In this guide you will find information about accessing all of the resources available to you, whether on the Hickory campus or visiting in Boone.
Navigate the tabs to the left based on your needs. Mobile users will see tabs at the top of the screen.
The Instructional Materials Center (IMC) is a model Pre-K – 12 school media center. We serve Appalachian students, faculty, and staff, as well as area educators and community members.
The IMC is located on the lower level of Belk Library in Boone. Most of our resources are available for check out, both in person and from the Hickory campus.
The IMC is open when Belk Library is open. Please call us at 828-262-2790 if you have questions.
Visit the IMC website for more information!
Picture Book
By Deborah Underwood
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "There once was a man who loved his tidy home and who didn't like animals. Then one day, a cat appeared. The man and the cat both liked the same things. Well, he thought, maybe this one animal could stay. Next came a dog..." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Chris Monroe
Recommended: Grades PreK to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "Strawberry the Sasquatch is happy on her own, or so she thinks, until an extremely enthusiastic squirrel named Nutty shows up. After a series of hilarious mishaps, they find a way to be friends." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Robert Raczka
Recommended: Ages 5 to 9
Pages: 32
Summary: "Niko loves to draw his world. But no one understands the abstract pictures he makes until a new friend sees the thoughts and feelings within his shapes and forms." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Maddie Frost
Recommended: Grades K to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "Bear learns to face his fears with a little help from his friends and his comforting bathrobe that acts as a security blanket." -- Provided by publisher
--From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Lauren Castillo
Recommended: Grades K to 3
Pages: 32
Summary: "A shy young girl finds exploring her new city and making friends overwhelming until a rescue dog helps her uncover the bravery that was always in her." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Drew Daywalt
Recommended: Grades PreK to 2
Pages: 32
Summary: "The narrator is WRONG about everything in this book, including that bicycles say cock-a-doodle-doo and firefighters shout Ding Dong before putting out a fire!" --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Brad Montague
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "You are cordially invited to take pride in all of your efforts and the fact that you tried!" --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Antwan Eady
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "A little boy is excited to work alongside his Papa at their stand in the farmer's market, but when Papa cannot make it to the stand, his community gathers around him, with dishes made of his own produce." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Blanca Gómez
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "When their usual routine is disrupted, Bookie and Cookie, best friends who live on opposite pages, learn to bridge their differences and explore new experiences together." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Leila Boukarim
Recommended: Ages 5 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Based on the author's family history, a young Armenian boy is forced to leave his home and trek across the desert until he finds refuge in Lebanon--and only years later does he find the words to tell his own children the story." --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By David Biedrzycki
Recommended: Grades K to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "Robot works in a warehouse, but he keeps making mistakes. While out in the big city he discovers what he was missing: art!" --From Publisher's Description
Picture Book
By Kwame Alexander
Recommended: Grades PreK to 2
Pages: 32
Summary: "Playful text and inventive artwork encourage readers to celebrate the magic of discovering their very own song--and singing it." --From Publisher's Description
Poetry
By Angela Shanté
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 148
Summary: "Written as a collection of vignettes and poetry, The Unboxing of a Black Girl is a creative nonfiction reflection on Black girlhood. As Shanté navigates New York City through memory, she balances poetry with vignettes that explore the innocence and joy of childhood eroded by adultification." --From Publisher's Description
Poetry
By Marion Dane Bauer
Recommended: Grades 1 to 4
Pages: 32
Summary: "Since the beginning, humans have created stories about the universe. From early mythology to modern-day science is a long journey... What will we believe tomorrow?" --From Publisher's Description
Poetry
By Cece Bell
Recommended: Grades K-3
Pages: 32
Summary: "This quirky ABC book draws on albums, memorabilia, and lyrics dating between 1944-1984 and adds wry, witty text, silly and sumptuous sound play, and bright, zany art to tickle young funny bones." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Matthew Bothwell
Recommended: Grades 4 to 7
Pages: 175
Summary: "Could you crash the Moon into the Earth? If the Sun explodes, would we all get vaporized? What's the weather like on Mercury? Discover the answers to these questions and many more at the Supervillain Academy: the magnificently morbid school for young villains in training." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Dinah Williams
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 208
Summary: "Profiles for over 80 gods and goddesses from over 30 pantheons from all over the world, illustrated by artists from those cultures. Filled with betrayal, intrigue, romance, and impossible feats, their captivating stories entertain us, explain our world, and help answer some of life's biggest questions." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Jonathan Roth
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Here is the amazing true story of how a single piece of cloth--originally destined to become underwear--was used in the design of the Wright brothers' Flyer, traveled to the Moon with Apollo 11, and is currently wandering Mars on Ingenuity." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Steve Watkins
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 224
Summary: "The true story of the West Virginia coal miners who, in May of 1920, took a stand against low wages, unsafe conditions, and brutal treatment, and ignited the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest labor uprising in American history." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Tiffany Jewell
Recommended: Ages 13 and Up
Pages: 258
Summary: "This overarching nonfiction narrative follows the author from early elementary school through her time at college, unpacking the history of systemic racism in the American educational system along the way, as other writers share a wide variety of stories based on their own school experiences." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By David LaRochelle
Recommended: Grades PreK to 2
Pages: 32
Summary: "This humorous guidebook is full of practical tips about when, why, and how to say you're sorry." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Harold Green III
Recommended: Ages 8 to 13
Pages: 100
Summary: "Some of the greatest 'villains' in our lives include anxiety, fear, disappointment, and failure. But if we look to language as a way to empower ourselves--thanks to affirmations, mantras, compliments, and more--we can defeat anything that stands in our way while lifting up those around us." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Cindy Neuschwander
Recommended: Ages 7 to 10
Pages: 32
Summary: "Medieval math favorites Sir Cumference and Lady Di of Ameter learn a method to calculate the volume of grain needed to feed everyone at the castle during a blizzard." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Lynn Brunelle
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Follow a blue whale's enormous body to the bottom of the ocean, where it sets the stage for a bustling new ecosystem to flourish." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Rebecca Siegel
Recommended: Grades 7 to 9
Pages: 192
Summary: "In 1934, a man walking by a lake in the Scottish highlands snapped a photo and started a monster-hunting craze. Now considered a hoax, the Loch Ness Monster is presented here as a cautionary tale on the dangers of misinformation." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Robin Rose Bennett
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 136
Summary: "In this book, readers will learn about nine plants that inspire wellness and self-care, as well as follow herbal recipes, start a green witch journal, practice magical rituals, and more. An essential guide for any kid who wants to connect with natural magic!" --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Ferin Davis Anderson
Recommended: Ages 13 to 18
Pages: 144
Summary: "Examines how Indigenous people, farmers, and forestry departments have used fire to manage resources, and how climate change is impacting the future of fire." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Rachel Ignotofsky
Recommended: Ages 4 to 7
Pages: 32
Summary: "Butterflies soar in the sunlight. Moths flutter under the moon and stars. Find out more about these mysterious and majestic insects and their similarities and differences." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Erin Silver
Recommended: Grades 4 to 7
Pages: 89
Summary: "This illustrated book examines how sports are affecting the planet, what climate change means for athletes and sporting events, and what young people can do to make sports sustainable for the future." --From Publisher's Description
Nonfiction
By Jessica Kulekjian
Recommended: Grades K to 3
Pages: 32
Summary: "A step-by-step story of a volcanic eruption - told from the volcano's point of view!" --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Shaina Lu
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 216
Summary: "Momo has lived in the same town her entire life. She knows where to get the best meal: Noodle & Bao. But now rent is becoming unaffordable, and the restaurant has been edged out of its storefront. Can Momo protect her town from "beautification?" --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Scout Underhill
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 265
Summary: "Four adorable dogs are excited to play their favorite role-playing game. They've picked their characters and dice, and are given given a quest to fetch a magical dog collar from a nearby swamp. But they soon find that the collar isn't the only thing that has gone missing: all the squeaky toys in town have disappeared!" --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Samuel Teer
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 315
Summary: "Almudena has always wondered about the dad she never met. Now, with her white mother headed on a once-in-a-lifetime trip, she's left alone with her Guatemalan father for an entire summer. As Almudena tries to adjust to this new reality, she gets to know the residents of Xavier's Latin American neighborhood." --From Publisher's Description
Early Graphic Novel
By Alexis Frederick-Frost
Recommended: Ages 6 to 10
Pages: 91
Summary: "Raina the rhino, Nigel the narwhal, Shu the horseshoe crab, and Woolly the mammoth are all exposed to a Super Blood Full Moon Eclipse that gives them each strange powers." --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Molly Knox Ostertag
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 470
Summary: "High school senior Magdalena Herrera already has adult responsibilities and a deadly secret hidden in the dark of the basement, one that drains her of energy and leaves her bleeding. Then her childhood friend Nessa returns, bringing vivid memories of the past, an intoxicating glimpse of the future, and a secret of her own." --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Bianca Xunise
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 248
Summary: "Ariel has dreams of leaving her southside Chicago neighborhood and making it big as a punk rocker with her best friends and bandmates, but the realities of young adulthood make that challenging." --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Travis Dandro
Recommended: Ages 7 and Up
Pages: 245
Summary: "The beloved children's classic, now as a graphic novel." --From Publisher's Description
Early Graphic Novel
By Kirk Reedstrom
Recommended: Ages 6 to 8
Pages: 64
Summary: "Moose loves peace and quiet, relaxing, and living alone. Duck loves parties, karaoke, and living on Moose's head. Will Moose succeed in sending Duck away?" --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Ruth Chan
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 285
Summary: "Ruth is moving to Hong Kong. And she is not happy about it. She's going to miss Toronto, the only home she's ever known. But gradually, she puts down roots, knowing she can always find home wherever she is." --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Paul Gilligan
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 234
Summary: "In the summer of 1975, anyone who hasn't seen 'Jaws' is a wimp. Needless to say, it leaves 10-year-old Paul a cowering mess, and underlines the growing gap between him and his best friend David." --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Jen Wang
Recommended: Ages 14 to 18
Pages: 320
Summary: "Ash feels isolated, disconnected from a world that ignores the climate crisis and is obsessed with fame, while only their late Grandpa Edwin ever seemed to understand them. Ash wonders if their Grandpa's secret cabin, hidden in the California wilderness, could offer a fresh start, but they must confront whether they can truly survive and be happy alone." --From Publisher's Description
Graphic Novel
By Natalie Linn
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 188
Summary: "In Princess Aster's world, Bunnybirds live in contented isolation, keeping themselves detached from the world in order to practice magic and receive prophetic visions. But when her father disappears, her goal is definite: she's going to rescue him, no matter what." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Heather Smith
Recommended: Grades 4 to 7
Pages: 147
Summary: "After months of living without electricity or parents, Tig and Peter are forced to move in with their Uncle Scott and his partner, Manny. The transition from down-and-out to picture-perfect isn't easy, and Tig must decide what to truly leave behind in order to move forward." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Jill Baguchinsky
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 361
Summary: "For high school senior Nell and her friends, a vacation on a private Florida island sounds like the makings of a dream spring break. But Nell brings secrets with her—secrets that fuse with the island's tragic history, trapping them all with a curse that surrounds the island in a toxic, vengeful mist." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Andrew Joseph White
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 371
Summary: "On the night 16-year-old Miles Abernathy comes out as trans to his parents, he sneaks off to a party carrying evidence that may finally turn the tide of the blood feud plaguing Twist Creek, West Virginia that began a hundred years ago." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Monica Hesse
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 321
Summary: "18-year-old Edda has returned to Washington, DC after serving as a telegraph operator in France on the front lines of World War I. When she receives a cryptic phone call from a stranger who knows the fateful code word 'brightwood,' Edda must uncover the secrets that have followed her across the ocean." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Kekla Magoon
Recommended: Grades 3 to 7
Pages: 373
Summary: "A mysterious letter from her late Grandpa leads 11-year-old Dally to a library of secrets where each book is a portal to a precise moment in time. Now she must find the courage to write her own life story as she 'checks out' adventure after adventure and dives deep into her family's hidden history." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Goldy Moldavsky
Recommended: Ages 14 to 18
Pages: 312
Summary: "Jimena Ramos had no idea she was undocumented. Now she's 17, and she needs to figure out a way to stay in New York City. There's just one possibility that will get her a green card quickly enough: Jimena is going to find an American to marry her." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Susan Hood
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 259
Summary: "Based on the lives, rescue, and continuing friendship of British evacuees Bess Walder, 15, and Beth Cummings, 14, who spent fourteen hours in the North Atlantic with their hands grasped across their overturned lifeboat after the Nazis torpedoed the SS City of Benares en route to Canada in 1940. Includes historical notes." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Carolina Ixta
Recommended: Grades 9 to 12
Pages: 349
Summary: "Belén wants the normal stuff, but nothing is normal in East Oakland. Her father left her family, she's at risk of not graduating, and her best friend is pregnant. What future is there for girls like her?" --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Ginger Reno
Recommended: Grades 7 to 9
Pages: 212
Summary: "12-year-old Wren fights to find her missing Cherokee mother, one of hundreds of Native Americans considered missing or murdered in Oklahoma. Meanwhile, she must also navigate a chilling town mystery, a new friendship, and a family in need of healing."
--From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Robert Beatty
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 310
Summary: "13-year-old Sylvia Doe keeps running away from foster homes to return to the orphanage in mountains of North Carolina and her beloved horses. Then a 100-year flood, a strange boy, and a cave that is a portal to other times and places, brings her back where she truly belongs." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Lisa Fipps
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 244
Summary: "Joe is used to living on unsteady ground. His mom can't be depended on, and now he is suddenly left to fend for himself. He doesn't tell anyone he's on his own, but time is running out. Just when it seems all is lost, his life turns in a direction that he never could have predicted." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Allie Millington
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 249
Summary: "Witty typewriter Olivetti and twelve-year-old introvert Ernest embark on a mission to find Ernest's missing mother that takes them across San Francisco. As Olivetti spills out the past, Ernest is forced to face what he and his family have been running from." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Marieke Nijkamp
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 343
Summary: "Ash (Princess Adelisa) is the youngest child of the queen, recently returned to the city. Splinter is the youngest child of one of Haven's most prominent families. A chance encounter throws Ash and Splinter into each other's orbits and changes the course of the kingdom's history." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Katherine Rundell
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 358
Summary: "Christopher discovers the Archipelago, a world where mythological creatures were secreted away by magic long ago. But those creatures are now dying, and it is up to Christopher and Mal, a girl from the Archipelago, to save both of their worlds." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Olivia A. Cole
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 449
Summary: "Ariel grapples with her fear of her own mind and violent fantasies, driven by her desire to meet her parents' expectations and societal norms, until a summer job at a carnival leads her to new friends who help her discover her struggle with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and find acceptance and support for her true self." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Jandy Nelson
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 519
Summary: "Told in alternating voices, the Fall siblings each encounter the mysterious Cassidy at integral points in their lives, helping them untangle their relationships and uncover the truth about their father's disappearance." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Jade Adia
Recommended: Grades 7 and Up
Pages: 404
Summary: "16-year-old Niarah's perspective on life changes when she joins a hiking/camping club and befriends Mac Torres and his wanderlust-driven friends, but as summer draws to a close and her new friends leave, existential dread challenges her new outlook." --From Publisher's Description
Fiction
By Cynthia Hand; Brodi Ashton; Jodi Meadows
Recommended: Ages 13 and Up
Pages: 422
Summary: "Mary, a heartbroken mermaid turned pirate, dreams of becoming captain after being pulled from the sea. Determined to prove herself, she'll fight against anyone, including Blackbeard’s son and her best friend, to claim her place in the pirate world." --From Publisher's Description
