STORY TIME with JANET KEELER St. Petersburg Children’s Librarian Recommends Holiday Books

In this episode of Storytime with Janet Keeler, Janet is joined by Mandy Morris,
the Youth and Family Services coordinator for the St. Petersburg Library System.
Mandy (right) and Janet (left) recorded at the newly refurbished President Barack Obama Main Library, where Mandy oversees a team of librarians and library professionals who execute youth and teen programming and provide outreach library services in the community.  Both Janet and Mandy talked about special books given to them years ago.
HOLIDAY GIFT IDEAS Mandy recommends books tailored for young children to early teens. She also suggested a trip to your local library to talk with a children’s librarian for more ideas.  Want to make your gift even more memorable? Write a note in the book and include the date.
👉Here are some of her recommendations.
Christmas
 Dasher: How a Brave Little Doe Changed Christmas Forever by Matt Tavares
 Don’t Let Pigeon Drive the Sleigh! by Mo Willems
 Finding Christmas by Lezlie Evans
 How to Catch Santa Claus by Alice Walstead (How to Catch series, Elf,
Snowman, Yeti)
 If You Take a Mouse to the Movies by Laura Numeroff
 It’s Not Easy Being Santa Claus by Marilyn Sadler
 Red & Green by Lois Ehlert
 Tractor Mac Saves Christmas by Billy Steers
 Hanukkah
 Dino-Hanukkah by Lisa Wheeler
 Hanukkah Upside Down by Elissa Weissman
 Latkes and Applesauce:  A Hanukkah Story by Fran Manushkin
 A Wild, Wild Hanukkah by Jo Gershman
Kwanzaa
 Li’l Rabbits Kwanzaa by Donna L. Washington
 Kwanzaa Candles by Megan Bogart-Spaniol
 The Night Before Kwanzaa by Natasha Wing
Top Circulated Youth Titles at the St. Petersburg Library System in 2025
Picture Books
 Cranky, Crabby Crow (Saves the World) by Corey R. Tabor
 Do Not Open This Book, It Stinks by Andy Lee
 Mermaids are the Worst! By Alex Willan
 Snarky Sharky by Bethan Clarke
 Will the Pigeon Graduate? By Mo Willems
Juvenile Fiction – Early Chapter Books
 Itty Bitty Princess Kitty: The Kitty-Catwalk by Melody Mews
 Jasper Rabbit’s Creepy Tales! Troubling Tonsils by Aaron Reynolds
 Unicorn Diaries: The Secret of the Lost Gold by Rebecca Elliot
Juvenile Fiction – Chapter Books
 Dragon Force: Infinity’s Secret by Katie & Kevin Tsang
 The House at the Edge of Magic by Amy Sparkes
 Middle Grade/Young Adult Books
 Falling Like Leaves by Misty Wilson
 The Grandest Game:  An Inheritance Game Novel by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
 The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han