Ages 7-10, Gr.4-6.
Welcome to the Wonder House, a place to explore the cornerstone of every great thinker--a sense of wonder. This Wonder House has many rooms--one for nature, one for quiet, and one for mystery, among others. Each room is filled with poems and objects covering a wide variety of STEAM topics, including geology, paleontology, physics, astronomy, creative writing, and drawing, that will inspire curiosity in young readers.

Ages 10 and up; Gr.4-6; Sydney Taylor notable book, 2023.
The moving true story of how young Ukrainian Jewish piano prodigies Zhanna (alias "Anna") and her sister Frina outplayed their pursuers while hiding in plain sight during the Holocaust.

Gr.4 and up; Ages 10-13.
Celebrated poets Ted Kooser and Connie Wanek, and illustrator Richard Jones, explore figures of speech in a spirited and magical way--and invite our imaginations out to play. A freewheeling romp through the world of imagery and metaphor, this quietly startling collection of thirty poems, framed by the four elements, is about art and reality, fact and fancy.

Lexile measure 750; Ages 9-12; Gr.4-7.
A poetic personification of the winter season, Mother Winter goes walking "on the longest cold night," inviting the reader along to experience chill winds, icy ponds, white snowdrifts, and other quiet wonders.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
Lula Viramontes aches to one day become someone whom no one can ignore: a daring ringleader in a Mexican traveling circus. But between working the grape harvest in Delano, California, with her older siblings under dangerous conditions; taking care of her younger siblings and Mamá, who has mysteriously fallen ill; and doing everything she can to avoid Papá's volatile temper, it's hard to hold on to those dreams. Then she meets Dolores Huerta, Larry Itliong, and other labor rights activists and realizes she may need to raise her voice sooner rather than later.

Lexile measure 660; Ages 5-9; Gr.3-5.
Hello, Earth! explores the wonders of the natural world. This playful journey across our puzzle-piece continents does not hesitate to ask questions--even of the Earth itself! Joyce Sidman's imaginative poems encourage boundless curiosity, and Miren Asiain Lora's stunning paintings capture the beauty of Earth's ecosystems, creatures, and powerhouse plants.

Ages 8-12; Gr.2-6.
A poetry collection that both illustrates what mindfulness is and encourages young, growing minds to be present, from poet and educator Georgia Heard, with art by Isabel Roxas.

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.

Lexile measure 900; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-6.
Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in 1889 was a lively, working-class factory city. Above the soot-soaked streets, an elite fishing and hunting club, built on a pristine man-made lake, drew America's wealthiest business barons. Though repeatedly urged to fix the deteriorating dam that held the lake, the club members disregarded the warnings. And when heavy rains came, the dam collapsed and plunged the city into chaos. Plumbing themes of class, injustice, deprivation, and the environment, Ann E. Burg summons her prodigious heart and virtuosic poetry to turn one of the deadliest tragedies in our country's history into a transcendent and hopeful work of art.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7; Americas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature, 2021, Winner.
From the prolific author of The Moon Within comes the heart-wrenchingly beautiful story in verse of a young Latinx girl who learns to hold on to hope and love even in the darkest of places: a family detention center for migrants and refugees.

Lexile measure 960; Ages 11-13; Gr.4-8.
Rivera's life swirls with questions. About her changing body. Her first attraction to a boy. And her best friend's exploration of what it means to be genderfluid.But most of all, her mother's insistence she have a moon ceremony when her first period arrives. It's an ancestral Mexica ritual that Mima and her community have reclaimed, but Celi promises she will NOT be participating.

Lexile measure 930; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-8.
Sent with her mother to the safety of a relative's home in Cincinnati when her Syrian hometown is overshadowed by violence, Jude worries for the family members who were left behind as she adjusts to a new life with unexpected surprises.

Ages 6-9; Gr.2-5
Who is the predator, and who is the prey? Illuminating poetry and vivid artwork capture the awe-inspiring ways that creatures use their resources to stay alive.

Ages 10-12.
Every tree has its own story to tell in this evocative collection of poems celebrating the many varieties--from maple to willow to oak. There are so many different kinds of trees in the world, and each has special qualities that make it unique.

Ages 6-9; Gr.3 and up.
Originally performed for ESPN's The Undefeated, this poem is a love letter to black life in the United States. It highlights the unspeakable trauma of slavery, the faith and fire of the civil rights movement, and the grit, passion, and perseverance of some of the world's greatest heroes.

Lexile measure 790; Ages 7-12; Gr.2-5.
Selected by noted anthologist Lee Bennett Hopkins, this collection of all-new poems is written from the points of view of personality-filled punctuation marks, and is a memorable introduction to grammar for children ages 7-12.

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 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.

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.

Lexile measure 1280; Ages 8-12; Gr.4-6
Have fun on this poetic tour through the leaf litter layer and dig into the fascinating facts about the tiny critters who live there. Nineteen poems in a variety of verse forms with accompanying science notes take readers on a decomposer safari through the "brown food web," from bacteria through tardigrades and on to rove beetle predators with other busy recyclers in-between.

Gr.3 and up.
In 2007, when a new edition of the Oxford Junior Dictionary -- widely used in schools around the world -- was published, a sharp-eyed reader soon noticed that around forty common words concerning nature had been dropped. Apparently they were no longer being used enough by children to merit their place in the dictionary. The list of these "lost words" included acorn, adder, bluebell, dandelion, fern, heron, kingfisher, newt, otter, and willow. Among the words taking their place were attachment, blog, broadband, bullet-point, cut-and-paste, and voice-mail.

Lexile measure 730; Ages 11-13; Gr.4-7.
In a rich embroidery of visions, musical cadence, and deep emotion, Andrea and Brian Pinkney convey the final months of Martin Luther King's life -- and of his assassination -- through metaphor, spirituality, and multilayers of meaning.

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 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.

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.

Gr.4-7.
Musician, botanist, baseball player, pilot--the Latinos featured in this collection come from many different countries and from many different backgrounds.

Gr.3-4; American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award Honor, 2018.
At a very strict school in Indigenous Nation, everyone but Holden stays in line until they reach the door at the end of the school day.

Ages 4-8; Gr.3-4.
A bilingual collection of poetry by the late Francisco X. Alarcón, acclaimed Chicano poet celebrating the days of the week and everyday childhood experiences.

Lexile measure 920; Ages 8-12; Gr.3-6.
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra finds refuge from his difficult childhood by imagining the adventures of a brave but clumsy knight. This fictionalized first-person biography in verse of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra follows the early years of the child who grows up to pen Don Quixote, the first modern novel.

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 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 670; Ages 8-12.
A new book of unique reversible poems based on Greek myths from the creator of Mirror Mirror. What happens when you hold up a mirror to poems about Greek myths?

Ages 10 and up; Gr.4-8.
A gorgeously written novel in verse about three girls in three different time periods who grew up to become groundbreaking scientists: Maria Merian, Mary Anning, and Maria Mitchell.

Lexile measure 730; Gr.4-6; Newbery Honor Book, 2017; Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book, 2017; Coretta Scott King Illustrator, 2017 Honor Book.
Using original slave auction and plantation estate documents, Ashley Bryan offers a moving and powerful picture book that contrasts the monetary value of a slave with the priceless value of life experiences and dreams that a slave owner could never take away.

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 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.

Ages 7-12; Gr.3-7.
Why are young people leaving their country to walk to the United States to seek a new, safe home? Over 100,000 such children have left Central America. This book of poetry helps us to understand why and what it is like to be them.

Lexile measure 760; Ages 8-10;Gr.3-6.
Who says words need to be concrete? This collection shapes poems in surprising and delightful ways. Concrete poetry is a perennially popular poetic form because they are fun to look at. But by using the arrangement of the words on the page to convey the meaning of the poem, concrete or shape poems are also easy to write!

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

Ages 4-8; Gr.3-6
All sorts of animals flutter and hum, dance and stretch, and slither and leap their way through this joyful collection of poems in English and Spanish. Julie Paschkis's poems and art sing in both languages, bringing out the beauty and playfulness of the animal world.

Ages 5-10; Gr.2-5.
Hypnotize a Tiger is chock-full of Calef's zany black-and-white artwork and features his wonderfully inventive characters and worlds--from the "completely nonviolent and silent" Lou Gnome to Percival, the impetuous (and none-too-sensible) lad who believes he is invincible, to Hugh Jarm (who has a huge arm, natch!).

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.

Gr.3-6.
Beloved storyteller and creator Ashley Bryan reveals the vibrant spirit of found objects in this magnificent treasury of poetry and puppets.

Gr.4-7.
In this spare, lyrically written story, we join a child on a journey of self-discovery. Finding a way to grow from the inside out, just like a tree, the child develops as an individual comfortable in the natural world and in relationships with others.

Ages 5-12; Gr.2-5.
Celebrated poet and anthologist Paul B. Janeczko pairs with Caldecott Honoree Melissa Sweet for a collection of short poems to sample and savor. It only takes a few words, if they're the right words, to create a strong image.

Ages 8-10; Gr.3-6; Guided reading P
There's a new kid on the block, and boy, that kid is tough, that new kid punches hard, that new kid plays real rough, that new kid's big and strong, with muscles everywhere, that new kid tweaked my arm, that new kid pulled my hair. Here are more than 100 poems about things you may never have thought about before.

Gr.2-5.
You're on an adventure About to start, You're going to learn Some poems by heart! In this new anthology, Children's Poet Laureate Mary Ann Hoberman shares a brand-new collection of poems especially suitable for learning by heart and saying aloud.

Lexile measure 990; Ages 10 and up; Gr.4-7.
This rich and intricate collection of poems chronicles the various experiences of American slaves. Drawn together through imagery drawn from quilting and fiber arts, each poem is spoken from a different perspective: a house slave, a mother losing her daughter to the auction block, a blacksmith, a slave fleeing on the Underground Railroad.

Ages 11-15: gr.4-7.
Fefa struggles with words. She has word blindness, or dyslexia, and the doctor says she will never read or write. Every time she tries, the letters jumble and spill off the page, leaping and hopping away like bullfrogs. How will she ever understand them? But her mother has an idea.

Ages 7 and up; Gr.2 and up.
This 17th century British poem is a form of trick verse. Here, the very design of the book brings clarity to the verse, as whimsical die-cuts in each page reveal the poem's nuanced meaning. Read straightforwardly, the poem sounds interestingly surreal. But if the lines are broken up in the middle, then everything falls into place.

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.

Lexile measure 330; Ages 4-8; Gr.2-4.
A Caldecott medalist and a Newbery Honor-winning poet celebrate the beauty and value of spirals.What makes the tiny snail shell so beautiful? Why does that shape occur in nature over and over again--in rushing rivers, in a flower bud, even inside your ear?

Ages 7-12; Gr.3-6.
What's brewing when two favorites--poetry and fairy tales--are turned (literally) on their heads? It's a revolutionary recipe: an infectious new genre of poetry and a lovably modern take on classic stories. First, read the poems forward (how old-fashioned!), then reverse the lines and read again to give familiar tales, from Sleeping Beauty to that Charming Prince, a delicious new spin.

Ages 8-15; Gr.4-8.
"Poetry, sketches, and watercolors capture bird identification, behavior, and appearance throughout the four seasons. The journal format will inspire readers to record, evaluate, and create their own observations."

Gr. 1-3.
Langston Hughes has long been acknowledged as the voice, and his poem, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, the song, of the Harlem Renaissance. Although he was only seventeen when he composed it, Hughes already had the insight to capture in words the strength and courage of black people in America.

Lexile measure 570; Book level 3.2; Ages 4-8; Gr.3-5.
With original and spot-on perceptions, Joyce Sidman's poetry brings the colors of the seasons to life in a fresh light, combining the senses of sight, sound, smell and taste.

Book level 4.9; Ages 7-12, gr. 3-6.
Presented in both English and Spanish, this lively poetry collection features the endangered flora and fauna of the Iguaz rain forest in Argentina, and addresses environmental issues in a fun, engaging way.

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.

Ages 6-12.
Each of the exquisite twenty-three poems in this posthumous collection by Valerie Worth carefully distinguishes one animal from all other creatures and captures it in all of its wonderful singularity - from wasp to snake to wren.

Ages 7-10; Gr.3-8.
Bilingual English/Spanish. Young Jorgito has come to live in the Mission District of San Francisco, but he hasn't forgotten the unique beauty of El Salvador.

Ages 9-13: gr.4-7.
When Mrs. Merz asks her sixth grade class to write poems of apology, they end up liking their poems so much that they decide to put them together into a book. Not only that, but they get the people to whom they apologized to write poems back.

Lexile measure 970; Book level 5.3; Ages 4-9; Gr.3-5.
From blueberries to vanilla, indigenous foods of the Americas are celebrated in this collection of haiku, which also includes information about each food's origins.

Ages 8-12; Gr.3-5.
In the very near future you will find yourself dining on Snow Flurry at the famous Weatherbee's Diner. Everyone will be there--Bob and Bossy Casey, Medusa's sister Sally, both of the Appleton Twins, and Mr. Andy Mandolin singing "Biscuits in the Wind." Remember him?

Ages 5-10; Gr.2-4.
When Lakas strolls through his neighborhood one sunny afternoon, the last thing he expects to find is a group of drum-beating, tap-dancing, karaoke-singing new friends. But these new friends face a crisis: the Makibaka Hotel, where they make their home, is about to be sold. They must pack their belongings and leave their home in thirty days.

Guided Reading Level Y; ages 8-12; book level 4.3.
Born in 1927 in Yuma, Arizona, César Chavez lived the hard-scrabble life of a migrant worker during the Depression. Although his mother wanted him to get an education, César left school after eighth grade to work. He grew to be a charismatic leader and founded the National Farm Workers Association, an organization that fought for basic rights for farm workers.

Ages 8-12; Gr.2-6.
What if a boring lesson about the food chain becomes a sing-aloud celebration about predators and prey? A twinkle-twinkle little star transforms into a twinkle-less, sunshine-eating-and-rhyming-Black Hole? What if amoebas, combustion, metamorphosis, viruses, the creation of the universe are all irresistible, laugh out loud poetry? Well, you're thinking in science verse, that's what.

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.

Guided Reading Level P; Ages 5-8; Grade level 3.7
My Chinatown is a critically acclaimed, spectacularly illustrated picture book homage to family, culture, and a childhood spent in one of the most striking places in any city--Chinatown.

Book level 4.8; Ages 5-9; gr.4-7.
"'Will you walk into my parlor,' said the Spider to the Fly..." is easily one of the most recognized and quoted first lines in all of English verse. But do you have any idea how the age-old tale of the Spider and the Fly ends?

Lexile measure AD1090L; Ages 8-10; Gr.3-6; guided reading R
The poet laureate of the young set is back, with his artist laureate collaborator, to "take another swipe at stuffiness."- Here are more than one hundred poems bursting to be read, chanted, laughed over, and remembered.

Lexile measure AD450L; Gr.2-5.
Juan Felipe Herrera's playful language and the colorful, magical art of Elizabeth Gomez capture the universal experience of entering a new school and feeling like a stranger in a world that seems upside down.
The Upside Down Boy/El nino de cabeza

Ages 4-8; Gr.2-4; Americas Award for Children & Young Adult Literature, Honor book, 1991.
Rhymes, chants, and games of Afro-Caribbean origin.

Reading level 2.8; Ages 6-8; Gr.3-5; Guided reading L
A classic retelling of the Chinese maiden warrior legend. Bilingual in English and Chinese.