E-books for children and young adults: Elementary
A list of children's and young adult literature available electronically.
Elementary
- The princess and the warrior [electronic version] by Duncan TonatiuhPublication Date: 2016Lexile measure 770; Ages 6-9; Prk-gr.2; Pura Belpre Illustrator Honor, 2017.
Award-winning author Duncan Tonatiuh reimagines one of Mexico's cherished legends. Princess Izta had many wealthy suitors but dismissed them all. When a mere warrior, Popoca, offered to love her and stay always by her side, Izta fell in love. - Stepping stones : a refugee family's journey = Ḥaṣá al-ṭuruqāt : riḥalat ʻ̕āʼilah lājiʼah [electronic version] by Margriet Ruurs; Nizar Badr (Artist)Publication Date: 2016Lexile measure AD480L; Ages 4-8; PrK-Gr.3.
This unique picture book was inspired by the stone artwork of Syrian artist Nizar Ali Badr, discovered by chance by Canadian children's writer Margriet Ruurs. The author was immediately impressed by the strong narrative quality of Mr. Badr's work, and, using many of Mr. Badr's already-created pieces, she set out to create a story about the Syrian refugee crisis. - Exquisite: the poetry and life of Gwendolyn Brooks [electronic version] by Suzanne Slade; Cozbi A. Cabrera (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2020Ages 5-10
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) is known for her poems about "real life." She wrote about love, loneliness, family, and poverty--showing readers how just about anything could become a beautiful poem. Exquisite follows Gwendolyn from early girlhood into her adult life, showcasing her desire to write poetry from a very young age. This picture-book biography explores the intersections of race, gender, and the ubiquitous poverty of the Great Depression--all with a lyrical touch worthy of the subject. - The Paper Bag Princess 40th Anniversary Edition by Robert Munsch; Michael Martchenko (Illustrator); Ann Munsch (Afterword by); Chelsea Clinton (Preface by); Francesca Segal (Foreword by)Publication Date: 2020An empowerment-focused keepsake edition of one of the world's best-loved picture books. 40 years. 7 million copies. 1 kick-ass princess who has inspired generations of readers to stand up for themselves.
- Can I Touch Your Hair? by Charles Waters; Irene Latham; Selina Alko (Illustrator); Sean Qualls (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2018Ages 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. - An Incredible Journey by Alicia Keefe; Anke Gladnick (Illustrator); NOAA Fisheries, West Coast Region (U.S.) (Editor)Publication Date: 2018This book explores the lives of salmon, the communities who've relied on salmon fishing as a key component of their culture and how government is rallying to save the salmon from extinction.
2017
- All kinds of friends by Shelley Rotner (Photographer); Sheila M. KellyPublication Date: 2017Friends can come in many different colors, shapes, and sizes. Through bright photographs and simple text, young readers will discover the many ways to be a friend and how to celebrate all the different kinds of friendships they have.
- Crown: an ode to the fresh cut by Derrick Barnes; Gordon C. James (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2017Ages 4-8; K-Gr.3; Newbery Honor Book, Caldecott Honor Book, Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book & Illustrator Honor Book, Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award Book & New Illustrator Honor Book.
The barbershop is where the magic happens. Boys go in as lumps of clay and, with princely robes draped around their shoulders, a dab of cool shaving cream on their foreheads, and a slow, steady cut, they become royalty. - Fred Korematsu Speaks Up by Laura Atkins; Stan YogiPublication Date: 2017Ages 10-13; Gr.4-6; Carter G. Woodson award winner, 2018; Jane Addams Children's Book Award honor, 2018.
Fred Korematsu liked listening to music on the radio, playing tennis, and hanging around with his friends--just like lots of other Americans. But everything changed when the United States went to war with Japan in 1941 and the government forced all people of Japanese ancestry to leave their homes on the West Coast and move to distant prison camps. - My Hair Is a Garden by Cozbi A. Cabrera (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2017Lexile measure AD620L; Ages 5-7; K-gr.2.
After a day of being taunted by classmates about her unruly hair, Mackenzie can't take any more and she seeks guidance from her wise and comforting neighbor, Miss Tillie. Most importantly, Mackenzie learns that natural black hair is beautiful. - Sea girl: feminist folktales from around the world by Ethel Johnston Phelps (Ed.); Suki Boynton (Ill.); Daniel José Older (Introduction)Publication Date: 2017The feminist folktales collected in Sea Girl upend any notion that women are doomed to be sentimental, meek, or submissive. In these classic tales, heroines unflinchingly wade monstrous rivers, escape ogres' nests, and outsmart desperate sharks and hungry tigers. And while defending their families and villages, they always determine their own fate.
- Stories from Ancient Greece and Rome by Joyce Tyldesley; Julian HeathPublication Date: 2017In a companion book to the best-selling Stories from Ancient Egypt, Joyce Tyldesley re-tells some of the most interesting and entertaining myths and legends from the Classical world.
2015-2016
- Kamala: feminist folktales from around the world by Ethel Johnston Phelps (Ed.); Suki Boynton (Ill.); Kate Schatz (Introduction)Publication Date: 2016In this second volume of reissued classic folktales, a Punjabi woman outwits seven ruthless thieves, an Incan girl restores harmony to the empire, and a mischievous Norwegian lass thwarts her entitled landowner.
- Little Whale: a story of the last Tlingit war canoe by Roy A. PeratrovichPublication Date: 2016Keet, a ten-year-old Tlingit Indian boy, stows away for a voyage on his father's canoe . . . and soon finds himself caught in the middle of a wild seastorm. The story carries him far from his home village, and when he makes land, he winds up right in the middle of a dangerous dispute between two Indian clans.
- Mommy Goose: rhymes from the mountains by Mike Norris; Minnie Adkins (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2016Playing hopscotch in the schoolyard or hide-and-seek in the woods, Appalachian children once recited traditional nursery rhymes from memory. As kids do, they frequently altered the original rhymes, making them even more colorful in the process. In Mommy Goose: Rhymes from the Mountains, author Mike Norris honors this special piece of American heritage with a one-of-a-kind collection of fifty original nursery rhymes celebrating Appalachian tradition and speech.
- Tatterhood. Vol. 1 : feminist folktales from around the world by Ethel Johnston Phelps (Ed.); Suki Boynton (Ill.); Gayle Forman (Introduction)Publication Date: 2016From Japan to Norway, Scotland to Sudan,Tatterhood brings readers twelve folk tales--and twelve women whose cunning, hard work, and physical strength are celebrated in each story.
- When we were alone by David A. Robertson; Julie Flett (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2016When a young girl helps tend to her grandmother's garden, she begins to notice things that make her curious. Why does her grandmother have long, braided hair and beautifully coloured clothing? Why does she speak another language and spend so much time with her family? As she asks her grandmother about these things, she is told about life in a residential school a long time ago, where all of these things were taken away.
- Amadeus, the leghorn rooster by Delores B. Nevils; Jonathan Green (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2015Lowcountry storyteller Delores B. Nevils and acclaimed artist Jonathan Green collaborate to share the story of Amadeus, a loud and proud leghorn rooster who comes to live with a widow lady in the Corners community of St. Helena Island on the South Carolina coast.
- Emmanuel's Dream by Laurie Ann Thompson; Sean Qualls (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2015Lexile measure AD770L; Ages 5-9.
Born in Ghana, West Africa, with one deformed leg, he was dismissed by most people-but not by his mother, who taught him to reach for his dreams. As a boy, Emmanuel hopped to school more than two miles each way, learned to play soccer, left home at age thirteen to provide for his family, and eventually, became a cyclist.
2014
- All the colors we are : the story of how we get our skin color = Todos los colores de nuestra piel : la historia de por qué tenemos diferentes colores de piel by Katie KissingerPublication Date: 2014The essential resource for 20 years! Celebrate the essence of one way we are all special and different from one another--our skin color! This bilingual (English/Spanish) book offers children a simple, scientifically accurate explanation about how our skin color is determined by our ancestors, the sun, and melanin.
- All the Way to America: the story of a big Italian family and a little shovel by Dan YaccarinoPublication Date: 2014Dan Yaccarino's great-grandfather arrived at Ellis Island with a small shovel and his parents' good advice: "Work hard, but remember to enjoy life, and never forget your family." With simple text and warm, colorful illustrations, Yaccarino recounts how the little shovel was passed down through four generations of this Italian-American family--along with the good advice.
- A Boy and a Jaguar by Alan Rabinowitz; Cátia Chien (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2014Alan loves animals, but the great cat house at the Bronx Zoo makes him sad. Why are they all alone in empty cages? Are they being punished? More than anything, he wants to be their champion--their voice--but he stutters uncontrollably. Except when he talks to animals... Then he is fluent.
- Mongooses by Megan Borgert-SpaniolPublication Date: 2014"Mongooses are nothing if not tenacious. These creative hunters whack bird eggs against hard surfaces to get at the meal within. They'll even grapple with venomous snakes, waiting patiently for the chance at a fatal counterattack.
- Mumbet's Declaration of Independence by Gretchen Woelfle; Alix Delinois (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2014"All men are born free and equal." Everybody knows about the Founding Fathers and the Declaration of Independence in 1776. But the founders weren't the only ones who believed that everyone had a right to freedom. Mumbet, a Massachusetts slave, believed it too. Mumbet's Declaration of Independence tells her story for the first time in a picture book biography, and her brave actions set a milestone on the road toward ending slavery in the United States.
- Separate is never equal : Sylvia Mendez & her family's fight for desegregation by Duncan TonatiuhPublication Date: 2014Lexile measure AD870L; Ages 5-9; Gr.2-5.
A 2015 Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor Book and a 2015 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book Almost 10 years before Brown vs. Board of Education, Sylvia Mendez and her parents helped end school segregation in California.
2011-2013
- A splash of red: the life and art of Horace Pippin by Jennifer Bryant; Melissa Sweet (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2013Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet team up once again to share this inspiring story of a self-taught painter from humble beginnings who despite many obstacles, was ultimately able to do what he loved, and be recognized for who he was- an artist.
- Standing Bear of the Ponca by Virginia Driving Hawk SnevePublication Date: 2013Standing Bear of the Ponca tells the story of this historic leader, from his childhood education in the ways and traditions of his people to his trials and triumphs as chief of the Bear Clan of the Ponca tribe. Most harrowing is the winter trek on which Standing Bear led his displaced people, starving and sick with malaria, back to their homeland--only to be arrested by the U.S. government, which set the stage for his famous trial.
- Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde: Vol. 1 - the Selfish Giant/the Star Child by P. Craig Russell (Illustrator); Oscar WildePublication Date: 2012One of comic art's most respected and pioneering artists, well known for his opera adaptations and beautiful fantasy work, P. Craig Russell is in the process of adapting Oscar Wilde's famous fairy tales in a series of landmark volumes. This volume includes The Selfish Giant and The Star Child.
- H. O. R. S. E.: a game of basketball and imagination by Christopher MyersPublication Date: 2012One 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.
2006-2010
- Bad news for outlaws : the remarkable life of Bass Reeves, deputy U.S. marshal by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson; R. Gregory Christie (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2009Lexile 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. - Kami and the Yaks by Andrea Stenn Stryer; Bert Dodson (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2007Just before the start of a new trek, a Sherpa family discovers that their yaks are missing. Young Kami, anxious to help his brother and father maintain their livelihood, sets off by himself to find the wandering herd. A spunky deaf child who is unable to speak, Kami attempts to summon the yaks with his shrill whistle.
- One Green Apple by Eve Bunting; Ted Lewin (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2006Farah feels alone, even when surrounded by her classmates. She listens and nods but doesn't speak. It's hard being the new kid in school, especially when you're from another country and don't know the language. Then, on a field trip to an apple orchard, Farah discovers there are lots of things that sound the same as they did at home, from dogs crunching their food to the ripple of friendly laughter.
Before 2005
- I Am Rene, the Boy by Fabiolla Graullera (Illustrator); René Colato LaínezPublication Date: 2005Young Rene's teacher is calling roll one morning, and Rene is dismayed to hear someone else answer to his name. It's not only that he thought he was the only person with that name, but also that the new student who answers is a girl. That afternoon his classmates tease, Rene has a girl's name.
- America, My New Home by Monica Gunning; Ken Condon (Illustrator)Publication Date: 2004From her Caribbean island birthplace, a young girl carries a dream and journeys to a new land that is at once puzzling, frightening, and inspiring. In twenty-three compelling poems, Jamaican-born poet Monica Gunning tells her immigrant's story with gentle humor, grace, and a child's sense of wonder.
- The skin I'm in: a first look at racismPublication Date: 2003
- Bravo! Brava! a night at the opera : behind the scenes with composers, cast, and crew by Anne Siberell; Frederica von Stade (Introduction)Publication Date: 2002A delightful introduction to opera, Bravo! Brava! A Night at the Opera teaches elementary school children what opera is by showing how it is made. "Who writes the words?", "Who makes an opera happen? "Who is backstage?"--these questions and more are answered with easy-to-understand explanations and are illustrated with whimsical watercolors by the author.
- The Annotated Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery; Margaret Anne Doody (Editor); Wendy Elizabeth Barry (Editor); Mary Doody Jones (Editor)Publication Date: 1997Since its publication in 1908, Anne of Green Gables has been a continuous international best-seller, enjoying successful television adaptations on PBS and The Disney Channel, and captivating children and adults alike with the irresistible charms of its remarkable heroine, Anne Shirley. This wildly imaginative, red-headed chatterbox tries to fit into the narrow confines of Victorian expectations, but her exuberant spirit keeps leaping delightfully beyond the bounds.
- Curious George by H. A. Rey (Illustrator); Margret ReyPublication Date: 1973In this, the original book about the curious monkey, George is taken from the jungle by the man in the yellow hat to live in a new home, but--oh, what happened! Though trying to be good, George is still very curious and takes a swim in the ocean, escapes from jail, and goes for a flying ride on a bunch of balloons.
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