Plaza Branch and Central Library will open late at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17 due to the Kansas City Marathon.
Outreach Youth Librarian Isaac Halberstadt takes a look at the BookWalk in Gillham Park.
This month, two new Book Walks are coming to Kansas City-area parks: My America by Karen Katz in Gillham Park and I Know the River Loves Me/Yo sé que el río me ama by Maya Christina Gonzales in Budd Park.
Explore the stories at your own pace, pause to read more than a dozen panels, or try out early literacy activities. For example, you might look for different animals or colors or sing a song.
Outreach Youth Librarian Isaac Halberstadt says Adam Roberts and Vanessa Shaffer, both Outreach youth associates, selected titles that “tell engaging stories from diverse perspectives” and offer “good visual appeal.”
My America celebrates immigration stories from children’s perspectives as they share the foods they eat, the languages they speak, the sports they play, and more.
I Know the River Loves Me is a gentle story in both English and Spanish about a girl’s love of nature — and particularly of a river.
The river takes care of me and I take care of the river
I only leave behind what already belongs to her.
El rio me cuida y yo cuido al rio.
Solo dejo atras lo que ya a el le pertenece.
BookWalks, previously called Tales on the Trail, are a Library program that grew out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
At a time when many businesses, including the Library, were closed, Halberstadt says this provided an opportunity to “go to the park and get a book-based experience."
At first, metal yard sign frames held the stories as a temporary installation, in partnership with Kansas City Parks & Recreation and the Kansas City Health Department. After several years of planning and budgeting, 18 panels of permanent signage were installed in two locations in May 2024.
These storybook trails are here to stay – just with new additions every year or two.