Elementary Teachers today are under enormous pressure to teach children to read better. Teachers sometimes lose sight of the fact that if we can inspire children to want to learn, to want to read more about a topic, everyone wins--even the people whose sole interest is reading test scores. In the social studies, we want students to be thirsty for information and knowledge. Teachers should be provoking, inspiring, and guiding students into reading a wealth of informative books. One step toward doing this is for teachers to make an all-out effort to pull children into reading a variety of nonfiction and fiction social studies-related books. The reasons are simple. Guiding students to books that feature strong content and strong characters representing various ethnic groups can be one way of demonstrating a more caring, personalized, and positive approach. Teachers can also learn much from librarians about promoting books to children. The technique, usually called the book talk, involves providing an overview, some "show and tell," and creating a "tease" or a reason for students to examine a book more closely Librarians have turned giving such talks into an art form. Fortunately, social studies teachers can emulate the art and utilize the techniques of book talks to get students interested in social studies-related fiction and non-fiction books. This article provides teachers with guidelines for developing interesting, effective book talks that make students eager to read books. A brief list of suggested children's books, representing a variety of social studies topics and accessible to a wide range of students that would be especially suited for such talks is also included.