A Normal Pig


K-Fai Steele - 2019
    Suddenly she doesn’t like any of the same things she used to . . . the things that made her Pip.

Eyes that Kiss in the Corners


Joanna Ho - 2021
    They have big, round eyes and long lashes. She realizes that her eyes are like her mother’s, her grandmother's, and her little sister's. They have eyes that kiss in the corners and glow like warm tea, crinkle into crescent moons, and are filled with stories of the past and hope for the future.Drawing from the strength of these powerful women in her life, she recognizes her own beauty and discovers a path to self love and empowerment.

Your Mama


NoNieqa Ramos - 2021
    Perfect for Mother’s Day.Yo’ mama so sweet, she could be a bakery. She dresses so fine, that she could have her clothing line. And, even when you mess up, she’s so forgiving that she lets you keep on living. Heartwarming and richly imagined, YOUR MAMA twists an old joke into a point of pride that honors the love, hard work, and dedication of mamas everywhere.

Freedom Summer


Deborah Wiles - 2001
    He crawls like a catfish, blows bubbles like a swamp monster, but he doesn’t swim in the town pool with me. He’s not allowed. Joe and John Henry are a lot alike. They both like shooting marbles, they both want to be firemen, and they both love to swim. But there’s one important way they're different: Joe is white and John Henry is black, and in the South in 1964, that means John Henry isn’t allowed to do everything his best friend is. Then a law is passed that forbids segregation and opens the town pool to everyone. Joe and John Henry are so excited they race each other there...only to discover that it takes more than a new law to change people’s hearts.

Thread of Love


Kabir Sehgal - 2018
    Join two sisters as they lovingly make rakhi—thread bracelets adorned with beads, sequins, sparkles, and tassels—for their brother. And then see their brother present them with toys and sweets and special gifts! New York Times bestselling authors Surishtha and Kabir Sehgals’ irresistible text, set to the tune of the classic song Frère Jacques (Are You Sleeping), will have little ones singing along while they learn about Indian culture. And the vibrant illustrations by Zara Gonzalez Hoang will have readers wishing they could step right into the characters’ colorful crafting world. This enchanting picture book includes instructions for making rakhi!

Looking for Bongo


Eric Velásquez - 2016
    No one can help him. When he asks his abuela where Bongo is, she answers, Yo no se. "I don't know." Mom and Dad haven't seen Bongo either. Gato just says "Meow," and runs away. When Bongo finally turns up behind Dad's drum, the problem of Bongo's whereabouts is resolved . . . but it doesn't answer how Bongo got there! The boy decides to set a trap to catch the Bongo thief. Rich illustrations help tell the story of a mystery cleverly solved.

Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood


F. Isabel Campoy - 2016
    Pick up a paintbrush and join the celebration!

Everybody in the Red Brick Building


Anne Wynter - 2021
    Until . . .WaaaAAH!Rraak! Wake up!Pitter patter STOMP!Pssheew!A chain reaction of noises wakes up several children (and a cat) living in an apartment building. But it’s late in the night, so despite the disturbances, one by one, the building’s inhabitants return to their beds—this time with a new set of sounds to lull them to sleep.

Muddy: The Story of Blues Legend Muddy Waters


Michael James Mahin - 2017
    When Grandma Della said the blues wouldn’t put food on the table, Muddy didn’t listen. And when record producers told him no one wanted to listen to a country boy playing country blues, Muddy ignored them as well. This tenacious streak carried Muddy from the hardscrabble fields of Mississippi to the smoky juke joints of Chicago and finally to a recording studio where a landmark record was made.Soon the world fell in love with the tough spirit of Muddy Waters. In blues-infused prose and soulful illustrations, Michael Mahin and award-winning artist Evan Turk tell Muddy’s fascinating and inspiring story of struggle, determination, and hope.

Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra


Andrea Davis Pinkney - 1998
    Duke Ellington. As a child, he said piano made an umpy-dump sound that was headed nowhere worth following. But, years later, he heard the piano played a whole new way. People called the music "ragtime", and soon the sound had Duke's fingers riding the piano keys.Duke began to compose his own melodies, which led him to form a band, The Washingtonians. Before long, the group was performing at the swankiest hangouts in Harlem, including The Cotton Club, but under a new name: Duke Ellington and His Orchestra. Soon the whole country swung to Duke's beat.This is the story of one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century - the king of the keys - Duke Ellington.

Busing Brewster


Richard Michelson - 2010
    . . until Mama announces that he'll be attending Central—a school in the white part of town. Mama says they have art and music and a library bursting with books, but Brewster isn't so sure he'll fit in.Being black at a white school isn't easy, and Brewster winds up spending his first day in detention at the library. But there he meets a very special person: Miss O'Grady. The librarian sees into Brewster's heart and gives him not only the gift of books but also the ability to believe in himself.This powerful and tender story of desegregation in the 1970s introduces readers to the brave young heroes who helped to build a new world.

Voices in the Park


Anthony Browne - 1998
    The radically different perspectives give a fascinating depth to this simple story which explores many of the author’s key themes, such as alienation, friendship and the bizarre amid the mundane.

A Ride to Remember: A Civil Rights Story


Sharon Langley - 2020
    When Sharon Langley was born in the early 1960s, many amusement parks were segregated, and African-American families were not allowed entry. This book reveals how in the summer of 1963, due to demonstrations and public protests, the Gwynn Oak Amusement Park in Maryland became desegregated and opened to all for the first time. Co-author Sharon Langley was the first African-American child to ride the carousel. This was on the same day of Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Langley’s ride to remember demonstrated the possibilities of King’s dream. This book includes photos of Sharon on the carousel, authors’ notes, a timeline, and a bibliography.

These Hands


Margaret H. Mason - 2011
    He could play the piano, throw a curveball, and tie a triple bowline knot in three seconds flat. But in the 1950s and 60s, he could not bake bread at the Wonder Bread factory. Factory bosses said white people would not want to eat bread touched by the hands of the African Americans who worked there. In this powerful intergenerational story, Joseph learns that people joined their hands together to fight discrimination so that one day, their hands—Joseph’s hands—could do anything at all in this whole wide world.

Princess Hair


Sharee Miller - 2014
    They wear Braids, Blowouts, Afros and Twists! And every Princess loves her Princess Hair!