Juvenile Materials Collection

Caldecott and Newbery Award Winners

The Bettendorf Public Library has as complete of a collection of Caldecott and Newbery Award Winners and Honor Books as possible.  Purchase of the newest winning titles is done as soon after the announcement is made in January of each year at the American Library Association Mid-Winter Conference.

Juvenile Magazines

The magazine collection is made up of approximately twenty titles, varying in age level and subject matter. The most current issues are available for browsing in the library and back issues, the previous year, are available for three-week checkout.

Juvenile Fiction

This collection is most often referred to as “the chapter book area” and includes titles geared toward students in grades 2-6. The collection is broken down into genre areas that include Mystery and Science Fiction/ Fantasy. Titles in this area are shelved alphabetically under the first four letters of the author’s last name. In addition, readers will find an area of Series books separated from the regular collection when the series is written by multiple authors.  Those series with only one author are shelved under the author’s last name.

Graphic Novels

This is the newest area of our collection although many adults will recognize that a graphic novel is very similar to what many still call comic books. Graphic novels are extremely popular for all ages. In this collection you will be able to find favorites like Superman, Donald Duck, Star Wars and The Boxcar Children but you may also find graphic versions of classics like Sleeping Beauty or King Arthur. Books in this area are shelved alphabetically by the series name, i.e. Babymouse, Goosebumps, etc.

Picture Books

Perhaps our most used collection, the picture book area is our book bins. Titles are loosely arranged by the author’s last names. Color coded bins and books indicate a letter grouping – red tape indicates a book is written by an author whose last name begins with letters A-Bo. Once in the correct bin, there is no alphabetic order. This allows for children to browse and not have to worry about getting the book back in the wrong place. The books shelved here are generally geared to children preschool through 2nd grades.

Readers

Our beginning reader books are shelved in the white taped bins and then alphabetically arranged by author’s names following the same coding system as the picture books. The Readers include books with very little text, limited vocabulary and simple concepts. Publishers often identify the reading level on the front of the book, but beware that consistency between publishers seldom exists. A staff member will be happy to assist you in finding appropriate books for your budding reader!