April 2026 – On the Children's Shelf

It’s National Library week. If you’ve read here for a long time, you know how much I love the library. I love finding new books at the library. I love getting recommendations from librarians who have literally read everything. I love seeing the list of upcoming programs and children racing to the children’s room excited for today’s book activity.

This weekend is one of my favorite book events….the library book sale. I look forward to this book sale for months. I’ve gone into the sale hoping to find certain books, and I have been lucky enough to find them. I’ve gone into the sale with no idea what book will find me, and somehow the great books manage to draw me to them, and I’m always thrilled to bring them home.

I’ve seen many library book sales advertised on my social media feed lately. I may be biased, but I think my library’s sale is one of the best. I think we might all say that about our town library and that’s ok. They can all be the best (but if you are in CT, check out the Friends of the Ridgefield Library Book Sale).

Many library book sales have a $5 fill a bag day. I love this day for parents looking to get their children excited about reading. There are some books I have hesitated to buy because I didn’t think it would hold my child’s interest. Library $5 fill a bag day, yes, you can get that book. Being able to have one of those yes days is amazing. Yes, you can get that book. Yes, you can get three different world record books. Yes, you can get a different version of a favorite book because this one has different illustrations. Yes, you can get 2 copies so your best friend can read it too. An hour of yeses and five dollars can make a child excited about books.

Even if your library doesn’t have a fill a bag day, there are so may great books for as little as a dollar. I saw children at the sale adding up their books asking their parents, “can I spend six dollars on all these books?” Developing a love of reading and practicing math without realizing they are doing either. That’s a pretty awesome day.

If you aren’t sure if your library has a book sale, check out their website. You will find so many incredible things there…possibly book sales, lectures, book talks, learning opportunities. Libraries are magical little places that serve as a doorway to so many different worlds.

Historically, wolves have gotten a bad rap in stories…. tricking that little girl in the red cape or trying to eat those three little pigs. Imagine breaking into a library to find the ancestor of those two menaces elegantly dressed reading a book. Would you befriend him or run in fear?

In Alysa Salzberg’s “Wolves and Brioches,” we meet Odette de l’Estoile who comes from one of the powerful magic families, however Odette is only half magic and forbidden from learning spells. Odette, curious about the magic books locked away in her uncle’s library, breaks into his library while he is away to read those books. She knows the house is empty, so she is startled to find someone in the library. She is even more startled to see it is an elegantly dressed wolf reading a book. Fight or flight? Neither. Odette is curious and begins to talk to the wolf, Louis. This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Odette has been given a rather daunting task by her uncle and Louis is happy to help her tackle it. The two venture out into Paris and complete the tasks Odette has been given. Once that is out of the way, they find ways to explore the city without Louis’ true identity being discovered. How would Parisians in 1765 react to a young woman and a wolf walking down the street together?

Another wolf, the legendary Beast of Gévaundan has killed many innocent people, and an evil magician plans to use that wolf to threaten the world Odette and Louis have come to enjoy. While Odette’s family needs to fight this magician and save Paris, Odette and Louis are unexpectedly pulled into this battle.

I loved this book. I can’t say that enough. Salzberg’s storytelling is beautiful and captivating, and I was so engrossed in this story. The story took twists and turns I didn’t expect and I was sad when it ended. The descriptions are so well written I felt like I was walking the streets of Paris in 1765 and Salzberg managed to do this without being “world building” heavy. She balanced those descriptions beautifully while telling Odette and Louis’ story.

The book ends with a message to the readers which reminded me of William Goldman’s message to the readers in “The Princess Bride” (you all know how much I love that book). That message made me believe the story even more and made me love the book even more (just as Goldman did with his message). Pick up a copy of this beautiful book today. I am sure you will love it as much as I did.