourite or most recently read books using only 5 words. Each entry goes into our World Book Day prize draw. The reviews will be displayed outside the library on our bulletin board.

World Book Day Quiz – We’ll also be hosting our annual World Book Day quiz, hosted by members of our Pupil Library Committee during lunchtime.

Shakespeare Week:

Choice Board – Pupils can learn more about Shakespeare and his work using our interactive choice board which will be posted on our Teams Library Channel.

Shakespeare or YA Quiz – Participants must guess if a given quote was featured in either one of Shakespeare’s plays or from a popular Young Adult novel.

Displays and Booklists for March: Booklists of monthly cultural and literacy events.Interactive booklists available on the Library Channel on Teams

Anti-Racism Book List: Anti-Racism fiction and nonfiction.

STEM Nonfiction Book List: STEM nonfiction.

Neurodiversity Book List: Nonfiction and fiction books featuring neurodiverse characters.

Ramadan Reads Book List: Fiction and nonfiction books by Muslim authors.

International Women’s Day Book List: Fiction and nonfiction books about women’s history, feminism, and equal rights.

Trans & Gender Nonconforming Book List: Nonfiction and fiction books featuring transgender and gender nonconforming characters.

We have some exciting events and activities lined up this year at Shawlands Academy.

February: A special drop-in surgery from our newly elected MSYP from LGBT Youth Scotland during LGBT+ History Month. We will announce the winning design from our School Library Mascot Design competition voted by pupils. We will also share booklists for LGBT History Month and Children’s Mental Health Week (5^th-11^th).

March: We will organize some fun activities as part of World Book Day week (4^th-8^th), including a quiz, a 5-word Book Review competition, and a Bookmark Design Competition. The winning design will be the official School Library bookmark for 2024. As part of Shakespeare Week (18^th-24^th) we’ll post an interactive choice board linked to information about Shakespeare and his works. We’ll also host a lunchtime Shakespeare or YA quiz where participants will guess whether the quote is from one of Shakespeare’s works or a popular YA novel. We will also share booklists for International Women’s Day (8^th), Ramadan (starting 10^th), British Science Week (8^th-17^th), Neurodiversity Celebration Week (18^th-24^th), Anti-Racism Day (21^st) and International Transgender Visibility Day (31^st).

April: For World Book Night (23^rd), we will host a special ‘Biblio Bistro’ during lunchtime where pupils can ‘sample’ a variety of books from our book menu. We will host a 50-word short story competition to tie in with National Tell a Story Day (27^th) and a fun activity to celebrate Talk Like Shakespeare Day (23^rd). We will also share booklists for Stress Awareness Month, World Autism Day (2^nd), and Earth Day (22^nd).

May: During the exam period, the School Librarian will visit all S1-3 classes to give pupils a list of books on loan as part of a major drive to return stock. We will also host a an Edgar Allan Poe or YA quiz for World Goth Day (22^nd) and an accompanying booklist.

June: We will show some livestream author events as part of the annual Empathy Day (6^th) celebrations. The library will host a Reading Picnic as part of National Picnic Week (17^th-25^th). We will also share booklists for Audiobook Month, National Crime Reading Month, Pride Month, Refugee Week (17^th-25^th),  Windrush Day (22^nd), and South Asian Heritage Month (17^th July – 17^th August).