The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Jan. 20, 2020, marked the 25th anniversary of the day of service that celebrates the Civil Rights leader’s life and legacy. Observed each year on the third Monday in January as “a day on, not a day off,” the day serves to encourage all Americans to volunteer to improve their communities. This list of books, available at the Lititz Public Library, aims to remind us all of the variety of acts we can take every day to spread love and kindness through our communities, near and far.
Make & Share Random Acts of Kindness: Simple Crafts and Recipes to Give and Spread Joy / Mique Provost; photography by Alyssa Bazar – The Random Acts of Kindness movement started in the 1980s. It is attributed to Anne Herbert, a peace activist who wrote a challenge on a restaurant place mat: Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty. In this book, she gives readers completely new crafts, recipes and projects, complete with her popular design templates. Readers young and old will love these inspiring ideas to spread joy and help make the world a kinder place.
A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home: Lessons in the Good Life from an Unlikely Teacher / Sue Halpern – A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home is the story of how one faithful, charitable, loving, and sometimes prudent mutt–showing great hope, fortitude, and restraint along the way (the occasional begged or stolen treat notwithstanding)–taught a well-meaning woman the true nature and pleasures of the good life.
Paulie Pastrami Achieves World Peace / by James Proimos – Seven-year-old Paulie, an ordinary boy, brings peace to his home and school through small acts of kindness, but needs help to achieve his goal of world peace.
The Love Revolution / Joyce Meyer – A leading practical Bible teacher encourages seekers and believers to embrace a new culture of love and concern for one another, offering suggestions for living the revolution at home, in the community, and in the world.
Simple Giving: Easy Ways to Give Every Day / Jennifer Iacovelli – Most people think they have to donate a lot of time and money in order to make a difference. But there are simple ways to integrate giving into our personal and professional lives that don’t involve either. In Simple Giving, Jennifer Iacovelli shows us how to make giving a part of our daily routines.
Heartprints / P.K. Hallinan – Illustrations and rhyming text show how we can brighten the world with acts of kindness and caring in this wonderful board book.
Senseless Acts of Beauty / Lisa Verge Higgins – A new novel of women’s friendship from the author of Random Acts of Kindness that will appeal to fans of Kristin Hannah, Luanne Rice, and Karen White”– Provided by publisher.
Pay It Forward Kids : Small Acts, Big Changes / Nancy Runstedler – In Pay It Forward Kids, readers will meet ordinary kids from across North America who have done extraordinary things, all on their own initiatives. They have set out to pay it forward to someone else, with astonishing results. These powerful stories demonstrate that you are never too young to make a difference or to improve the life of another. Kindness can be done by anyone, you just need to step up and start.
Will You Fill My Bucket?: Daily Acts of Love Around the World / by Carol McCloud and Karen Wells ; illustrated by Penny Weber – Children around the world remind us of their need for love and affection by asking us to fill their buckets. Tender responses affirm that bucket filling is the essence of loving and being loved.
-Ryan McCrory