In a sweeping fantasy that award-winning author Franny Billingsley calls "fascinating and unique," debut author Kathy MacMillan weaves palace intrigue and epic world-building to craft a tale for fans of Rae Carson and Megan Whalen Turner. Raisa was just a child when she was sold into slavery in the kingdom of Qilara. Before she was taken away, her father had been adamant that she learn to read and write. But where she now lives, literacy is a capital offense for all but the nobility. The written language is closely protected, and only the King, Prince, Tutor, and Tutor-in-training are allowed to learn its very highest form. So when she is plucked from her menial labor and selected to replace the last Tutor-in-training who was executed, Raisa knows that betraying any hint of her past could mean death. Keeping her secret guarded is hard enough, but the romance that's been blossoming between her and Prince Mati isn't helping matters. Then Raisa is approached by the Resistance--an underground rebel army--to help liberate the city's slaves. She wants to free her people, but that would mean aiding a war against Mati. As Raisa struggles with what to do, she discovers a secret that the Qilarites have been hiding for centuries--one that, if uncovered, could bring the kingdom to its knees.

Sword and Verse

Teen & Young Adult

MacMillan, Kathy

Historical Fiction

Harpercollins

In a sweeping fantasy that award-winning author Franny Billingsley calls "fascinating and unique," debut author Kathy MacMillan weaves palace intrigue and epic world-building to craft a tale for fans of Rae Carson and Megan Whalen Turner. Raisa was just a child when she was sold into slavery in the kingdom of Qilara. Before she was taken away, her father had been adamant that she learn to read and write. But where she now lives, literacy is a capital offense for all but the nobility. The written language is closely protected, and only the King, Prince, Tutor, and Tutor-in-training are allowed to learn its very highest form.
So when she is plucked from her menial labor and selected to replace the last Tutor-in-training who was executed, Raisa knows that betraying any hint of her past could mean death. Keeping her secret guarded is hard enough, but the romance that's been blossoming between her and Prince Mati isn't helping matters. Then Raisa is approached by the Resistance—an underground rebel army—to help liberate the city's slaves. She wants to free her people, but that would mean aiding a war against Mati.
As Raisa struggles with what to do, she discovers a secret that the Qilarites have been hiding for centuries—one that, if uncovered, could bring the kingdom to its knees.

Sword and Verse (Sword and Verse, 1)

"Rich in politics, intrigue, and betrayal, Dagger and Coin is a complex feminist fantasy featuring a tough and prickly ex-princess that I couldn't help but adore."—Heidi Heilig, author of The Girl from Everywhere
The sequel to Sword and Verse follows a familiar face—Soraya—as she attempts to rebuild a nation after the downfall of the monarchy. Readers who love Rae Carson and Kristen Cashore won’t be able to put this fantasy down.
Soraya Gamo was meant to be queen of Qilara, until an Arnath slave rebellion upended the social order and destroyed the capital city. Now, improbably, she sits on the new ruling council beside Mati, Raisa, and Jonis from Book 1, and must work with her former enemies.
She finally holds the political power she always wanted—but over a nation in ruins. As she helps to rebuild Qilara, she can, at last, use what everyone once told her to hide: her brain.
But not everyone is ready to accept that the Arnathim are no longer enslaved to the Qilarites. So when a slave ship arrives in the city, full of Arnathim captured before Qilara fell, the civil unrest that has been bubbling since the rebellion erupts.
Forced to confront her own prejudices, Soraya struggles to gain the trust of the Arnath people she once disregarded and establish peace in what has become chaos. With the threat of attacks high, Gelti, a former guard captain, trains Soraya in self-defense. As the two grow close, tension within the city ramps up, with danger, betrayal, and deception meeting Soraya everywhere she turns.
Friends become foes, adversaries become companions, and the clashing of classes threatens to unravel all the good Soraya has been trying to do. Can Soraya, raised to be a submissive Qilarite lady, learn to be a true leader? Or will the sins of her past forever haunt the footsteps of her future?

Dagger and Coin (Sword and Verse)

Literature & Fiction

Poetry

Dagger and Coin (Sword and Verse, 2)

American Sign Language is more than just an assortment of gestures. It is a full-fledged unique language, with all the characteristics of such. This helpful and user-friendly guide for librarians and other library personnel involved in library programming demonstrates everything from how to set up programming involving sign language for all ages to dealing with and paying interpreters. The book also discusses how to publicize programs to the public and within the deaf community and how to evaluate and improve the library's sign language collection. Kathy MacMillan's impressive understanding and knowledge of the deaf community and the importance of sign language_as well as her exceptional handling of the numerous erroneous myths about deafness and sign language that are, unfortunately, still often current_make this handbook an indispensable tool for all library personnel looking to reach out to the deaf and hard-of-hearing community.

Try Your Hand at This: Easy Ways to Incorporate Sign Language into Your Programs

Politics & Social Sciences

Social Sciences

Scarecrow Press

Children's programming made easy. Really easy. What librarian doesn't dream of offering more and better children's programs with less effort? After all, these are usually the most popular and sought-after programs in the library. But they are also the most demanding: any librarian who has put in the sweat and time required to pull together a single quality program will balk at the prospect of putting together eighteen programs per week! In Maryland's Carroll County, story boxes have made this impossible dream come true for twenty years. Now MacMillan, writer, storyteller, and former children's librarian, outlines the proven story box system for sharing an array of successful programs. Story boxes offer a simple method for capturing ideas, talent, creativity, and resources available in your library. Including step-by-step instructions from concept through implementation and supplemented by programming tips, A Box Full of Tales answers all your questions: # What is a story box? # What goes into a story box? # How is one put together? # Who can contribute? # How do you get buy-in from others to share this resource? In addition, find detailed plans for fifty great story boxes including suggested books, fingerplays, songs, props, crafts, and sign language. From ah-choo! to antlers, from monkey business to zoo escapes, A Box Full of Tales is an easy way to offer winning, stress-free library programs for children without the headaches and the hassles. You can make the impossible happen when you share resources with story boxes!

A Box Full of Tales

Reference

ALA Editions

This time-saving program planner for librarians and classroom teachers alike includes everything you need to get started―reading lists, flannelboard patterns, poems, songs, easy crafts, even take-home activities to extend the learning process. The many creative ideas packed inside include
<ul>
<li>Activities keyed to popular classroom themes, with one chapter for each week of the school year</li>
<li>Lessons that reinforce skills in key learning areas such as reading, writing, and math</li>
<li>American Sign Language and Spanish language activities that make diversity awareness a part of children's learning</li>
<li>Teachable concepts that can be mixed and rearranged for maximum flexibility, complementing classroom schedules</li>
</ul>
Both veterans and novices will find plenty to help make kindergarten days richer, more rewarding, and more fun.

Kindergarten Magic: Theme-Based Lessons for Building Literacy and Library Skills

Kirker, Christine

Storytime audiences grow ever more diverse, and it's important that the materials used in programs reflect that richness of experience. Multiculturalism need not be an occasional initiative attached to particular holidays. In this book best-selling authors MacMillan and Kirker offer a new paradigm for multicultural programs, one in which diversity is woven into any and every storytime, no matter what the topic. Arranged thematically around dozens of popular storytime themes, the authors
<ul>
<li>Present original and traditional resources from all over the world that will enrich storytimes for ages 2 through 5</li>
<li>Offer concrete book recommendations, fingerplays, and other activities that can be integrated into existing storytimes</li>
<li>Include download links for flannelboard and stick puppet patterns, and illustrations of American Sign Language signs</li>
</ul>
With numerous activities and programming suggestions, this book will seamlessly integrate and enhance cultural awareness for children all year round.

Multicultural Storytime Magic

Whether you've been presenting baby storytimes for fifteen years or fifteen minutes, you probably already know that the first five years of life are key for brain development and early literacy. Many public libraries have instituted baby and toddler programs, but finding exciting materials for baby storytime that go beyond nursery rhymes can be a challenge. Baby Storytime Magic is a treasure trove of new and exciting ideas for programs, all of which revolve around themes from a baby's world. Inside this resource you'll find
<ul>
<li>Fingerplays, bounces, flannelboards, activities with props, songs, American Sign Language activities, and more, with items arranged by type of material</li>
<li>Tips for planning storytimes, with advice on logistical issues such as age grouping, scheduling, formats, and physical setup</li>
<li>Guidance on involving caregivers in baby storytimes, including suggested scripts for explaining the benefits of each activity and how to use it at home</li>
<li>Age-appropriate book recommendations</li>
<li>Information on the stages of early childhood development, plus an appendix of recommended additional resources</li>
<li>A thematic index to find the right storytime quickly</li>
<li>Links to full-sized, downloadable flannelboard patterns, craft patterns, and worksheets</li>
</ul>
Packed with ready-to-use activities, reducing prep time substantially, this book is a valuable early literacy tool for every children's librarian.

Baby Storytime Magic: Active Early Literacy through Bounces, Rhymes, Tickles, and More

MacMillian and Kirker's knack for creating storytimes that engage and delight young ones have made their previous books bestsellers. Now they're back with a completely new assortment of original fingerplays, transitional rhymes, movement songs, flannelboards, sign language rhymes and other activities to spice up storytimes for ages two and up. This ready-to-go sourcebook for children's librarians, early literacy specialists, and other adults who work with young children offers everything needed to plan and host quality storytimes, including
<ul>
<li>more than a dozen thematic groupings of activities, featuring such fun topics such as "All About Me," "Bugs and Insects," "Fairy Tales and Castles," and "People in my Neighborhood"; </li>
<li>recommended storytime books for each theme, along with material lists, patterns for flannelboards and stick puppets, and illustrations of American Sign Language signs; and</li>
<li>coding for each entry indicating which Common Core State Standards for Kindergarten skills it supports.</li>
</ul>
Using the guidance and activities contained in this book, storytimes will be more magical than ever!

More Storytime Magic

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