Miss Moore Thought Otherwise: How Anne Carroll Moore Created Libraries for Children


Jan Pinborough - 2013
    Reading wasn’t all that important for children, many thought. Luckily Miss Anne Carroll Moore thought otherwise! This is the true story of how Miss Moore created the first children’s room at the New York Public Library, a bright, warm room filled with artwork, window seats, and most important of all, borrowing privileges to the world’s best children’s books in many different languages.

Richard Wright and the Library Card


William Miller - 1997
    This touching account tells of his love of reading, and how his unwavering perseverance, along with the help of a co-worker, came together to make Richard's dream a realityAn inspirational story for children of all backgrounds, Richard Wright and the Library Card shares a poignant turning point in the life of a young man who became one of this country's most brilliant writers, the author of Native Son and Black Boy.This book is the third in a series of biographies by William Miller, including Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree and Frederick Douglass: The Last Day of Slavery. All focus on important moments in the lives of these prominent African Americans.

The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read


Rita Lorraine Hubbard - 2020
    At age 15, she was freed, and by age 20, she was married and had her first child. By age 68, she had worked numerous jobs, including cooking, cleaning, babysitting, and selling sandwiches to raise money for her church. At 114, she was the last remaining member of her family. And at 116, she learned to read. From Rita Lorraine Hubbard and rising star Oge Mora comes the inspirational story of Mary Walker, a woman whose long life spanned from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement, and who--with perseverance and dedication--proved that you're never too old to learn.

Seeds of Change: Wangari's Gift to the World


Jen Cullerton Johnson - 2010
    A picture book biography of scientist Wangari Maathai, the first African womanand first environmentalistto win a Nobel Peace Prize (in 2004), for her work planting trees in her native Kenya.

Bon Appetit! The Delicious Life of Julia Child


Jessie Hartland - 2012
    Readers young and old will devour this fete pour les yeux."Follow Julia Child—chef, author, and television personality—from her childhood in Pasadena, California, to her life as a spy in WWII, to the cooking classes she took in Paris, to the publication of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, to the funny moments of being a chef on TV. This is a comprehensive and enchanting picture book biography, told in many panels and jam-packed with lively, humorous, and child-friendly details. Young chefs and Julia Child fans will exclaim, "ooooh la la," about this book, which is as energetic and eccentric as the chef herself.

Crankenstein


Samantha Berger - 2013
    BEWARE OF CRANKENSTEIN! Who is Crankenstein?HE IS A MONSTER OF GRUMPINESS THAT NO ONE CAN DESTROY!MEHHRRRR!!! HE'S ALIVE!He may look like any ordinary boy, but when faced with a rainy day, a melting popsicle, or an early bedtime, one little boy transforms into a mumbling, grumbling Crankenstein! When Crankenstein meets his match in a fellow Crankenstein, the results could be catastrophic-or they could be just what he needs to brighten his day!

This Little Trailblazer: A Girl Power Primer


Joan Holub - 2017
    Helping the world with their skills, smarts, and might. Little trailblazers cause great big changes. In this follow up to This Little President and This Little Explorer, now even the youngest readers can learn all about great and empowering female trailblazers in history! Highlighting ten memorable women leaders who paved the way, parents and little ones alike will love this girl power primer full of fun, age-appropriate facts and bold illustrations.

The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse


Patricia MacLachlan - 2014
    If you were a boy named Henri Matisse who lived in a dreary town in northern France, what would your life be like? Would it be full of color and art? Full of lines and dancing figures?Find out in this beautiful, unusual picture book about one of the world's most famous and influential artists by acclaimed author and Newbery Medal-winning Patricia MacLachlan and innovative illustrator Hadley Hooper.A Neal Porter Book

The Journey That Saved Curious George: The True Wartime Escape of Margret and H.A. Rey


Louise Borden - 2005
    They began their harrowing journey on bicycles, pedaling to Southern France with children's book manuscripts among their few possessions.Louise Borden combed primary resources, including Hans Rey's pocket diaries, to tell this dramatic true story. Archival materials introduce readers to the world of Hans and Margret Rey while Allan Drummond dramatically and colorfully illustrates their wartime trek to a new home.Follow the Rey's amazing story in this unique large format book that resembles a travel journal and includes full-color illustrations, original photos, actual ticket stubs and more. A perfect book for Curious George fans of all ages.

Minette's Feast: The Delicious Story of Julia Child and Her Cat


Susanna Reich - 2012
    While Julia is in the kitchen learning to master delicious French dishes, the only feast Minette is truly interested in is that of fresh mouse! This lively story is complete with an author’s note, a bibliography, and actual quotations from Julia Child and comes just in time for the 100th anniversary of her birth. Praise for Minette's Feast �Foodie parents who love cats will love to read this delightful book to their kids.” —The Atlantic �This charming portrait...” —Publishers Weekly "A delectable tale about Julia Child discovering her culinary calling in Paris...This book is a charmer to share aloud with young people who enjoy a well-paced story and with cat lovers and food lovers of any age." —Horn Book "A charming picture book." —The New York Times Sunday Book Review "Amy Bates uses pencil and watercolor to crate artwork that is as playful as Minette the cat." —Library Media ConnectionSTARRED REVIEWS �A fine recipe for pleasure: Julia Child, the culinary arts, Paris and a lucky cat. Magnifique!” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review "Bates’ illustrations work marvelously well with this charming conceit." —Booklist, starred review "Reich's internal rhymes make the proceedings feel festive, while her overall prose conveys Julia's seriousness of purpose. The smooth flow of her narrative belies the impressive amount of research she undertook to relate actual conversations and events...Discover: A delectable banquet that charts Julia Child's culinary progress through the eyes of her cat, Minette." —Shelf Awareness, starred review   �...feast for the senses” —School Library Journal, starred reviewAward Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) Choices 2013 list - Picture Book

Ocean Speaks: How Marie Tharp Revealed the Ocean's Biggest Secret


Jess Keating - 2020
    She loved solving problems. And she loved pushing the limits of what girls and women were expected to do and be. In the mid-twentieth century, women were not welcome in the sciences, but Marie was tenacious. She got a job in a laboratory at Cambridge University, New York. But then she faced another barrior: women were not allowed on the research ships (they were considered bad luck on boats). So instead, Marie stayed back and dove deep into the data her colleagues recorded. She mapped point after point and slowly revealed a deep rift valley in the ocean floor. At first the scientific community refused to believe her, but her evidence was irrefutable. She proved to the world that her research was correct. The mid-ocean ridge that Marie discovered is the single largest geographic feature on the planet, and she mapped it all from her small, cramped office.

Rap A Tap Tap


Leo Dillon - 2002
    Bill "Bojangles" Robinson was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1920s-30s. People said he "talked with his feet," and in the Dillons' graceful paintings of old New York, he dances from page to page to the tune of a toe-tapping rhyme. Rap a tap tap--think of that!

Libba: The Magnificent Musical Life of Elizabeth Cotten


Laura Veirs - 2018
    Elizabeth Cotten was only a little girl when she picked up a guitar for the first time. It wasn't hers (it was her big brother's), and it wasn't strung right for her (she was left-handed). But she flipped that guitar upside down and backwards and taught herself how to play it anyway. By age eleven, she'd written "Freight Train," one of the most famous folk songs of the twentieth century. And by the end of her life, people everywhere—from the sunny beaches of California to the rolling hills of England—knew her music.

Mae Among the Stars


Roda Ahmed - 2018
    She imagined herself surrounded by billions of stars, floating, gliding, and discovering.She wanted to be an astronaut.Her mom told her, "If you believe it, and work hard for it, anything is possible.”Little Mae’s curiosity, intelligence, and determination, matched with her parents' encouraging words, paved the way for her success at NASA as the first African American woman to travel in space.

Poet: The Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton


Don Tate - 2015
    Horton became the first African American to be published in the South, protesting slavery in the form of verse.