Fatima's Great Outdoors


Ambreen Tariq - 2021
    Her family is headed to a local state park for their first camping trip! The school week might not have gone as planned, but outdoors, Fatima can achieve anything. She sets up a tent with her father, builds a fire with her mother, and survives an eight-legged mutant spider (a daddy longlegs with an impressive shadow) with her sister. At the end of an adventurous day, the family snuggles inside one big tent, serenaded by the sounds of the forest. The thought of leaving the magic of the outdoors tugs at Fatima’s heart, but her sister reminds her that they can keep the memory alive through stories—and they can always daydream about what their next camping trip will look like.

All the Way to Havana


Margarita Engle - 2017
    Along the way, they experience the sights and sounds of the streets--neighbors talking, musicians performing, and beautiful, colorful cars putt-putting and bumpety-bumping along. In the end, though, it's their old car, Cara Cara, that the boy loves best.

The Patchwork Bike


Maxine Beneba Clarke - 2016
    That's when you and your brothers get inventive and build a bike from scratch, using everyday items like an old milk pot (maybe mum is still using it, maybe not) and a used flour sack. You can even make a numberplate from bark, if you want. The end result is a spectacular bike, perfect for going bumpity-bump over sandhills, past your fed-up mum and right through your mud-for-walls home.A delightful story from multi-award-winning author Maxine Beneba Clarke, beautifully illustrated by street artist Van T Rudd.

Dear Primo: A Letter to My Cousin


Duncan Tonatiuh - 2010
    Charlie takes the subway to school; Carlitos rides his bike. Charlie plays in fallen leaves; Carlitos plays among the local cacti. Dear Primo covers the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of two very different childhoods, while also emphasizing how alike Charlie and Carlitos are at heart. Spanish words are scattered among the English text, providing a wonderful way to introduce the language and culture of Mexico to young children. Inspired by the ancient art of the Mixtecs and other cultures of Mexico, Tonatiuh incorporates their stylized forms into his own artwork.F&P Level: MF&P Genre: RF

We Came to America


Faith Ringgold - 2016
    Some of our ancestors were driven by dreams and hope. Others came in chains, or were escaping poverty or persecution. No matter what brought them here, each person embodied a unique gift--their art and music, their determination and grit, their stories and their culture. And together they forever shaped the country we all call home.

A Gift for Amma: Market Day in India


Meera Sriram - 2020
    Includes facts about the items mentioned and markets around the world, as well as photographs taken by the author in her hometown of Chennai, India.

All the World


Liz Garton Scanlon - 2009
     It is there. It is everywhere. All the world is right where you are. Now. Following a circle of family and friends through the course of a day from morning till night, this book affirms the importance of all things great and small in our world, from the tiniest shell on the beach, to warm family connections, to the widest sunset sky

Bee-bim Bop!


Linda Sue Park - 2005
    In bouncy rhyming text, a hungry child tells about helping her mother make bee-bim bop: shopping, preparing ingredients, setting the table, and finally sitting down with her family to enjoy a favorite meal. The energy and enthusiasm of the young narrator are conveyed in the whimsical illustrations, which bring details from the artist’s childhood in Korea to his depiction of a modern Korean American family. Even young readers who aren’t familiar with the dish will recognize the pride that comes from helping Mama, the fun of mixing ingredients together in a bowl, and the pleasure of sharing delicious food. Includes author’s own recipe.

La Princesa and the Pea


Susan Middleton Elya - 2017
    . .Readers will be enchanted by this Latino twist on the classic story, and captivated by the vibrant art inspired by the culture of Peru.

The Sandwich Swap


Rania Al-Abdullah - 2010
    They like doing all the same things, and they always eat lunch together. Lily eats peanut butter and Salma eats hummus--but what's that between friends? It turns out, a lot. Before they know it, a food fight breaks out. Can Lily and Salma put aside their differences? Or will a sandwich come between them?The smallest things can pull us apart — until we learn that friendship is far more powerful than difference. In a glorious three-page gatefold at the end of the book, Salma, Lily, and all their classmates come together in the true spirit of tolerance and acceptance.

Say Hello!


Rachel Isadora - 2010
    There are people from so many different cultures! They all like to say hello too, so now Carmelita can say hello in Spanish, English, French, Japanese, and many other languages. And her dog, Manny? Well, he seems to understand everyone, and gives a happy "Woof!" wherever he goes. Emphasizing the rich diversity of America's neighborhoods, this simple portrait of a child's day provides a great introduction to the joy of language.

Skin Again


bell hooks - 2004
    It cannot tell my story. If you want to know who I am, you have got to come inside and open your heart way wide.Race matters, but only so much--what's most important is who we are on the inside. Looking beyond skin, going straight to the heart, we find in each other the treasures stored down deep. Learning to cherish those treasures, to be all we imagine ourselves to be, makes us free.This award-winning book, celebrates all that makes us unique and different and offers a strong, timely and timeless message of loving yourself and others.

Dumplings for Lili


Melissa Iwai - 2021
    But when Nai Nai realizes that they are out of cabbage (Secret #8: line the basket with cabbage leaves!), she sends Lili up to Babcia’s apartment on the sixth floor to get some. Babcia is happy to share her cabbage, but she needs some potatoes for her pierogi. . . .What follows is a race up and down the stairs as Lili helps all the grandmothers in her building borrow ingredients for different dumplings: Jamaican beef patties, Italian ravioli, Lebanese fatayer, and more.

Deep in the Sahara


Kelly Cunnane - 2013
    But it is not until Lalla realizes that a malafa is not just worn to show a woman's beauty and mystery or to honor tradition—a malafa is for faith—that Lalla's mother agrees to slip a long cloth as blue as the ink in the Koran over Lalla's head, under her arm, and round and round her body. Then together, they pray. An author's note and glossary are included in the back of the book.

Why Am I Me?


Paige Britt - 2017
    If the first step toward healing the world is to build bridges of empathy and to celebrate rather than discriminate, Why Am I Me? helps foster a much-needed sense of connection, compassion, and love.