Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
Angie Thomas makes her middle grade debut with the launch of an inventive, hilarious, and suspenseful new contemporary fantasy trilogy inspired by African American history and folklore. All Nic Blake wants is to be a powerful Manifestor like her dad. But before she has a chance to convince him to teach her the gift, a series of shocking revelations and terrifying events launch Nic and two friends on a hunt for a powerful magic tool she's never heard of...to save her father from imprisonment for a crime she refuses to believe he committed.

Ages 9-12; Gr.4-8.
Jordan, Drew, Liam, Maury, and their friends from Riverdale Academy Day School are heading out on a school trip to Paris. As an aspiring artist himself, Jordan can't wait to see all the amazing art in the famous City of Lights. But when their trusted faculty guides are replaced at the last minute, the school trip takes an unexpected--and hilarious--turn.

Ages 9-12; Gr.4-6.
From the beloved author of President of the Whole Fifth Grade, a story about a young Black girl who summons the courage to fight against a discriminatory dress code--and stand up for herself.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
Eleven-year-old Ella Durand is the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, a magic school in the clouds where Marvellers from around the world practice their cultural arts, like brewing Indian spice elixirs and bartering with pesky Irish pixies. Despite her excitement, Ella discovers that being the first isn't easy--some Marvellers mistrust her magic, which they deem "bad and unnatural." But eventually, she finds friends in elixirs teacher, Masterji Thakur, and fellow misfits Brigit, a girl who hates magic, and Jason, a boy with a fondness for magical creatures.

Ages 8-12, Guided level P.
The start of a thrilling, highly illustrated series about a boy who finds a portal to a legendary world in his local barbershop . . . and learns he's the hero they've been waiting for.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-5.
Eleven-year-old Ruby is a Black girl who loves studying insects, much to the grossed-out dismay of her Gramma and the pride of her parents. So when she finds the weirdest insect she's ever seen in her front yard, she makes sure Gramma isn't looking and captures it for further study. But then Ruby realizes that the creature isn't just a rare insect. It's an alien bug. And it has promptly burned a hole through her window and disappeared.

Ages 8-12, Gr.3-6.
Bree can't wait for her first day at her new middle school, Enith Brigitha, home to the Mighty Manatees--until she's stuck with the only elective that fits her schedule, the dreaded Swim 101. The thought of swimming makes Bree more than a little queasy, yet she's forced to dive headfirst into one of her greatest fears. Lucky for her, Etta, an elderly occupant of her apartment building and former swim team captain, is willing to help.

Lexile measure 1070; Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
With a mix of sidebars, illustrations, photos, and graphic panels, acclaimed author Kate Messner and coauthor and Brown Bookshelf contributor Gwendolyn Hooks deliver the whole truth about the Underground Railroad.

Ages 8-12; Gr.4-6.
Amari Peters has never stopped believing her missing brother, Quinton, is alive. Not even when the police told her otherwise, or when she got in trouble for standing up to bullies who said he was gone for good. So when she finds a ticking briefcase in his closet, containing a nomination for a summer tryout at the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, she's certain the secretive organization holds the key to locating Quinton--if only she can wrap her head around the idea of magicians, fairies, aliens, and other supernatural creatures all being real.

Lexile measure 860; Ages 7-10; Gr.2-5.
The 1619 Project's lyrical picture book in verse chronicles the consequences of slavery and the history of Black resistance in the United States, thoughtfully rendered by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones and Newbery honor-winning author Renée Watson.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
Debut author Eden Royce arrives with a wondrous story of love, bravery, friendship, and family, filled to the brim with magic great and small. It's 1963, and things are changing for Jezebel Turner. Her beloved grandmother has just passed away. The local police deputy won't stop harassing her family. With school integration arriving in South Carolina, Jez and her twin brother, Jay, are about to begin the school year with a bunch of new kids. But the biggest change comes when Jez and Jay turn eleven-- and their uncle, Doc, tells them he's going to train them in rootwork. When evil both natural and supernatural comes to show itself in town, it's going to take every bit of the magic she has inside her to see her through.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-6.
Celebrated author Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrator Floyd Cooper provide a powerful look at the Tulsa Race Massacre, one of the worst incidents of racial violence in our nation's history. The book traces the history of African Americans in Tulsa's Greenwood district and chronicles the devastation that occurred in 1921 when a white mob attacked the Black community.

Ages 8-12; Gr.4-8.
Before he was a household name, Cassius Clay was a kid with struggles like any other. Kwame Alexander and James Patterson join forces to vividly depict his life up to age seventeen in both prose and verse, including his childhood friends, struggles in school, the racism he faced, and his discovery of boxing.

Ages 10 and up; Gr.4 and up
National Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson's stirring novel-in-verse explores how a family moves forward when their glory days have passed and the cost of professional sports on Black bodies.

Ages 9-12; Gr.3-5.
This graphic novel by James OTIS tis Smith celebrates the extraordinary true tales of three black heroes who took control of their destinies and stood up for their communities in the Old West. Born into slavery in Tennessee, Mary Fields became famous as "Stagecoach Mary," a cigar-chomping, card playing coach driver who never missed a delivery. Bass Reeves, the first black Deputy US Marshal west of the Mississippi, was one of the wiliest lawmen in the territories, bringing thousands of outlaws to justice with his smarts. Bob Lemmons lived to be 99 years old and was so good with horses that the wild mustangs on the plains of Texas took him for one of their own.

Ages 8-12; Gr.4-9.
In a small but turbulent Louisiana town, one boy's grief takes him beyond the bayous of his backyard, to learn that there is no right way to be yourself. Twelve-year-old Kingston James is sure his brother Khalid has turned into a dragonfly. When Khalid unexpectedly passed away, he shed what was his first skin for another to live down by the bayou in their small Louisiana town.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
From a bestselling and award-winning husband and wife team comes an innovative, beautifully illustrated novel that delivers a front-row seat to the groundbreaking moments in history that led to African Americans earning the right to vote.

Lexile measure 710; ages 8-12; gr.3-7.
Tristan Strong, just back from a victorious but exhausting adventure in Alke, the land of African American folk heroes and African gods, is suffering from PTSD. But there's no rest for the weary when his grandmother is abducted by a mysterious villain out for revenge. Tristan must return to Alke--and reunite with his loud-mouthed sidekick, Gum Baby--in order to rescue Nana and stop the culprit from creating further devastation.

Ages 7-10; Gr.4-6.
From Newbery Honor and Coretta Scott King Author Award winner Renée Watson, the first book in a young middle grade series about Ryan Hart, a girl who is pure spirit, kindness, and sunshine. Ryan Hart can be and do anything. Her name means "king", that she is a leader, and she is determined to keep growing into the name her parents gave her. She is all about trying to see the best in people, to be a good daughter, sister, and friend. But Ryan has a lot on her mind.

Lexile measure 670; Ages 9-13; Gr.4-8; Correta Scott King - John Steptoe for New Talent Author Award, Morris Award Finalist. This deeply sensitive and powerful debut novel tells the story of a thirteen-year-old who must overcome internalized racism and a verbally abusive family to finally learn to love herself. There are ninety-six things Genesis hates about herself. She knows the exact number because she keeps a list.

Lexile measure 720; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-8.
From debut author Lisa Moore Ramée comes this funny and big-hearted debut middle grade novel about friendship, family, and standing up for what's right.

Ages 10 and up; Gr.4-6; Coretta Scott King honor, illustrator, 2020.
From celebrated author and illustrator Ashley Bryan comes a deeply moving picture book memoir about serving in the segregated army during World War II, and how love and the pursuit of art sustained him.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
When two adventurous cousins accidentally extend the last day of summer by freezing time, they find the secrets hidden between the unmoving seconds, minutes, and hours are not the endless fun they expected.

Lexile measure 830; Ages 10-13; Gr.4-7.
In the summer of 1984, twelve-year-old Ebony-Grace of Huntsville, Alabama, visits her father in Harlem, where her fascination with outer space and science fiction interfere with her finding acceptance.

Ages 8-12; Gr.4-7.
New Kid is a timely, honest graphic novel about starting over at a new school where diversity is low and the struggle to fit in is real, from award-winning author-illustrator Jerry Craft.

Lexile measure 900; Ages 7-10; Gr.4-6.
In this comprehensive picture-book biography geared towards older readers, Bethany Hegedus traces Maya Angelous'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.

Lexile measure 1000; Ages 10-12; Gr.4-6; Boston Globe/Horn Book Nonfiction Award, 2019.
In 1956, one year before federal troops escorted the Little Rock 9 into Central High School, fourteen year old Jo Ann Allen was one of twelve African-American students who broke the color barrier and integrated Clinton High School in Tennessee.

Lexile measure 780; ages 10 and up; Gr.4-6.
On Gabriel's twelfth birthday, he gets a new bike--and is so excited that he accidentally rides it right into the path of a car. Fortunately, a Black man named Meriwether pushes him out of the way just in time, and fixes his damaged bike.

Lexile measure 810; ages 8-10; Gr.3-7.
In Detroit, 1945, eleven-year-old Betty's house doesn't quite feel like home. She believes her mother loves her, but she can't shake the feeling that her mother doesn't want her. Church helps those worries fade, if only for a little while. The singing, the preaching, the speeches from guest activists like Paul Robeson and Thurgood Marshall stir African Americans in her community to stand up for their rights.

Lexile measure 610; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-7.
Eleven-year-old Isabella's parents are divorced, so she has to switch lives every week: One week she's Isabella with her dad, his girlfriend Anastasia, and her son Darren living in a fancy house where they are one of the only black families in the neighborhood. The next week she's Izzy with her mom and her boyfriend John-Mark in a small, not-so-fancy house that she loves.

Lexile measure 670; Ages 8-10; Gr.2-5.
Here is the story of "Hot Miss Lil" Hardin Armstrong, legendary jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader--and a female pioneer on the music stage.

Lexile measure 1150; Ages 10-12; Gr.4-6.
An illuminating look at the complex relationships between George Washington and the enslaved people of Mount Vernon, and the history still being uncovered there. When he was eleven years old, George Washington inherited ten human beings. His own life has been well chronicled, but the lives of the people he owned--the people who supported his plantation and were buried in unmarked graves there--have not.

Ages 8-12; Gr.4-7.
Two poets, one white and one black, explore race and childhood in this must-have collection tailored to provoke thought and conversation.

Lexile measure 800; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-7.
It's 1863 and dinosaurs roam the streets of New York as the Civil War rages between raptor-mounted armies down South. Magdalys Roca and her friends from the Colored Orphan Asylum are on a field trip when the Draft Riots break out, and a number of their fellow orphans are kidnapped by an evil magistrate, Richard Riker.

Lexile measure 760; Gr.2-5;A Coretta Scott King Honor Book Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction.
Discovering a book of Langston Hughes' poetry in the library helps Langston cope with the loss of his mother, relocating from Alabama to Chicago as part of the Great Migration, and being bullied.

When Frankie's grandmother invites him to a blues concert, he's hesitant at first he loves hip hop! But he can't resist his beloved grandmother's invitation. Little does he know, that night ignites his passion for learning to play the blues.

Lexile measure 1030; Ages 8-10; Gr.3-5.
Venus and Serena Williams are two of the greatest tennis players of all time. Some say they're two of the greatest athletes of all time. Before they were world famous, they were little girls with big dreams. Venus and Serena Williams. Two peas in a pod. Best friends. Sisters. Six days a week they awoke before the sun came up to practice their serves and returns, to learn to run faster and hit harder.

Lexile measure HL360L; Ages 11-13; Gr.4-8.
A heartbreaking and powerful story about a black boy killed by a police officer, drawing connections through history, from award-winning author Jewell Parker Rhodes.

Lexile measure 630; Gr.4-6.
Jacqueline Woodson is the 2018-2019 National Ambassador for This book celebrates the healing that can occur when a group of students share their stories. It all starts when six kids have to meet for a weekly chat--by themselves, with no adults to listen in.

Lexile measure AD600L; Ages 4-8; Gr.3-5.
An incredibly moving picture book biography of the man behind the hymn "Amazing Grace" and the living legacy of the song.

Gr.3-7.
Being born during a hurricane is unlucky, and twelve-year-old Caroline has had her share of bad luck lately. She's hated and bullied by everyone in her small school on St. Thomas of the US Virgin Islands, a spirit only she can see won't stop following her, and -- worst of all -- Caroline's mother left home one day and never came back. But when a new student named Kalinda arrives, Caroline's luck begins to turn around. Kalinda, a solemn girl from Barbados with a special smile for everyone, becomes Caroline's first and only friend -- and the person for whom Caroline has begun to develop a crush.

Lexile measure 800; Ages 9-12; Gr.2-5.
This historical fiction picture book presents the story of nine-year-old Lorraine Jackson, who in 1968 witnessed the Memphis sanitation strike--Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s final stand for justice before his assassination--when her father, a sanitation worker, participated in the protest.

Lexile measure 610; Ages 9-13; Gr.4-6.
When Candice finds a letter in an old attic in Lambert, South Carolina, she isn't sure she should read it. It's addressed to her grandmother, who left the town in shame. But the letter describes a young woman. An injustice that happened decades ago. A mystery enfolding its writer.

Lexile measure 780; Ages 11-13; Gr.3-7.
Before Josh and Jordan Bell were streaking up and down the court, their father was learning his own moves. In this prequel to Newbery Medal winner The Crossover, Chuck Bell takes center stage, as readers get a glimpse of his childhood and how he became the jazz music worshiping, basketball star his sons look up to.

Lexile measure 510; Ages 8-10; Gr.4-7.
Caleb Franklin and his big brother, Bobby Gene, spend an extraordinary summer with their new, older neighbor, Styx Malone, a foster boy from the city.

Lexile measure 850; Ages 6-9; Gr.3-5.
More than a year before the Greensboro sit-ins, a teacher named Clara Luper led a group of young people to protest the segregated Katz drugstore by sitting at its lunch counter. With simple, elegant art, Someday Is Now tells the inspirational story of this unsung hero of the Civil Rights movement.

Lexile measure 810; Ages 7-10; Gr.2-5.
The Vanderbeekers have always lived in the brownstone on 141st Street. It's practically another member of the family. So when their reclusive, curmudgeonly landlord decides not to renew their lease, the five siblings have eleven days to do whatever it takes to stay in their beloved home and convince the dreaded Beiderman just how wonderful they are.

Lexile measure 850; Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
What do we tell our children when the world seems bleak, and prejudice and racism run rampant? With 96 lavishly designed pages of original art and prose, fifty diverse creators lend voice to young activists.

Lexile measure 770; Ages 8-10; Gr.3-6
Congresswoman Barbara Jordan had a big, bold, confident voice--and she knew how to use it! Learn all about her amazing career in this illuminating and inspiring picture book biography of the lawyer, educator, politician, and civil rights leader.

Ages 6-10; Gr.3-6; Coretta Scott King Award Illustrator honor , 2018.
Who was Harriet Tubman before she was Harriet? We know her today as Harriet Tubman, but in her lifetime she was called by many names. As General Tubman she was a Union spy. As Moses she led hundreds to freedom on the Underground Railroad. As Minty she was a slave whose spirit could not be broken.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
From the award-winning author of Eliza's Freedom Road comes the powerful tale of a slave girl's triumphant journey to freedom with her family during the Civil War.

Lexile measure 710; Ages 8-10; Gr.4-6.
Clayton feels most alive when he's with his grandfather, Cool Papa Byrd, and the band of Bluesmen--he can't wait to join them, just as soon as he has a blues song of his own. But then the unthinkable happens. Cool Papa Byrd dies, and Clayton's mother forbids Clayton from playing the blues. And Clayton knows that's no way to live.

Gr.3-5.
Celebrate the life of Lena Horne, the pioneering African American actress and civil rights activist, with this inspiring and powerful picture book from award-winning author Carole Boston Weatherford.

Lexile measure 990; Gr.2-6.
From Newbery Honor winner Patricia C. McKissack and two-time Caldecott Honor winner Brian Pinkney comes an extraordinary must-have collection of classic playtime favorites.

Gr.4-7; 2018 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Winner, Newbery Medalist.
Out of gratitude for the poet's art form, Newbery Award-winning author and poet Kwame Alexander, along with Chris Colderley and Marjory Wentworth, present original poems that pay homage to twenty famed poets who have made the authors' hearts sing and their minds wonder.

Lexile measure 710; Ages 8-12.
A newbie to the track team, Patina must learn to rely on her teammates as she tries to outrun her personal demons in this follow-up to the National Book Award finalist Ghost by New York Times bestselling author Jason Reynolds.

Lexile measure 970; Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
Since the early nineteenth century, the women of Gee's Bend in southern Alabama have created stunning, vibrant quilts. In the only photo-essay book about the quilts of Gee's Bend for children, award-winning author Susan Goldman Rubin explores the history and culture of this fascinating group of women and their unique quilting traditions.

Lexile measure 1100; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-8.
In luminous paintings and arresting poems, two of children's literature's top African-American scholars track Arturo Schomburg's quest to correct history. Traces legal clerk Arturo Schomburg's efforts to curate a collection of African books, letters, music, and art.

Lexile measure 630; 8-12; Gr.3-7.
Nine-year-old cowgirl Mya Tibbs is boot-scootin' excited for the best week of the whole school year--SPIRIT WEEK! She and her megapopular best friend Naomi Jackson even made a pinky promise to be Spirit Week partners so they can win the big prize: special VIP tickets to the Fall Festival.

Lexile measure 700; Ages 6-10; Gr.3-5.
Jordan lives in fear of Tanya, the class bully. But Tanya has worries of her own, no matter how much she tries to ignore them. It seems impossible that Jordan and Tanya could be anything other than enemies, but the Lord is watching over them, guiding each of them along a path that might just help help them to understand one another.

Lexile measure 620; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-8.
Garvey's father has always wanted Garvey to be athletic, but Garvey is interested in astronomy, science fiction, reading--anything but sports. Feeling like a failure, he comforts himself with food. Garvey is kind, funny, smart, a loyal friend, and he is also overweight, teased by bullies, and lonely. When his only friend encourages him to join the school chorus, Garvey's life changes.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
What happens when you invite as many jazz musicians as you can to pose for a photo in 1950s Harlem? Playful verse and glorious artwork capture an iconic moment for American jazz.

Lexile measure 1060; Ages 8-12; Gr.4 and up.
Enslaved African Americans longed for freedom, and that longing took many forms--including music. Drawing on biblical imagery, slave songs both expressed the sorrow of life in bondage and offered a rallying cry for the spirit.

Lexile measure 620; Ages 6-8; Gr.2-4.
A celebration of the extraordinary life of Ezra Jack Keats, creator of The Snowy Day. Andrea Davis Pinkney's lyrical narrative tells the inspiring story of a boy who pursued a dream, and who, in turn, inspired generations of other dreamers.

Lexile measure AD660L; Ages 5-7; Gr.1-4.
When James started school his sister practically had to drag him there - he knew everything outside was more exciting than anything he'd find inside. Until his teacher taught him otherwise. 'We make our own light here,' Reverend Meachum told James. And through hard work, they did - until their school was shut down by a new law forbidding African American education in Missouri.

Lexile measure 910; Ages 8-10
A biography of William "Doc" Key, a formerly enslaved man and self--trained veterinarian who taught his horse, Jim, to read, write, and do math, and who together with Jim became a famous traveling performance act and proponent for the humane treatment of animals around the turn of the twentieth century.

Ages 8-12.
When her fifth-grade teacher hints that a series of lessons about home and community will culminate with one big answer about two tall towers once visible outside their classroom window, Deja can't help but feel confused. She sets off on a journey of discovery, with new friends Ben and Sabeen by her side.

Lexile measure 690; Ages 11-14; Gr.4-7.
Young Truman Capote thought life in New York City was going to be perfect, but things didn't work out as planned. In fact, Tru is downright miserable. So he decides to run away to Monroeville, Alabama, and the only friend he's ever had, Nelle Harper Lee. But things don't go well there, either. Bad things seem to happen wherever he goes.

Lexile measure 820; Ages 7-10; Gr.2-5.
You know the Super Soaker. It’s one of top twenty toys of all time. And it was invented entirely by accident. Trying to create a new cooling system for refrigerators and air conditioners, inventor Lonnie Johnson instead created the mechanics for the iconic toy.

Lexile measure 710; Ages 8-12.
Coretta Scott King Honor winner Brenda Woods introduces introverted, daydream-prone Zoe, who's afraid her real life will never be as exciting as her imaginary one.

Lexile measure 920; Ages 7-10; Gr.3-5.
John Roy Lynch spent most of his childhood as a slave in Mississippi, but all of that changed with the Emancipation Proclamation. While many people in the South were unhappy with the social change, John Roy thrived in the new era. He was appointed to serve as justice of the peace and was eventually elected into the United States Congress.

Ages 5-8; Gr.3 and up.
When sax player Charlie "Bird" Parker and trumpeter John "Dizzy" Gillespie make music together, they toss notes back and forth like a game of tag and chase each other with sounds.

Ages 5-9; Gr.2-4.
This picture book takes children of all ages on a trolley-ride dream adventure.

Lexile measure 770; Ages 7-10; Gr.3-5.
Traces Frederick Douglass's journey from slavery to international renown as writer and lecturer.

Ages 9-12; Gr.4-7.
Twelve-year-old Hoodoo Hatcher was born into a family with a rich tradition of practicing folk magic: hoodoo, as most people call it. But even though his name is Hoodoo, he can't seem to cast a simple spell.

Ages 5-11; Gr.2-5.
During a visit to her grandma's house, a young girl discovers a box of poems in the attic, poems written by her mother when she was growing up. Her mother's family often moved around the United States and the world because her father was in the Air Force. Over the years, her mother used poetry to record her experiences in the many places the family lived.

Lexile measure 730; Ages 7-10; Gr.2-5.
In the nineteenth century, North Carolina slave George Moses Horton taught himself to read and earned money to purchase his time though not his freedom. Horton became the first African American to be published in the South, protesting slavery in the form of verse.

Lexile measure 780; Ages 11 and up; Gr.4-9.
As the youngest marcher in the 1965 voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Albama, Lynda Blackmon Lowery proved that young adults can be heroes. Jailed nine times before her fifteenth birthday, Lowery fought alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. for the rights of African-Americans.

Lexile measure 840; Ages 5-9; Gr.3-5.
Hailing from the Tremé neighborhood in New Orleans, Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews got his nickname by wielding a trombone twice as long as he was high. A prodigy, he was leading his own band by age six and today this Grammy-nominated artist headlines the legendary New Orleans Jazz Fest.

Lexile measure 800; Ages 6-9; Gr.3-5.
Discusses how a former slave and an outspoken woman, who came from two different worlds, shared deep-seated beliefs in equality and the need to fight for it.

Ages 7-9; Gr.3-4.
Best friends Carlos and Tariq love their block, but Barkley Street has started to change. The playground has been taken over by older boys, which leaves Carlos and Tariq with no place to call their own. They decide to turn the yard of an abandoned brownstone into their secret hang-out spot.

Lexile measure 710; Ages 6-9; Gr.2-4.
Gavin wants to make a good impression at Carver Elementary, where no one knows he excels at soccer and skateboarding, but an annoying big sister, a bully, and his great aunt's Pomeranian are not helping.

Lexile Measure AD570L, Ages 6-12; gr.2-4.
They were each born with the gift of gospel. Martin's voice kept people in their seats, but also sent their praises soaring. Mahalia's voice was brass-and-butter - strong and smooth at the same time. With Martin's sermons and Mahalia's songs, folks were free to shout, to sing their joy.

Lexile measure 430; Ages 9-12; Gr.3-5.
Ten-year-old Sugar lives on the River Road sugar plantation along the banks of the Mississippi. Slavery is over, but laboring in the fields all day doesn't make her feel very free. Thankfully, Sugar has a knack for finding her own fun, especially when she joins forces with forbidden friend Billy, the white plantation owner's son.

Lexile measure AD910L; Ages 6-9; Gr.2-4;John Steptoe New Talent Award Winner.
Before there was hip hop, there was DJ Kool Herc. On a hot day at the end of summer in 1973 Cindy Campbell threw a back-to-school party at a park in the South Bronx. Her brother, Clive Campbell, spun the records. He had a new way of playing the music to make the breaks--the musical interludes between verses--longer for dancing.

Guided Reading Level N; Lexile measure 740; Ages 5-9
Born into slavery, young Booker T. Washington could only dream of learning to read and write. After emancipation, Booker began a five-hundred-mile journey, mostly on foot, to Hampton Institute, taking his first of many steps towards a college degree.

Ages 5-10, gr. 2-5.
One day at the basketball court, two kids, a familiar challenge--H.O.R.S.E.' But this isn't your grandmother's game of hoops. Not when a layup from the other side of the court, standing on one foot, with your eyes closed is just the warm-up.

Lexile measure 820, ages 8-12, gr. 4-6.
Provides true accounts of African-American migrants, describing the experiences of children through slavery, emancipation, and migration to the United Kingdom, the United States, Europe, and Africa, and examining organizations that offered aid to migrant children.

Ages 7-11, gr. 2-5.
Somali-Canadian poet, rapper, singer and songwriter K'naan tells his own story. When the Somali Civil War began in 1991, K'naan was just thirteen. His mother made the difficult decision to move her family so that they could grow up in safety.

Awards: Coretta Scott King Honor, Author, 2012.; Awards: ALA children's award.; Ages 8-14, gr. 4-.
Set in West Africa, this a lyrical story-in-verse is about a young black boy who is kidnapped and sold into slavery, and his father who is left behind to mourn the loss of his son.

Awards: Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People, 2011; Notable Book for a Global Society 2012.; Ages 10-14, gr. 4-6.
Through poems and poetic prose pieces, acclaimed children's author Arnold Adoff celebrates that uniquely American form of music called the blues.

Awards: Coretta Scott King Award, illustrator, 2012.; Ages 8-12 ; Gr. 2-4.
A family silently crawls along the ground. They run barefoot through unlit woods, sleep beneath bushes, take shelter in a kind stranger's home. Where are they heading? They are heading for Freedom by way of the Underground Railroad.

Lexile measure 820; Book level 4.7; Ages 6-10; Gr.3-6.
A swinging bio of young Ella Fitzgerald, who pushed through the toughest of times to become one of America's most beloved jazz singers.

Lexile measure 500; Ages 7-12, Book level 5.2, gr. 2-4.
A picture book celebration of the 50th anniversary of the momentous Woolworth's lunch counter sit-in, when four college kids staged a peaceful protest that became a defining moment in the struggle for racial equality and the growing civil rights movement.

Lexile measure 970; ages 6-12, book level 6; biography, gr. 3-7.
Ashley's autobiography is full of art, photographs, and the poignant never-say-never tale of his rich life, a life that has always included drawing and painting. Even as a boy growing up during the Depression, he painted -- finding cast off objects to turn into books and kites and toy and art.

Lexile measure 860; ages 9-12; book level 5.2; biography, gr. 3-5; Coretta Scott King Author Award.
This biography profiles the life of Bass Reeves, a former slave who was recruited as a deputy United States Marshal in the area that was to become Oklahoma.

Ages 5-9, gr. 3-6.
Jeremy sets out to discover all of the different "people" that make him who he is, including brother, son, writer, and runner.

Sydney Taylor Book Awards 2009; Notable Children's Trade Book/Social Studies 2009; ages 7-11; book level 4.1, gr. 2-5.
The story of two icons for social justice, how they formed a remarkable friendship and turned their personal experiences of discrimination into a message of love and equality for all.

Lexile measure 720; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-6.
An African-American boy nicknamed Bird uses drawing as a creative outlet as he struggles to make sense of his grandfather's death and his brother's decline into drug addiction.

Lexile measure 570, Ages 8-11; Book level 3.6; Gr. 3-6.
Brothers Tank and Jimbo Turner love sneaking into Nashville's Sulphur Dell Ballpark to watch the superstars of Negro League baseball. When Josh Gibson, the famous home-run hitter for the Homestead Grays, bunks at their house, the boys think they're one step away from heaven.

Lexile measurement 850; Ages 5-11; Grade level 5.3; Gr. 2-4.
A respected biographer teams up with an acclaimed artist to tell the story of the mail carrier who orchestrated the Great Savannah Boycott -- and was instrumental in bringing equality to his community.

Book level 5; Ages 9-14; Gr.3-7.
The blues aren't all sad. There's joy in the blues as well as heartbreak. Love discovered. Love lost. Love just around the corner.

Lexile measure 970; Book level 6.1; Ages 5-12; Gr.4-6.
A biography of the woman who became the first licensed Afro-American pilot.

Lexile measure 1040, ages 9-12, gr. 3-8
The blues is a low down feeling, but it can be made better with a song. Renowned author Julius Lester introduces ten of the hottest black blues singers of our time including Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin and B. B. King.

Lexile measure 330; Book level 3.3; Ages 5-9; Gr.3-5.
Describes an incident in the life of John Parker, an ex-slave who became a successful businessman in Ripley, Ohio, and who repeatedly risked his life to help other slaves escape to freedom.

Lexile measure 790; Book level 5.2; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-8.
"Only Passing Through" is the inspiring story of how a woman, born a slave with no status or dignity, transformed herself into one of the most powerful voices of the abolitionist movement.

Guided Reading Level T; Lexile measure 950; ages 8-12; book level 5
The Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Award-winning classic about a boy who decides to hit the road to find his father. Ten-year-old Bud, a motherless boy living in Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression, escapes a bad foster home and sets out in search of the man he believes to be his father--the renowned bandleader, H.E. Calloway of Grand Rapids.

Guided Reading Level R; Lexile measure 700; Book level 4.1; Ages 5-9
"Is -- Reginald -- at -- it -- again?" Papa shouts between notes. "Hush up," Mama says, "I just love this one." Papa sometimes comes home in a bad mood because he's the manager of the Dukes -- the worst team in the Negro National League. When Papa makes Reginald the Dukes's bat boy, Reginald worries that his practice time will suffer, and that he won't be ready for his recital. In this beautifully told story of family ties and team spirit, Gavin Curtis captures a very special period in history.

Book level 3.1; Ages 6-10, gr. 3-5.
I have heard of a land Where the imagination has no fences Where what is dreamed one night Is accomplished the next day In the late 1880s, signs went up all around America -- land was free in the Oklahoma territory. And it was free to everyone: Whites, Blacks, men and women alike.

Ages 9-14, gr. 3-8.
This Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award-winning title celebrates African-American music by tracing the progression of black music from its traditional roots in Africa to contemporary hip hop. Full color.

Ages 7 and up; Gr.3-6.
With the help of a crow, the slave Nezekiah outwits his cruel master and gains his freedom.

Lexile measure 820; Book level 4.8; Ages 5-8; Gr.3-5.
Unhappy with her life at home, Sukey receives kindness and wealth from Mama Jo the mermaid.

Lexile measure 450; Ages 7-11; Gr.3-5; Guided reading S
Virginia Hamilton has once again brought her well-loved trickster, the invisible Jahdu, to life in this updated collection of eleven previously published, and four newly created, stories. Jahdu is based on a centuries-old folklore tradition, yet the tales themselves are original and drawn from Hamilton's imagination.

Ages 9-12; Gr.3-5.
A retelling of the classic Afro-American tales relating the adventures and misadventures of Brer Rabbit and his friends and enemies.

Five tales that center on Brer Rabbit's family.

Lexile measure 760; Ages 9-12, gr. 3-5.
Pinkney's lively and humorous illustrations are a perfect match for Lester's contemporary approach, which expertly introduces a modern sense of humor to these 48 tales while paying homage to their roots as traditional American folklore. Illustrations.

Guided Reading Level P; Lexile measure 620; ages 9-12; book level 3.9
Suffering in a family full of females, ten-year-old Justin feels that cleaning and keeping house are women's work until he spends time on his beloved grandfather's ranch.