Highland Books

 Children's Books Have a Special Place in our Store!

From board books for babies and toddlers, picture books for preschoolers, chapter books for young readers, to the in-demand teen titles, you'll find them all in our extra-large Children's Book Room.  A second generation of children are engrossed with our toy train while parents are free to browse.

Recently, Jennifer was reading a "chapter book" to five-year-old Thomas, who was more accustomed to reading "picture books."  When Thomas asked where the pictures were, his mom said that he had to use his imagination. As she read the first Magic Tree House Book to him, he grinned excitedly and said, "Mom!  It's magic!  I can see the pictures in my head!"

TEENS

The book market for teens has exploded in the past few years, perhaps initiated by Harry Potter (children who got hooked on Harry continued reading as teens) and, later, the Twilight vampire series. 

Our teen section has tripled in the past two years.

Vampires and werewolves have continued as popular themes for teen books, but they're starting to fade.  But now science fiction, historical adventure, and dystopian literature are big for teens.  As well as contemporary issues, always popular in the young adult market.

CONNECTIONS TO BREVARD!

These two popular teen authors have parents in Brevard! 

 Lauren Myracle is the New York Times bestselling author of many books for young people, some for older elementary students and others for middle and high school students.

Meg Haston just published the snappy and clever

HOW TO ROCK BRACES AND GLASSES. 

Other popular teen authors:

Vampire novels, following in the TWILIGHT tradition, 

are still popular including

BLUE BLOODS by Melissa de la Cruz

BLOODLINES by Richelle Mead

Contemporary teen (girl) life books

by Sara Shepard (NEVER HAVE I EVER)

and Sarah Dessen (JUST LISTEN)

Sci Fi/Fantasy/Adventure by

Tamora Pierce (Beka Cooper series)

Maggie Stiefvater (THE SCORPIO RACES)

The Invention of Hugo Cabret,

now a movie called HUGO,

is one of my favorite books.  The author has a new book, done in the same style as Hugo: 

Finally, another masterpiece by the author of Caldecott-winning THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET, another favorite of mine.  Selznick is "the most innovative storyteller at work today" (Publisher's Weekly) and this is another winner.  In a combination of pencil drawings and brief text, the story unfolds as you read the pictures just as much as the text.  Selznick's imagination is endless.

Some of our favorite children's books:

Series continue to be popular for middle grade readers:

Click here for the Newbery Medal Winners from 1922-Present.

Click here for the Caldecott Medal Winners from 1938-Present.

 Some of our favorites from the recent past:

MISS DOROTHY AND HER BOOKMOBILE, by WNC author Gloria Houston, shows the efforts of Miss Dorothy to bring books to people in rural Appalachia in order to share her love of reading.  Charming illulstrations look just like they were painted right here in our mountains.

So cute!  Read this one out loud for a bedtime story, and you and your child will not only have fun, but hopefully the child will settle happily down to sleep!  Baby Llama is anxious in his room alone after Mama Llama tucks him in and leaves the room, but after many ups and downs, she finally convinces him that she's always nearby and her love surrounds him.

Steve Martin has a way with words and stories, and this clever book about a boy who's always late for school will make you laugh out loud.  Martin really knows what wild and wacky adventures a kid could get into on the way to school, and the short rhyming sentences make this a great one for reading aloud.

This series features a finger puppet in the center of each book; you put your finger in through the back of the book and wiggle the animal as you turn each cardboard page.  Other titles include IN MY FOREST, IN MY TREE, IN MY JUNGLE, IN MY MEADOW and all are colorful and fun.

Skippyjon Jones is my favorite little character!  Is he a chihuahua?  Is he a Siamese cat?  It's a little hard to tell, but the fast action and quirky dialogue will draw the reader right into the story of this overactive Zorro wannabe.  You'll love this book and all its sequels, including the newest, SKIPPYJON JONES, CLASS ACTION.

EARLY READERS

We also recommend the "readers" which are fun for young children who are beginning to read, or transitioning to chapter books.  The bright pictures and easy words and sentences encourage new readers and hopefully develop a love of books and reading, so important to school success.  We have dozens of these books on a great variety of subjects, both stories and non-fiction (dinosaurs, history, science, etc.), on different reading levels.  These are paperbacks, and range from $3.99 to $4.99.  Check them out!