The Bench


Meghan Markle - 2021
    The book's storytelling and illustration give us snapshots of shared moments that evoke a deep sense of warmth, connection, and compassion.This is your benchWhere you'll witness great joy.From here you will restSee the growth of our boy.In The Bench, Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex, touchingly captures the evolving and expanding relationship between father and son and reminds us of the many ways that love can take shape and be expressed in a modern family.Evoking a deep sense of warmth, connection, and compassion, The Bench gives readers a window into shared and enduring moments between a diverse group of fathers and sons—moments of peace and reflection, trust and belief, discovery and learning, and lasting comfort.Working in watercolour for the first time, Caldecott-winning, bestselling illustrator Christian Robinson expands on his signature style to bring joy and softness to the pages, reflecting the beauty of a father's love through a mother's eyes.With a universal message, this thoughtful and heartwarming read-aloud is destined to be treasured by families for generations to come.

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.

Frederick Douglass: The Lion Who Wrote History


Walter Dean Myers - 2017
    He was a leader of the abolitionist movement, a celebrated writer, an esteemed speaker, and a social reformer, proving that, as he said, “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.”The story of one of America’s most revered figures is brought to life by the text of award-winning author Walter Dean Myers and the sweeping, lush illustrations of artist Floyd Cooper.

All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom


Angela Johnson - 2013
    Lewis.Through the eyes of one little girl, All Different Now tells the story of the first Juneteenth, the day freedom finally came to the last of the slaves in the South. Since then, the observance of June 19 as African American Emancipation Day has spread across the United States and beyond. This stunning picture book includes notes from the author and illustrator, a timeline of important dates, and a glossary of relevant terms. Told in Angela Johnson’s signature melodic style and brought to life by E.B. Lewis’s striking paintings, All Different Now is a joyous portrait of the dawn breaking on the darkest time in our nation’s history.

Magnificent Homespun Brown: A Celebration


Samara Cole Doyon - 2020
    America, we hear you singing! With vivid illustrations by Kaylani Juanita, Samara Cole Doyon sings a carol for the plenitude that surrounds us and the self each of us is meant to inhabit.

I Am Not a Number


Jenny Kay Dupuis - 2016
    She tries to remember who she is and where she came from, despite the efforts of the nuns who are in charge at the school and who tell her that she is not to use her own name but instead use the number they have assigned to her. When she goes home for summer holidays, Irene's parents decide never to send her and her brothers away again. But where will they hide? And what will happen when her parents disobey the law? Based on the life of co-author Jenny Kay Dupuis’ grandmother, I Am Not a Number is a hugely necessary book that brings a terrible part of Canada’s history to light in a way that children can learn from and relate to.

The Airport Book


Lisa Brown - 2016
    From checking bags and watching them disappear on the mysterious conveyor belt, to security clearance and a seemingly endless wait at the gate to finally being airborne.But wait! There's more! The youngest family member's sock monkey has gone missing. Follow it at the bottom of the page as it makes a journey as memorable as that of the humans above.

Peanut Goes for the Gold


Jonathan Van Ness - 2020
    Whether it's cartwheeling during basketball practice or cutting their own hair, this little guinea pig puts their own special twist on life. So when Peanut decides to be a rhythmic gymnast, they come up with a routine that they know is absolutely perfect, because it is absolutely, one hundred percent Peanut.This upbeat and hilarious picture book, inspired by Jonathan's own childhood guinea pig, encourages children to not just be themselves―but to boldly and unapologetically love being themselves.Jonathan Van Ness brings his signature message of warmth, positivity, and self-love to this boldly original picture book that celebrates the joys of being true to yourself and the magic that comes from following your dreams.

The New Small Person


Lauren Child - 2014
    He has a room to himself, where he can line up his precious things and nobody will move them one inch. But one day everything changes. When the new small person comes along, it seems that everybody might like it a bit more than they like Elmore Green. And when the small person knocks over Elmore’s things and even licks his jelly-bean collection, Elmore’s parents say that he can’t be angry because the small person is only small. Elmore wants the small person to go back to wherever it came from. Then, one night, everything changes. . . . In her signature visual style, Lauren Child gets to the heart of a child’s evolving emotions about becoming a big brother or sister.

Coat of Many Colors


Dolly Parton - 1994
    The little girl wears it to school proudly, and when the other children laugh, she gives them a quick lesson about what it means to be rich. Judith Sutton's beautiful paintings bring one of Dolly Parton's best-loved songs to life. "The heartfelt verses are imbued with the same genuine, infectiously likeable spirit Parton herself projects." Publishers Weekly

Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress


Christine Baldacchino - 2014
    He paints amazing pictures and he loves his classroom's dress-up center, especially the tangerine dress. It reminds him of tigers, the sun and his mother's hair. The other children don't understand--dresses, they say, are for girls. And Morris certainly isn't welcome in the spaceship his classmates are building--astronauts, they say, don't wear dresses. One day Morris has a tummy ache, and his mother lets him stay home from school. He stays in bed reading about elephants, and her dreams about a space adventure with his cat, Moo. Inspired by his dream, Morris paints a fantastic picture, and everything begins to change when he takes it to school.

When Jessie Came Across the Sea


Amy Hest - 1997
    Lynch create an unforgettable tribute to the immigrant experience.Jessie lives with her grandmother in a poor village in the valleys of eastern Europe. When, to everyone's surprise, young Jessie is chosen by the village rabbi to travel to America, and to leave her grandmother behind, they both feel their hearts will break. Award-winning author Amy Hest brings her sure and inspired touch to the story of our immigrant heritage as she follows Jessie across the ocean to a new life—and a new love—in America. Exquisitely illustrated by P.J. Lynch, with paintings that glow with warmth and carefully observed detail, WHEN JESSIE COMES ACROSS THE SEA transcends time and culture in a tribute to the courage and hope of all who seek a better life. It is destined to become a modern classic.

Oskar and the Eight Blessings


T.R. Simon - 2015
    It is both the seventh day of Hanukkah and Christmas Eve, 1938. As Oskar walks the length of Manhattan, from the Battery to his new home in the north of the city, he passes experiences the city's many holiday sights, and encounters it various residents. Each offers Oskar a small act of kindness, welcoming him to the city and helping him on his way to a new life in the new world.

Rise!: From Caged Bird to Poet of the People, Maya Angelou


Bethany Hegedus - 2019
    In this comprehensive picture-book biography geared towards older readers, Bethany Hegedus lyrically traces Maya's life from her early days in Stamps, Arkansas through her work as a freedom fighter to her triumphant rise as a poet of the people. A foreword by Angelou's grandson, Colin A. Johnson, describes how a love of literature and poetry helped young Maya overcome childhood trauma and turn adversity into triumph. Coupled with Tonya Engel's metaphorical and emotive illustrations, this biography beautifully conveys the heartaches and successes of this truly phenomenal woman, and is a powerful tribute to the written word.

Emmanuel's Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah


Laurie Ann Thompson - 2015
    With that achievement he forever changed how his country treats people with disabilities, and he shows us all that one person is enough to change the world.