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rpayne.bsky.social
Early literacy librarian, SLJ columnist, Horn Book board book reviewer, play advocate, and debut author of Let's Rumble from Rise x Penguin Workshop (July 2025). Rep: Kathleen Rushall at Andrea Brown Lit. She/they RachelGPayne.com
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It’s here! We unboxed the author copies of my debut picture book, Let’s Rumble: A Rough-and-Tumble Book of Play illustrated by @jopi.bsky.social from Rise x Penguin Workshop! @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social #kidlit #picturebook #picturebooks #pb #play #kids #unboxing #roughhousing #letsrumblebook

Going to @amlibraryassoc.bsky.social's #ALAAC25 in Philadelphia? Stop by @bklynlibrary.bsky.social's #BooksUnbanned Booth (135) for these stickers, fun schwag, and information on our brand-spanking new Freedom to Read Storytime Guide, which I will be presenting on on Sat 6/28 at 11 AM! #BannedBooks

ICE arrested Job Garcia while he was running errands in LA. Job is a US citizen, a scholar, and a brilliant photographer. He’s also my friend. But none of that should determine his humanity. ICE must release Job Garcia immediately.

We're celebrating a momentous occasion in the U.S. with some of our favorite #picturebooks about the history of slavery and #Juneteenth. Any you think we should have included? #Juneteenth2025 #childrensbooks #AmericanHistory

Celebrating #juneteenth2025 with a bunch of our favorite #PictureBooks about the history of slavery and the Juneteenth holiday. Do you have a favorite picture book you'd like to recommend? #kidlit #childrensbooks #PBJam

I'm chatting about my #pb Let's Rumble! with illustrator @jopi.bsky.social & editor Cecily Kaiser at @slj.com's Picture Book Palooza on July 27- a virtual conference & one of my favorite virtual events. All are welcome! Link in comments. Thanks @penguinkids.bsky.social! #kidlit

BREAKING: President Trump just fired our nation's Librarian. My statement here:

Carla Hayden was an inspiring librarian of congress, and we were lucky to have her

We are super-excited for #PBJam member Katie Mazeika's new #picturebook hitting shelves on April 22nd. Check out the curriculum guide and activity sheets she has on her website to go with it: www.katiemazeika.com/new-page-3 #reading #kidlit #socialemotionallearning #edusky #skybrarians #education

We're celebrating the longest-running children's literacy initiative in the country with our 2025 releases! That's right, this is #ChildrensBookWeek, sponsored by the @cbcbooks.bsky.social What books are you and your kids reading this week? #KidLit #PictureBooks #edusky #ChildrensBooks #Poetry

Excited to read this! If you don’t know @maklelan.bsky.social’s work, this is a good entry point.

Every chair I sit in at home has a cardigan draped over the back. #menopause

I thought Trump’s first Secretary of Education was bad… this one is dumb as a brick.

The first review of my picture book is in and it is a good one! Phew! I used to review for Kirkus, so I know how tough they can be. @jopi.bsky.social @penguinkids.bsky.social #letsrumblebook #debut #kidlit #roughhousing #pb bit.ly/letsrumblebk

🎉Party Time Sunday🎊 Follow & Repost Please! @pattyger.bsky.social @gigialexander123.bsky.social @thedefiantdem.bsky.social @tawnywilson.bsky.social @stellamarie.bsky.social @loriherbison.bsky.social @moliberal.bsky.social @janeylou.bsky.social @qm-b.bsky.social @northjules.bsky.social

Barnes & Noble is having a 25% preorder sale! Little Seasons: Autumn Leaves just received a starred review from SLJ and would be a perfect book to add to classroom and homeschool libraries. 😊 Order at bn.com @mackidsbooks.bsky.social @barnesandnoble.com @macmillanusa.bsky.social #kidlit #edusky

February is #BlackHistoryMonth and here are some of our #picture book recommendations. Would you like to share some of your favorites? #kidlit #pbjam #reading

"A day without a friend is like a pot without a single drop of honey left inside" -Winnie the Pooh. Friday is #ValentinesDay & these are our #PBJam members' friendship and love themed #picturebooks to share. Comment and share your favorite friendship quote or love-themed pb. #kidlit #edusky

Guess which book is the @shelfawareness.bsky.social "Trailer of the Week!" www.shelf-awareness.com/issue.html?i... #AUniverseOfRainbows #KidLit #ChildrensBooks w/ @ebyrbooks.bsky.social @pbjamboree.bsky.social

Rümeysa's legal team is coordinating a fundraiser for her and her family to help them deal with this crisis, including medical costs since ICE has kept Rümeysa from accessing all her medications. Please donate if you're able:

#HBOutoftheBox #HBWeekinReview: March/April #HBMag Cathryn M. Mercier's #HB100 Reminiscence + @rpayne.bsky.social's #BoardBook Roundup; #HBWomensHistoryMonth Week 4; @jerrycraft.bsky.social's Curious George Lecture; Blueberry Awards; #HBHerald; + more! www.hbook.com/story/blogs/...

America, if you want our kids to have a chance at life, we will stop asking why the Idiot-Regime is doing egregious harm to us. Instead, we will do everything possible to end them before they end us. We’ve seen enough. It’s go time. #MomSky #FightFascism

Rumeysa Ozturk, a member of the kidlit community and a 2023-2024 @highlightsfound Muslim Storyteller fellow, has been taken by ICE. This isn’t an isolated incident anymore, but it is certainly one step closer to home for me. Here are some things we can do

From March/April #HBMag @rpayne.bsky.social's latest #BoardBook Roundup column about "The Fabric of Baby Books" www.hbook.com/story/articl... @nosycrowus.bsky.social @geckopress.bsky.social @orcabook.bsky.social @childsplaybooks.bsky.social @flowerpotpress.bsky.social @charlesbridge.bsky.social

I would like to nominate Maxwell Smart for national security advisor.

Ahead of Germany’s election, with anti-immigrant sentiment rising, they released viral videos showing life without immigrants. History proves that when a country starts erasing certain people, it doesn’t end well. 🧵

Now they’re coming for libraries. In my career, the IMLS has funded pantries to help with period poverty, literacy programs in public housing, teen internships on library careers, and so much more. Call your reps!. #publiclibraries #IMLS

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This February, we saw a 275% increase in new Libro.fm memberships compared to February 2024. More and more individuals are choosing to support their independent bookshop—and their local communities—over Amazon/Audible. Thank you for supporting your indie with us ❤️

So much to love in this month's #HBmag #boardbooks #earlyreaders #kidlit

Famous sexual harasser & nursing home death merchant Andrew Cuomo has announced he’s running for mayor. But here’s the good news: @dreamfornyc.bsky.social is here to spread the word: DON’T RANK ERIC or ANDREW for MAYOR. dreamfornyc.com

Children are under a lot of stress. This shouldn't include pressure to read before they're developmentally ready. Instead, please read engaging picture books together, especially the funny ones, and back off the academic expectations. nancyebailey.com/2023/03/13/h...

We are now accepting applications for Queer Kidlit Camp! sites.google.com/view/queerki...

The Mar/Apr of @thehornbook.bsky.social is out & available online via Flipster with your #librarycard. My roundup of #boardbooks appears. There’s also an early reader roundup (yay!) and a feature about #kidlit legends Ruth Krauss and Crockett Johnson. Check it out! #boardbook

You know where you can go and not worry about breaking the economic blackout today? Your local library! All those books and you won’t spend a penny!

"The Best Board Books of the Year [2025 edition]" by Bank Street College of Education Children's Book Committee educate.bankstreet.edu/ccl/30/ #infants #toddlers #kidlit #boardbooks