Looking for inspiring ways to make 2025 the best year yet? The New Orleans Public Library has books for all ages about embracing a new year while being true to yourself, taking care of others, and exploring new ways to bring your hobbies to the next level.
Children
ABCs for a Peaceful Me: A Mindfulness Seek-And-Find Book by Shelly Becker and Dan Yaccarino is an insightful and inspiring ABC picture book about mindfulness. Featuring bold, colorful art on each spread, children learn a unique word that promotes a healthy body-mind connection, while simultaneously exploring self-soothing methods to help little readers express themselves.
In Cooking Step-By-Step: More Than 50 Delicious Recipes for Young Cooks, even the youngest readers can learn to chop, mix, and stir with this fantastic first cookbook to help young chefs cook delicious meals with confidence. With more than 50 mouth-watering recipes that are fun and easy to make, children aged 5–9 can learn tips, tricks, and kitchen fundamentals to set them up for a lifetime of cooking.
Being responsible means you are a good helper. In Do Your Part With Grover: A Book About Responsibility by Katherine Lewis, young readers can learn with Grover and the rest of their Sesame Street friends how to help at home and in their community.
Middle Grade
For the budding creator in your family, check out This Book Will Make You an Artist by Ruth Millington and Ellen Surrey, a middle-grade book for children seeking inspiration for their next project. Jam-packed with imaginative ideas for all kinds of creative crafts, readers can explore 25 of the world’s best-known artists in this fact-filled book full of activities.
For more science-driven kids, Home Activity Lab: Exciting Experiments for Budding Scientists is an excellent choice. The middle-grade guide presents over two dozen simple science activities using food, common household items, water, and the outdoors.
And, for aspiring gardeners, The Young Green Witch’s Guide to Plant Magic: Rituals and Recipes from Nature by Robin Rose Bennett and Rachel Grant is sure to do the trick. With this essential guide for any kid who wants to connect with natural magic, readers learn more about herbalism and become more confident as they embrace their power with activities that support mindfulness and self-love.
Teens
Having a room and wardrobe that you love is so important, and Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin’s The Home Edit for Teens: How to Edit Your Space, Express Your Style, and Get Things Done is a wonderful playbook for owning your style, your confidence, your life. The best part of Clea and Joanna’s signature approach to organizing is that it makes space for you to have fun and enjoy the process.
The Science of Habits: How to Make Them or Break Them is a collection of articles exploring how habits are created or broken from a scientific perspective, offering psychological insight into the processes involved in self-improvement and why it can be so challenging to change habits.