Welcome to the online presence of the Butler Children's Literature Center, housed in Dominican's SOIS (Crown Library room 214). Here, we celebrate the best in books for youth and those who delight in sharing them. For Summer 2025, BCLC will offer collection access to the Dominican community and general public during posted open hours: Tuesday and Thursday 9am to 4pm, Wednesday noon-4pm, Friday 9am-5pm and by appointment with the Curator. Contact Jen Clemons at jclemons@dom.edu to make arrangements or you can still reach us at butler@dom.edu.
Adam, Mine K. Ancrum HarperCollins Children’s Books Ages 13+ Available September 8, 2026
Victor Frankenstein is seventeen years old and ready to prove his genius to the world. But no one is willing to let a brash young student experiment with his ideas about reanimation and the extension of life. Desperate to prove himself and his ideas, he stumbles into the world of dark alchemy, taking Elias, a young man from a nearby village as his unwitting test subject. Bound together by alchemical magic neither truly understands, Victor and Elias must reckon with what Frankenstein has done. Which of them is man, and which is monster?
In Ancrum’s self-professed “love letter to Frankenstein,” gothic prose and subtle, smoldering horror take underlie a narrative about grief, love, and loneliness. As the characters travel throughout Europe, looking for answers, their feelings and very senses of self are molded and changed by the situation and by each other.
Older readers interested in exploring gothic fiction with a YA twist might find themselves reaching for this title. Some knowledge of the original text will help eagle-eyed readers pick out references, but isn’t required for a thorough read through.
Just One Gift Linda Sue Park Illustrated by Robert Sae-Heng HarperCollins/Clarion Books April 7, 2026 Age: 8-12
The language arts assignment is deceptively simple: If you could give a gift, what would it be? The recipient must fall into the assigned category (family, friend, or ?), and the gift must not be something they have ever asked for. When Ms. Chang’s middle school ELA class begins to think through their assignment, they discover that the thought put into a gift can reveal as much about the giver as the receiver. And that their gifts highlight emotions, priorities, and community in ways that may never have been imagined.
Inspired by the Sijo poetry style of Korea, composed of three lines and thirteen to seventeen syllables, each response is its own short story of connection and meaning. In this companion to The One Thing You’d Save, Park’s choice to arrange the title into an assignment explanation, followed by individual student responses, provides natural pauses between chapters to digest the consideration that went into each gift. It also helps to delineate between student voices and highlight the self-consciousness, enthusiasm, and growing thoughtfulness of the middle school years. The simple pencil sketches from the book cover and select interior pages (available online) showcase Sae-Heng’s clear and imaginative style, bringing the students’ vision to the page like one might doodle in their assignment notebook.
A thoughtful exploration of the meaning, importance, and joys of gift giving for middle schoolers beginning to understand the ways their actions—big and small—can affect the world around them.
Spring is here! And while it may be the cold and drizzly version at the moment, the leaves and flowers phase is just around the corner, right? (RIGHT???)
As we await the outdoor blooms, there are lots of interesting things popping up around the Butler Center and beyond to keep us busy in the meantime.
Butler Scholarship
Are you a DU SOIS student from an underrepresented group in librarianship? Studying youth literature? Committed to serving the kids in your community or school library? Applications are being accepted for the Butler Youth Services Scholarship until May 29, 2026. For more information, head to the BCLC website or contact us at butler@dom.edu.
A Chat with Donna Seaman
Join us as the DU English Department and Butler Children’s Literature Center welcome Donna Seaman, Editor-in-Chief and Adult Books Editor for Booklist, for a talk about and readings from her memoir, River of Books: A Life in Reading. Seaman will discuss her work for Booklist and the American Library Association, books and book reviews, and anything else that arises in the Q&A portion of the program.
About Donna Seaman:
Donna Seaman is Editor-in-Chief and Adult Books Editor for Booklist, published in Chicago by the American Library Association. A recipient of the Louis Shores Award for Excellence in Book Reviewing and the Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award, Seaman is on the Content Leadership Team for the American Writers Museum and an adjunct creative writing professor at Northwestern University. Seaman’s author interviews are collected in Writers on the Air: Conversations about Books and she is the author of Identity Unknown: Rediscovering Seven American Women Artists and River of Books: A Life in Reading.
Register here to join us (in person or via Zoom). Dominican students and alumni receive first consideration for admission.
2026 Butler/Follett Lecture
Dominican’s School of Information Studies and Butler Children’s Literature Center are thrilled to welcome Dr. Lorena Camargo Gonzalez for a combined Butler/Follett Lecture: “From Abuela’s Stories to Tomorrow’s Shelves: Latinx Children’s Literature Across Time”
Dr. Camargo Gonzalez will examine the historical and cultural trajectories of Latinx children’s literature, beginning with intergenerational oral traditions and moving through key publishing milestones to contemporary movements for representation and equity. By analyzing themes of identity, language, diaspora, and activism, this lecture highlights both the progress made and the ongoing challenges shaping the field’s future.
*Registration for this event opens March 16, 2026.
Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Time: 6:00 p.m. with a dessert reception to follow
Location: Dominican University, Chicago Campus (Pilsen) 1805 S Paulina St Chicago, IL 60608 *Street parking available on 17th, 18th, and 19th Streets
About Dr. Lorena Camargo Gonzalez
Lorena Camargo Gonzalez [she/her/ella] is an Assistant Professor of Undergraduate Studies in Education and Gender Equity at Sacramento State University and the 2025-2026 Follett Chair for the School of Information Studies at Dominican University. She earned her Ph.D. in Education from UCLA with a focus on Race and Ethnic Studies and is a proud first-generation college graduate and immigrant. Her interdisciplinary research centers on Latinx children’s literature, particularly questions of representation, identity, and storytelling. She also examines the role of Latinx librarian activism in advancing racial justice and supporting culturally sustaining learning spaces for young readers. Her work appears in publications such as the Handbook of Latinos and Education, Urban Education, and the International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education.
Bologna Children’s Book Fair
In mid-April, join us (via social media) as SOIS and the BCLC explore the Bologna Children’s Book Fair and beyond. Students will engage with publishing and youth literature experts from around the world to celebrate the newest and best in global youth literature.
Dungeon Crawl at the Haunted Mall Jendia Gammon Illustrated by Elena Dall’Aglio ChooseCo Ages 8-12 Available April 21, 2026
The old mall in town has been closed since a toxic spill in the 80’s. It’s totally abandoned, probably haunted, and most likely contaminated with toxic waste, and that makes it the perfect place for you and your friends to explore for your YouTube channel! But when your friend Drea doesn’t show up and your crew is forced to venture inside the mall to look for her, things start getting creepy quickly. Will you survive zombies, popcorn monsters, and the evil warlock Valdraant? Only you can find out, because in this addition to the classic Choose Your Own Adventure series, you make the choices, and you control how the story ends.
Gammon’s Choose Your Own Adventure tale is seeped in 80’s nostalgia, with clear influences from B-Movie horror flicks and Dungeons and Dragons campaigns. Whether the cast of characters is wandering into an old-school arcade or performing synchronized aerobics in neon leotards, the book has an over-the-top campy feel with surprises around every corner. Big moments are accompanied by Dall’Aglio’s illustrations, allowing readers a peek into the wacky world they’re exploring.
With its 80’s aesthetic and D&D influences, Dungeon Crawl at the Haunted Mall is perfectly teed up to appeal to Stranger Things fans looking for a new fix. Fantasy fans will enjoy the magical overtones, while roleplayers will enjoy the engaging Choose Your Own Adventure storytelling format. Fast paced action and plenty of humor give the story wide appeal across young readers.
Whether their questions are for a school project or inspired by something they saw or heard online, kids require thoughtful and accurate information geared to their own age and maturity level. Tough Topics is a web tool developed to assist adults with resources to help them begin tough conversations surrounding social justice and immigration.
This website provides book recommendations for ages 5-13, broken down into 3 groups that could be read at home or in class. Each title has a summary, references to reviews, and an explanation as to why it was chosen. Additionally, each title is rated on a controversy scale to help adults decide if the title is right for their readers.
Tough Topics was developed as a scholarship project by Vanessa Crisostomo, Dominican University, School of Information Studies graduate. The inspiration in her own words:
“I am half Mexican and half Guatemalan daughter of immigrants who came seeking a better life. I grew up in a predominantly Hispanic community and Spanish was my first language. I learned English in school and from watching shows like Winnie the Pooh. By the time I was in first or second grade, immigration was something I understood to be important but was too complex for me to understand. Our political climate today has brought more attention to the issue of immigration, making it even more important to have resources available.
As a child of immigrants who grew up hearing many misconceptions, I sought to create a resource that could help increase empathy and understanding about immigration and why people leave their homes. One of the things that makes America so great is all of the different immigrant populations. The inspiration behind this resource was to make tough topics accessible to kids of all ages while encouraging them to be the change they want to see.”
Vanessa Crisostomo earned a bachelor’s degree in English Education from Northeastern Illinois University and spent the past seven years teaching in Chicago Public Schools. She completed a master’s degree in library science at Dominican University and was recognized as a Butler Children’s Literature Center Scholar. Throughout a career deeply committed to supporting students’ growth as readers and individuals, a love for both education and literature ultimately inspired study for a master’s degree in library science, allowing expanded impact to help students access information, develop media literacy skills, and find joy in reading.
Outside of academic and professional goals, she finds balance in spending time outdoors: hiking, kayaking, and exploring nature. She lives in Chicago, Illinois with her husband and two dogs, Cookie-Ann and Henry. Experiences as an educator, graduate student, and lifelong learner continue to shape the values she brings to her work and motivate continued growth within the library and information field.
Styx and Stones Gary D. Schmidt and Ron Koertge HarperCollins/Clarion Books Ages 8-12 Available May 6, 2026
Simon has been 13 for a long time. 2,000 years, in fact — ever since he died protecting his brothers during a Spartan attack on Athens. He’s spent his time since then in Hades, serving Persephone, learning from all the greatest thinkers who ever lived (and died), and trying every day to get out. When he finally makes his escape, he finds himself once again in the land of the living. Specifically, in a middle school boy’s bathroom. Simon is ready to live life to the fullest alongside his new friend Zeke, but Hades isn’t ready to let him go so easily. The Lord of the Underworld and his demons are set on getting him back, even if it means taking out Simon’s new mortal friends along the way.
Schmidt and Koertge mix the ancient and the modern in ways both hilarious and heartwarming. While Simon is confronted by the mysteries of smartphones and middle school, his new friends and classmates are surprised by his sincerity and gentleness. While reveling in his second chance at life, Simon brings a unique outlook and thankfulness that challenges the ways his new friends see and conduct themselves, Themes of loss and grief are present throughout the book, as are the contrasts between life and death.
Styx and Stones has just enough Greek mythology to hook those with a casual interest and fans of similar series such as Percy Jackson, although those with an especially deep interest may be disappointed by a lack of breadth and depth. Young readers with an interest in thrilling escapes and earnest adventures will enjoy reading about Simon and Zeke.
Better the Devil Erik J. Brown HarperCollins/Storytide January 20, 2026 Age 13+
An unnamed teen runaway, arrested for shoplifting, sees the resemblance between himself and the poster of a missing boy. But claiming to be Nate Beaumont for a meal and respite from the street (and his bio parents’ forced conversion therapy) becomes much more complicated when Nate’s family arrives to claim him as their long-missing son. As “Nate” is drawn into the Beaumont family, their often-strange reactions to his return prove that danger can lurk in even the best family home. “Nate” is implicated in a string of accidents and learns that the boy he’s impersonating was killed by his psychopathic brother. And he might just be again.
In a chilling psychological thriller, set in a stereotypical suburban home, Brown plots nightmare events—kidnapping, arrest, trauma, and murder—against the place most people turn for safety. This contrast of emotion runs throughout the title, balancing dread with moments of humor, parental neglect and withholding with the support of found family and helps to hold full terror at bay. Each character is drawn with a mysteriously elusive quality, keeping readers guessing about their intentions and allowing the true predator to stay hidden throughout most of the action. It also lets the two-part resolution unfold in scenes of escalating horror as the murder and murderer of a young boy are revealed and the killer draws his plans to their terrible conclusion. Fast pacing and snappy dialog add to the tension and make for a quick and scary read perfect for teen fans of true crime podcasts and shows like Criminal Minds.
This week marks Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and we at the Butler Center are observing the holiday by digging into our Effie Lee Morris Collection. To honor the legacy of Dr. King, we’re looking at selections from the collection that cover the Civil Rights Movement and the past, present, and future of the fight for equality in America. Across fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, these books offer a variety of ways for young readers to engage with the issues they grapple with. Our feature pick is Martin Rising: Requiem for a King by 2018 Butler Lecturer Andrea Davis Pinkney and illustrated by Brian Pinkney. This collection of poetry, accompanied by vivid watercolor paintings, covers the final months of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and the immediate aftermath of his death. Beginning with his birth and then fast-forwarding to his 39th birthday, just under four months before the end of his life, the poems within explore both the highs and lows of King’s life and the impact of his assassination.
Check out more books for MLK Day below:
Happy Birthday Martin Luther King Jean Marzollo Illustrated by J. Brian Pinkney Scholastic Inc Available now!
Martin Rising: Requiem for a King Andrea Davis Pinkney Illustrated by Brian Pinkney Scholastic Inc/Scholastic Press Available now!
Through My Eyes Ruby Bridges Scholastic Inc/Scholastic Press Available now!
We Shall Overcome Bryan Collier Scholastic Inc/Orchard Books Available now!
When We Say Black Lives Matter Maxine Beneba Clarke Candlewick Press Available now!
Butler's Pantry 