Evidenced by our many, many blog posts on sales this week, holiday shopping is in full force. At the Goddard Riverside Community Book Fair this weekend, you can strike a seasonal balance between mass consumption and giving. Sponsored by the local publishing industry for over 20 years, the sale benefits the namesake community center. Shoppers can choose from thousands of brand-new donated tomes (including lots of children’s books), which are sold at half the normal cost. For the best deals, go on Sunday, when prices will be slashed down even more. Sat Nov, 21 10am–6pm, Sun Nov 22 11am–5pm. Goddard Riverside Community Center, 593 Columbus Ave at 88th St (212-873-6600, goddard.org).

Good news for Gothic-minded tots: The mysterious Lemony Snicket—pseudonym of the somewhat less inscrutable Daniel Handler—will publish his first new series since the bestselling “A Series of Unfortunate Events” ended in 2006 (though he’s certainly been busy in the meantime). The four-volume run begins, perhaps fittingly, in 2012. Dare we expect an apocalyptic scenario? It would certainly make for a very Bad Beginning.

Independent book shops can’t get enough attention as far as we’re concerned. Show them some love at the city’s first Indie Bookstore Week, which begins Sunday, November 15 and runs through Saturday, November 21. There are plenty of children’s events; highlights include: Brooklynites Randall and Peter de Sève present their picture-book collaboration The Duchess of Whimsy at Greenpoint’s Word (Sunday, November 15 at 2pm) and grilled cheese—a key plot point in the story—will be served; arts-and-crafts time at Dumbo’s powerHouse Arena with Alex Beard, author-illustrator of The Jungle Grapevine (Sunday, November 15th at 4pm); and a Bank Street Bookstore reading by Thad Krasnesky (Wednesday, November 18 at 4:30pm), author of a book about a power-tripping three-year-old called I Always, ALWAYS Get My Way. Bet that sentiment sounds familiar.

Head to the Tribeca Barnes & Noble today for a reading by the author of the Mo’s Nose series, Margaret Hyde. Her latest installation, Mo Smells the Holidays, focuses on the hard-to-learn lesson that giving is better than receiving, which can serve as a gentle reminder as the present-giving—and greed-inducing—season approaches.

Looking for more Veteran’s Day fun? Check out our roundup of events to celebrate the holiday with your family.

You and your tots probably know (and love) author-illustrator Arnold Lobel’s adorable Frog and Toad series. Today Lobel’s daughter, Adrienne, honors her late father by celebrating the release of two new works, which she pieced together from stories he created for friends and family. After her introduction and tribute, Adrienne will answer questions and sign copies of the tomes, which she illustrated.

Didn’t know that Don Freeman’s classic tale about a department store-dwelling teddy bear had been adapted into a film? Neither did we. Today, your brood can watch the live-action short based on the tome, followed by A Pocket for Corduroy, a “sequel” to the original, in which Corduroy is forgotten in a laundromat and must find his way home.

You could stay at home today and read Junior Goodnight Moon for the billionth time, or you could head over to the Upper West Side for a special storytime with other local kids at the Jewish Community Center. After tales are read aloud, baby bibliophiles can gobble up gratis cookies and milk.