Annie and the Wild Animals


Jan Brett - 1985
    This beautiful picture book by best-selling author-illustrator Jan Brett celebrates a child's love of animals, spring, and life. Something is wrong with Taffy the cat. She's stopped playing with Annie and sleeps all day long. One day, Taffy disappears. Annie is very lonely and tries to make friends with the woodland creatures, but none of them are as soft and friendly as Taffy. When Taffy finally returns, she brings back something unexpected. Jan Brett's distinctive illustration style uses the borders of the pages to foretell the emergence of spring and the birth of kittens.

What Lane?


Torrey Maldonado - 2020
    Here's the thing, though: Can he do everything his friends can? Lately, he's not so sure. As a mixed kid, he feels like he's living in two worlds with different rules--and he's been noticing that strangers treat him differently than his white friends . . .So what'll he do? Hold on tight as Stephen swerves in and out of lanes to find out which are his--and who should be with him.Torrey Maldonado, author of the highly acclaimed Tight, does a masterful job showing a young boy coming of age in a racially split world, trying to blaze a way to be his best self.

Lola at the Library


Anna McQuinn - 2006
    Why? Because it's Tuesday--and on Tuesdays, Lola and her mommy go to the library. Join Lola in this cozy celebration of books and the people who love them.

Superheroes Are Everywhere


Kamala Harris - 2019
    And when she looked around, she was amazed to find them everywhere! In her family, among her friends, even down the street--there were superheroes wherever she looked. And those superheroes showed her that all you need to do to be a superhero is to be the best that you can be.In this empowering and joyful picture-book memoir that speaks directly to kids, Kamala Harris takes readers through her life and shows them that the power to make the world a better place is inside all of us. And with fun and engaging art by Mechal Renee Roe, as well as a guide to being a superhero at the end, this book is sure to have kids taking up the superhero mantle (cape and mask optional).

The Littlest Train


Chris Gall - 2017
    Mighty Max, Chloe Cogs, Sara Speedster, and Farley Freighter can reach all the best sights, lickety-split. But when the day is done and the sun goes down, will the littlest train find his way home? Calling all train lovers: All aboard!

We're Different, We're the Same


Bobbi Jane Kates - 1992
    This enduring, colorful, and charmingly illustrated book offers an easy, enjoyable way to learn about differences--and what truly matters. We're Different, We're the Same is an engaging read for toddlers and adults alike that reinforces how we all have the same needs, desires, and feelings.

Have You Seen Elephant? (Gecko Press Titles)


David Barrow - 2015
    A small boy and his elephant play an absurd game of hide and seek - a brilliant debut from a Sebastian Walker Award-winning illustrator

I Am Mixed


Garcelle Beauvais - 2012
    From Mommy's jazz beats to Daddy's classical piano, we will dance with the twins through a book that explores what it is to be of mixed ancestry, proving that a child is more than the sum of their parents.This book is the first in the I Am Book Series. Future books shallhelp shed light on topics such as divorce and adoption, all from a child's perspective.

For Black Girls Like Me


Mariama J. Lockington - 2019
    Her parents and big sister are white, and even though she loves her family very much, Makeda often feels left out. When Makeda's family moves from Maryland to New Mexico, she leaves behind her best friend, Lena―the only other adopted black girl she knows―for a new life. In New Mexico, everything is different. At home, Makeda’s sister is too cool to hang out with her anymore and at school, she can’t seem to find one real friend.Through it all, Makeda can’t help but wonder: What would it feel like to grow up with a family that looks like me?Through singing, dreaming, and writing secret messages back and forth with Lena, Makeda might just carve a small place for herself in the world.

The Rain Came Down


David Shannon - 2000
    It made the chickens squawk. The cat yowled at the chickens, and the dog barked at the cat. And still, the rain came down."The barking dog wakes the baby, the dog barks louder, and a policeman comes. His police car blocks traffic, and a woman in a taxi yells, so the taxi driver honks his horn. The truck driver in front of him gets mad and starts honking back. The beauty parlor owner comes out to look, and she bumps into the barber, and they begin to argue. A painter bonks the barber on the head with a can of paint, and then the baker opens up his umbrella and pokes the pizza man. On and on and on until suddenly . . . . . . the rain stops!The sun comes out, everything shimmers, and all of the bickering townspeople make amends–even the arguing children, who get free ice cream cones.

Three Tales of My Father's Dragon


Ruth Stiles Gannett - 1987
    A compilation of three tales which relate the fantastic adventures of Elmer Elevator and a baby flying dragon named Boris.

The Stories Julian Tells


Ann Cameron - 1981
    And he is great at telling stories. He can make people—especially his younger brother, Huey—believe just about anything. Like the story about the cats that come in the mail. Or the fig leaves that make you grow tall if you eat them off the tree. But some stories can lead to a heap of trouble, and that's exactly where Julian and Huey end up!This book has been selected as a Common Core State Standards Text Exemplar (Grades 2-3, Stories) in Appendix B

Mustafa


Marie-Louise Gay - 2018
    Some nights Mustafa dreams about the country he used to live in, and he wakes up not knowing where he is. Then his mother takes him out to the balcony to see the moon — the same moon as in their old country. In the park, Mustafa sees ants and caterpillars and bees — they are the same, too. He encounters a “girl-with-a-cat,” who says something in a language that he can’t understand. He watches an old lady feeding birds and other children playing, but he is always looking in from the outside and he feels that he is invisible. But one day, the girl-with-the-cat beckons to him, and Mustafa begins to become part of his new world.