Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte

Based on historical facts by a hearing impaired author, readers will be drawn into the surprisingly idyllic life of Mary Lambert on the island of Martha's Vineyard. Readers will be conscious of the tension with the island's Native Americans in a way that the characters in the book are not, and then outraged at Mary's treatment in the later part of the book. Her great-great-grandfather was an early English settler and the first deaf islander. Now, over a hundred years later, many people there -- including Mary -- are deaf, and nearly everyone can communicate in sign language. Mary has never felt isolated. She is proud of her lineage. But then her brother dies tragically, leaving her family shattered. Tensions over land disputes are mounting between English settlers and the Wampanoag people. And a cunning young scientist has arrived, hoping to discover the origin of the island's prevalent deafness. His maniacal drive to find answers soon renders Mary a "live specimen" in a cruel experiment. Her struggle to survive is both to physically escape her captors and to communicate and assert her personhood.

The Brave by James Bird

 

Collin can't help himself, in his mind he visualizes every word said to him and is compelled to count every letter. School is impossible and his single father can't cope. He doesn't know much about his mother until he is kicked out of another school and his dad sends him to Minnesota where his mother is Ojibwe and lives on a reservation. Collin and his loyal dog, Seven, finds his mom is eager to welcome him and accept his condition. He also meets the girl next door who lives in a treehouse and believes she is turning into a butterfly. Together they work to overcome his condition, and, as Collin gradually discovers, deal with Orenda's terminal illness.

The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez by Adrianna Cuevas

 

Nestor would love to be able to unpack all of his things and live in own place for more than a few months. He'd love to just have dinner with his dad. But dad is in the military, and for the first time, he and his mom are no longer living on a military base. They have moved into dad's hometown and are living with Nestor's grandmother. Nestor plans to lay low. He definitely doesn’t want to anyone find out his deepest secret: that he can talk to animals. But Nestor does get involved in his new home. He joins a quiz bowl team at school and makes friends with his teammates and when the animals start disappearing, he starts to investigate. The neighbors suspect Nestor's grandmother. Nestor suspects a bully who is also on the quiz bowl team, and begins investigating the woods where they disappeared, he discovers that they are being seized by a tule vieja―a witch who can absorb an animal’s powers by biting it during a solar eclipse. And the next eclipse is just around the corner. Can he and his friends do anything to stop it?

My Life in the Fish Tank by Barbara Dee

 

Just before leaving for college, twelve-year-old Zinnia Manning’s older brother Gabriel  takes Zinnia out for ice cream. They pig out on an insane amount of ice cream and then Gabe seems to go crazy on the drive home. Zinny is frightened, and then the family learns that he has crashed his college roommate's car and is being sent home with a mental illness diagnosis. The family is turned upside down and Mom and Dad want Zinny, her older sister, Scarlett, and her younger brother, Aiden, to keep Gabriel’s condition “private.” Soon Zinny's life is dominated by the secrets she keeps from her two best friends, and her science teacher, Ms. Molina. A well-meaning guidance counselor invites her to a Lunch Club with a weird mix of kids who Zinny doesn't believe she has anything in common with. As the year progresses, the family attempts to reconnect with Gabe and each other and Zinny learns who she can trust and who she can't.

The Last Lie by Patricia Forde

 

The conclusion of a dystopian series where the leaders of the rebellion believe they can save the world from repeating the environmental destruction of the past by limiting people's ability to speak. 

"If babies never hear a single word, they will never learn to speak."

The battle for Ark seems to be over. As a teenager, Leeta has found herself an unexpected hero, both for murdering one of the the leaders and for teaching the refuge's children the lost words. But the new ruler of Ark is even crueler than her predecessor, and Letta is horrified to find that they are stealing babies so they can get rid of language once and for all: if babies never hear a single word, they will never learn to speak. Letta learns that winning a rebellion is hard when there is evil on both sides and the leaders of the other side are family.

Shirley & Jamila Save Their Summer by Gillian Goerz

Jamila Waheed mother has her whole summer planned out, but all Jamila wants to do is play basketball. When Jamila's mother meets quirky Shirley Bones' mother at a garage sale, the two girls reluctantly come to an understanding that they hope will meet both of their needs and keep the mom's off their backs. The plan is simple: Shirley accompanies Jamila to the basketball court every day and reads while Jamila shoot baskets. Then this kid Oliver shows up begging for Shirley's help. His pet gecko has disappeared, and he's sure it was stolen. That's when Jamila discovers Shirley's secret: She's the neighborhood's best kid detective, and she's on the case. At first Jamila is put off that Shirley doesn't tell her what's going on. Then Jamila discovers she's got some detective skills of her own and a crime-solving partnership is born. All they needed was a good mystery to become best friends.

The Next Great Jane by K. L. Going

Jane Brannen thinks she has everything planned out. She will become a famous author like her namesake Jane Austen. The first step to her plan is  meeting bestselling author J. E. Fairfax who has come to the seaside village of Whickett Harbor and is giving a talk at the public library. Locked out of the program because they are serving wine, Jane plans to listen in from a secret spot in the attic and learn the secrets of becoming an author. Which is where the real-life Jane Austen story begins. A hurricane rolls in and Jane gets stuck with the author's snobbish son, Devon, instead. They survive their first adventure together, but stormy seas are still headed Jane's way. Her familiar life with her frumpy marine biologist dad is about to be threatened by the sudden return of her mom and her movie director fiance, Erik. They've come to file for custody and Jane decides she needs to find her father a suitable mate, and thus a suitable step-mother. She latches on to the sophisticated J. E. Fairfax, even though the perfect choice is the reliable nanny/housekeeper already there. Jane's efforts to hook up dad and the author throw Devon even more annoyingly into her life. Of course any Jane Austen fan knows the story will unfold in unexpected ways and stand-offish boys have their charms, too.

When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson & Omar Mohamed

 

Based on Mohamed’s actual experiences, this is a compelling and moving account of Somali brothers Omar and Hassan. They’ve witnessed their father’s murder and lost their mother in the flight to the Kenyan refugee camp of Dadaab. An elderly woman oversees their care, but Omar feels he is responsible for the care of his younger brother who has been left mute by the ordeal, As a result, Omar doesn’t go to the camp school until a teacher is alerted to his intelligence and challenges him to join.  The frustrating uncertainty of the boys’ future is balanced by humor and glimpses of kindness, as well as Jamieson’s beautiful artwork.

Twilight Hauntings by Angie Sage

 

Desperate to save their child, Hagos, the King’s enchanter and his wife Pearl, force the babe into the arms of a woman who reluctantly takes baby Alex in a basket with a mysterious wallet tucked in the blankets. As Alex grows, a Cinderella to her cruel stepmother and stepsisters, she learns how to use the magical cards in her father’s wallet. She just might be an Enchanter herself, and Enchanters are banned in Luma. When her stepsister turns her in, Alex sees the sentinels coming for her in the cards and escapes just in time. Outside the city lurk the Hauntings, menacing creatures that hunt down those who practice magic. Alex’s only clue to who she is and how to survive are the mysterious hexagonal cards.

Beverly, Right Here by Kate Di Camillo

 

"Beverly put her foot down on the gas. They went faster still. This was what Beverly wanted --what she always wanted. To get away. To get away as fast as she could. To stay away."

Running away has always been part of Beverly's life. Now that Buddy, her dog, is dead and buried under the orange trees, Beverly is ready to leave for real. But this time, unexpectedly, she makes a home, with  a job and people who really see who she is, and who she cares about.

Fighting Words by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

  A devastatingly honest, age-appropriate account of events that no child should have to endure. Sisters Della, 10, and Suki, 16, are put in foster care after escaping a sexually abusive home. Della’s story slowly reveals itself as she copes with a new school, a new foster home and her sister’s night terrors and moods. Betrayed by their now incarcerated mother who took them to a motel to cook meth. Betrayed by the boyfriend who gave them a place to live but left them for days while on the road. Readers will understand the girls’ reluctance to trust new friends, their new foster mother, and the other adults in their lives. This intense book has a powerful, hopeful resolution, but a trusted adult will help readers understand what’s going on.

When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller

On the drive from California to move in with her grandmother, Lily mysteriously sees a tiger in the road that no one else notices. She has always known, thanks to her Halmoni’s stories, that tigers can’t be trusted. And when she tells Halmoni what she saw, she learns that when Halmoni was Lily’s age, Halmoni stole something from the tiger. Then the magical tiger appears in her grandmother’s basement with a deal to heal the ailing woman, Lily is willing to do whatever it takes—even if that means trapping the tiger. A beautiful mix of Korean folklore and magic realism.

Wolfpack by Abby Wambach

 

The co-captain of the 2015 Women's World Cup championship shares her rules for being a champion. How to lead on and off the field, whether you're on the field or on the bench. Initially intimidated by the request to give the commencement speech at a prestigious college, she takes eight common leadership themes, and give them her own spin with the goal of empowering girls to "find their voice, unite their pack, and change the world."

Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson & Kwame Alexander

 

It's a biographical novel, its a novel in verse. Cassius Clay was just a kid growing up in Louisville, Kentucky in the 1950s. Patterson frames the story in prose written as a friend of Cassius, and Alexander adds the verse in Cassius' voice. Together they tell the story of the proud Clay family, and a young boy's trouble at school, growing awareness of the racism around him, and most of all, his drive to become the greatest. At the age of twelve his prized bike is stolen and Cassius discovers a gym where young boxers train. The book reveals the drive and passion that took him to Chicago for victory in the Golden Gloves and to Rome for an Olympic Gold Medal.

Glitch by Laura Martin

 

Glitchers travel through time to preserve important historical events from meddling time travelers. Regan Fitz and Elliot Mason were enemies in training school, but now they must join forces when they uncover a letter from future Regan warning the Glitchers of coming disaster. Will they be able to set aside the past in order to save the future?

Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson

 

Everyone loves to play at ZJ's house because ZJ's dad is an all pro tight end with a Super Bowl ring. But then ZJ senior is mysteriously benched, suffering with chronic migraines. He yells at ZJ and his friends, he mysteriously starts forgetting things. Sudden outbursts disturb the neighbors. Finally testing reveals that ZJ's dad has developed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).  

Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor

 

Nnamdi's father kept his Nigerian village safe from crime as chief of police., After his murder, Nnamdi dreams of avenging the crime and keeping everyone safe again like his favorite superhero, the Hulk. But in real life, how is a 12-year-old boy supposed to do that? Then exactly one year after the murder, Nnamdi meets a shadowy figure who gives him a magical object. When Nnamdi gets angry enough, he becomes The Man: a legend, a shadowy avenger.

Willa and the Whale by Chad Morris and Stella Brown

 

Willa's world is turned upside down for a second time when she is pulled out of her Japanese school class tragic news: her mother has been rushed to the hospital. By the time Willa arrives, her mother has died. Now she is living a world away on an island off the coast of Washington state with her father and his new family. Willa's mother was a famous marine biologist, and Willa inherited her passion, especially for the giants of the ocean--whales. When her dad takes her on a whale watching expedition, Willa is ready to capture the whales with her phone. And the humpback whale the ship encounters doesn't disappoint. She shows off in front of the boat and the passengers get soaking wet. While the other passengers think the show is over, the whale sneaks up from behind the boat and cocks an eye at the deck, catching Willa alone. Willa starts talking to the whale....and amazingly, the whale talks back. 

For Black Girls Like Me by Mariama J. Lockington

 

Eleven-year-old Makeda is black and adopted. Her parents and older sister are white. She loves her family but moving across the country to a new home and a new school in New Mexico accelerates her feeling of being different. Until this year, she's never been confronted with the "N" word, she's never been to a black beauty salon, and she and her sister Eve have never had to deal with their mother's mental health issues so directly before. 

Doodleville by Chad Sell

 

Serious graphic artists put all their emotions into their drawn characters, but Drew's doodles each have their own personalities and a mischievous streak that takes them off the page of her sketchbook and into the paintings at the Art Institute of Chicago. Then there's Leviathan, Levi for short. Her Art Club friends think he should be scarier, but when Drew tries to make him scarier, he becomes the ultimate supervillain. He threatens to destroy Drew's doodles and it takes all of the Art Club's characters to band together and rescue the doodles.

The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate

 

All three friends from The One and Only Ivan have new homes: Ivan and Ruby are settled into a real zoo, and Bob the mutt is making a home with one of the zookeepers and his family. This time Bob tells the story, including how his search for food brought him to the mall where he met Ivan the gorilla and Ruby the elephant. When a hurricane hits, Bob and Ruby prove their bravery first rescuing Ivan and then one of the young gorillas, then when Bob is suddenly reunited with his sister, Boss, he helps the animals in the shelter survive the storm surge and then finds Boss' pup, stranded on the roof of a car.

Class Act by Jerry Craft

 

Jordan Banks is back for eighth grade at Riverdale Academy, but he's afraid this year may be as hard as his first year. Unlike his friends he hasn't grown an inch. His friends have their own problems. too. Drew feels like he has to work twice as hard to be just as good. He sure has to travel twice as far and he doesn't want to just rely on his basketball skills. Liam wants to be friends with Drew and Jordan, but its hard when their homes and families are so different. And then there's Andy, who's still being a jerk to Drew. The teachers attempt to do the right thing, but their attempts to promote diversity and make the kids of color feel like they belong backfire. Can Jordan keep all his friends together? It's going to take a group effort from his parents and grandfather; just like Jerry Craft makes this book a group effort, drawing on inspiration from other graphic novelists....see if you can spot the tributes.

Nuts to You by Lynne Rae Perkins

 

For some reason, I'm being drawn to books about squirrels this Fall. In this book, that I somehow missed when it first came out, two squirrel friends TsTs and Chai witness a horrible thing: their friend Jed is carried away by a hawk and then mysteriously dropped from the sky. But some squirrels aren't as silly as you might think. TsTs knows where Jed is. She saw him fall "just past the unnatural shape." Which unnatural shape? Above the trees in their grove there are three "unnatural shapes": the "silver egg" (a water tower?), the "tall frozen spiderweb" (an electrical tower), and "the great beak that sometimes sings but never opens" (a church Steeple). "The spiderweb," TsTs reports to Chai, "but not the closest one, the one after that." And so two brave squirrels set out to follow the "buzzpath" (the electrical wires) to rescue their friend. And normally I'd leave the story there for you to read for yourself, but when TsTs and Chai miraculously do find Jed, an even greater adventure begins. Humans are using chain saws to thin the forest around the "buzzpath" and the three friends plus an orphan red squirrel have no time to waste to get back the grove and warn their families to get out of the way of the destruction.

Inkling by Kenneth Oppel

 

When mom dies, the Rylance family struggles to find a new routine. Ethan needs a new friend. Sarah really wants a puppy. Mr. Rylance is overwhelmed with sadness and can't find a way to begin drawing his next graphic novel. Then one night their cat Rickman is prowling the art studio and witnesses something amazing: a small blob of ink escapes from one of Mr. Rylance's sketchbooks. Ethan finds the blob and names him Inkling. Inklng will gladly help out....if he gets enough to eat. But is it a good thing to let the ink do the work for you or is there trouble ahead?

Here in the Real World by Sara Pennypacker

 

Ware is looking forward to a perfect summer dreaming of knights in the middle ages living alone with his grandmother who everyone calls "Big Deal." But when his grandmother falls and breaks her hip, Ware's freedom is yanked away, and his mother has signed him up for another summer of normal kid activities at the neighborhood Rec Center. On his first day, he discovers an overgrown abandoned shell of a church where a girl named Jolene is attempting to start a garden and he can begin turning the remaining walls of the church into his castle. After several days, the two begin to work together to transform the space and begin to learn about each other's lives. 

Clean Getaway by Nic Stone

 

Grandma calls him Scoob, after the cartoon dog. Scoob writes:

How to Go on an Unplanned Road Trip with Your Grandma:

Grab a Suitcase: Prepacked from the big spring break trip that got CANCELLED.

Fasten Your Seatbelt: G'ma's never conventional, so this trip won't be either.

Use the Green Book: G'ma's most treasured possession. It holds history, memories, and most important, the way home.

What Not to Bring:

A Cell Phone: Avoid contact with Dad at all costs. Even when G'ma starts acting stranger than usual.

Although Scoob is black, his grandmother is white. His grandparents fell in love and married in the early 1960s when it was actually illegal for them to marry in the South because she was white and he was black. It was also difficult to travel safely and Scoob learns about how a road trip from Georgia to Mexico went bad for his grandparents in the 1960s. Along the way, Scoob sees how life in the United States has and sometimes hasn't changed over the past fifty years. Secrets emerge that help Scoob understand his dad and himself.

The Time of Green Magic by Hilary McKay

 

When Abi's dad and Louis and Max's mom get married, they need a new house for their new blended family. They fall in love with the weird old ivy-covered house. Abi loves having her own space to do what she loves best: read books. Then she begins noticing strange things happening: the salty spray that remains on her skin after reading the true life sailing adventure, Kon Tiki. And Louis begins seeing a mysterious (and growing) cat-like creature climb through his window at night. Can Abi and Max figure out where Iffen came from and how to send it back before Louis gets hurt?

The Kalamazoo Pipe Band is Coming to Three Rivers

 Is this how Janis Joplin felt the first time they billed them as Big Brother and the Holding Company WITH Janis Joplin? 

The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead

 

Bea will never forget that day. Her parents sat on the couch on either side of her for their very first "family meeting." From their sad looks she was afraid that maybe her cat, Red, was sick, maybe dying. Her dad put his arm around her and said some big things were going to change. He said they were getting divorced. Her parents explained that dad was moving into another apartment and that Bea would alternate between the two apartments. Then they gave her a green spiral notebook and a green pen. Green was her favorite color. Inside her parents had started a list of "Things That Will Not Change":

1. Mom loves you more than anything, always.

2. Dad loves you more than anything, always.

3. Mom and Dad love each other, but in a different way.

4. You will always have a home with each of us.

5. Your homes will never be far apart.

We are still a family, but in a different way.

When Dad tells Bea that he and his boyfriend, Jesse, are getting married, Bea is excited because (1) she thinks Jesse is great, and (2) Jesse has a daughter, Sonia, and now Bea will have the thing she's always wanted: a sister. But Bea sometime struggles to understand how emotions work, and Sonia's emotions about her new family are complicated. And even though the List of Things That Will Not Change grows longer, Bea discovers that making a new family is full of changes and uncertainty.

Voyage of the Frostheart by Jamie Littler

 

Ash is an orphan boy who lives in the last outpost of a snow-covered land where the technology of the past has been lost and giant leviathans prowl under the ice waiting for foolish humans to stray too far from their safe towers. Ash knows little about his parents who were lost on a pathfinding voyage. But he knows they were song weavers and the Fira people mistrust song weavers because they can understand the songs of the leviathan: "Human. Catch. Kill." When Ash hears it, he instinctively sings back. Even though his song may be the only thing that can tame the leviathan, the Fira exile Ash to live in the care of another outcast, Tobu, a yeti. So when the adventurous crew of the Frostheart, a pathfinding sleigh arrive to trade with the Fira, Ash begs to go with them. The sleigh is captained by a walrus with a peg leg, and Ash quickly befriends the endlessly talkative navigator, Lunah, and eventually the dark stranger, Shaard. Accompanied by Tobu, Ash imagines he might be seeing lands where his parents may have been, and each member of the crew encourages him to develop his singing skills. With leviathans at every turn, can Ash harness his skill to protect the ship? And when the advice of Tobu and Shaard are in conflict, who should he trust? The characters and drawings remind me a bit of the How to Train Your Dragon books.

Rick by Alex Gino

Rick's a little excited and a little nervous about starting middle school. He's been best friends with Jeff for so long they can just hangout and play videogames or sometimes its okay to just hangout. But on the very first day when Jeff starts calling out girls as "hotties," Rick feels uncomfortable because he's never really felt that way about girls....or boys. When Rick decides to visit the school's Rainbow Spectrum, he meets kids of many genders and identities, include the girl who Jeff called a "hottie," and who readers of the author's first book George, will immediately recognize. Rick finds out that it's okay to not be attracted to either boys or girls, and begins the process of discovering what he wants in his own life and making some tough decisions. He begins to see his old friend Jeff in a new light, as a bully and a homophobe, as well as getting to spend more time with his grandfather who encourages him to talk about school and his friends. Funny and surprising, this is a book about LGBTQIAP+ issues that can be read by all kids (yup, I had to look that up, too). 

It Wasn't Me by Dana Allison Levy

Six middle school students lose their midwinter vacation week because someone vandalized Theo's photography display, and the other five were the the only students in the gallery when the crime was discovered. Instead of giving them all suspensions, their teacher, Ms. Lewiston, has talked the principal into holding a Justice Circle instead. And that's when Theo's nightmare really begins. His mom talks him into joining the five suspects who all claim "It Wasn't Me." He thinks he knows everything he needs to know about these five classmates: "the Nerd," "The Princess," "The Jock," "The Weirdo," and "The Screw-Up." But after a few totally unpredictable days of yoga ball soccer, spastic sock puppets, farts, deadly flesh wounds, and lots of candy, the Justice Circle six open up to each other in ways even the unorthodox Ms. Lewiston couldn't have planned. The author admits to being inspired by The Breakfast Club, but the use of restorative justice techniques to reveal her characters is totally original and surprising.

White Bird by R. J. Palacio

 

In the sequel to Wonder called Augie & Me, we meet Julian's Grandmere. White Bird is her story in graphic novel format in answer to her grandson's questions about her mysterious childhood. Sara's village in France is taken over by Nazi soldiers during World War II and as a Jewish girl, she is already experiencing prejudice at school. When the soldiers come to round up the Jewish students, Sara's handicapped seat mate, Julien, helps her escape and his family hides her in a nearby barn. Palacio's artwork vividly shares the drama and emotion with readers.

Small Town Newspapers Rock!

 

Visit My Bitmoji Virtual Library

 

The Storm Runner by J. C. Cervantes

 

Zane's disability--one leg is shorter than the other forcing him to walk with a cane--may get him teased and into trouble at school but it doesn't prevent him from exploring the volcano in his backyard with his dog Rosie. Unfortunately he also releases the Mayan god of death and darkness, Ah-Puch, also known as the stinking one. A mysterious girl named Brooks who is a nawal, or shape-shifter, explains that Zane is destined to fulfill an ancient prophecy. Zane learns that his mysterious father was a Mayan supernatural, though he's not sure what kind; he could be a nawal or a spirit guide, a demon or a dwarf, or he could be one of the Mayan gods. Now Zane must make a deal with Ah-Puch to save his friends.

So Many Books, So Little Time...

 Sometimes I get overwhelmed by good recommendations, so I'm just going to park these three great lists from Janet Dawson of Springfield, Massachusetts here--

• Persistence and Grit
  http://kidsbookaday.com/2020/08/28/10-picture-books-that-teach-persistence-and-grit/
  
  
• Community and Kindness
  https://kidsbookaday.com/2020/08/21/10-picture-books-about-kindness-and-community/
  
  
• Back-to-School
  https://kidsbookaday.com/2020/08/15/back-to-school-with-books/

Kamala Harris: Rooted in Justice by Nikki Grimes; illustrated by Laura Freeman

 The poet Nikki Grimes begins, "Life is a story / you write day by day. / Kamala's begins with a name / that means "lotus flower." / See how her beautiful smile / opens wide, like petals / fanning across the water's surface? / But you don't see the flower's roots. Her roots. / They grow deep, deep, deep down. / Let me show you." Combining verse from Grimes with the colorful illustrations of Laura Freeman, the book tells young people about the "roots" of the US Senator and vice-presidential nominee, about her Indian mother and Jamaican father, moving to Canada, and returning to the United States for college and a career in public service.

Woke: a Young Poet's Call to Justice by Mahogany L. Browne with Elizabeth Acevedo and Olivia Gatwood; illustrated by Theodore Taylor, III.

What does it mean to be "woke'? The poet tells young people "Our voice / is our greatest power .... It happens everywhere / It is active / It is energy / It is resisting to be comfortable / When we all have yet to feel safe and free." Many poems tell individual stories and slices of family life. All of the poems are "tagged" with topics, including "activism," "ableism," "ally," "body positivity," "community," "empathy," "equality," "forgiveness," "freedom fighters," "gender," "immigration," "intersectionality," "individuality," "joy," "justice," "prejudice," "privilege," "protest," "resistance," "resourcefulness," "silencing," "stereotyping," "volunteering," "woke."

we are awake

wide in our understanding

of what is so pretty and shiny

of what is dull and dim

in this world

but look here 

even wider

between our outstretched arms

a brave and growing world

look closely

don't forget 

we invited you here

to live inside

this truth

this freedom

we never sleep on what's at stake

Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry; illustrated by Vashti Harrison

Zuri loves her hair even though it has a mind of its own. It kinks, coils, and curls every which way. She's tried all kinds of styles: princess braids with beads; superhero puffs; it even does magic tricks when the weather changes. But this morning is a special day and she wants to let her daddy sleep in. Zuri tries to style her hair by herself. But there's a crash in the bathroom and daddy wakes up anyway. He tries every style imaginable, but nothing is right for the big day. Finally daddy gets out the oil. He parts and he twists and he braids. Ta da! Funky puffy buns, just in time for mommy to get home.

Available on Hoopla.

I Walk with Vanessa by Kerascoet

Vanessa is the new girl in school. You don't need words to see how anxious she is. Will she make friends? Will she be invited to play with the other kids? This is the boy who isn't ver nice to her. Why is he so angry? What is he pointing at? What does he see in Vanessa that he doesn't like? And this is the girl who helps Vanessa and who stands up for what is right. What does she think about the boy who was mean? Why is she sad when she gets home? How did she decide to go visit Vanessa on the way to school the next day? How do simple acts of kindness change everything?

The World Needs More Purple People by Kristen Bell & Benjamin Hart; illustrated by Daniel Wiseman

Why are people different colors? This little girl wants you to know how you can become a purple person. Purple People love to ask questions. Purple People laugh a lot. Purple People use their voice and don't stop using it. Purple People work hard. Do you need to actually paint yourself purple? Nah, just be the best you that you can be. The world needs more purple people just like you.

Malala's Magic Pencil by Malala Yousafzai; illustrated by Kerascoet

Do you believe in magic? When Malala was a child in Pakistan she wished for a magic pencil. She would draw a lock on the door to keep out nosey brothers, stop time so she could sleep an extra hour, and erase the smell of the trash dump near her home. But as she grew she had another dream: to succeed in school. But she began noticing that in her country some children had to work to feed their families, and dangerous men with guns began discouraging girls from going to school. She knew what she would do with a magic pencil to help make the world a better place. If more people knew about what was happening, she thought, maybe things would change. So Malala took up a real pencil and began writing about what was happening around her. And when people began reading what she wrote and asking her to travel around the world to give speeches, some of Malala's wishes for girls in her country came true.

Going Down Home With Daddy by Kelly Starling Lyons; illustrated by Daniel Minter

Lil Allan is excited to travel down south to visit his grandmother and see all of his aunties and uncles and cousins. But then he realizes that his cousins have all brought something to give Granny or to perform for her. As Daddy shows him around the land that his Pa was so proud to own, Lil Allan gets an idea for how to represent the family and all of its hard work in love.

Available on Hoopla.

Where Are You From? by Jaime Kim

It might just be curiosity, but when you look different, people may ask you "where are you from?" And even if you've lived "here" all your life like most of your friends, they may may ask "where are you really from?" They may want to know where your dad is from or where your mother is from or maybe the family before them. A young brown girl asks her dear Abuelo and after thinking for awhile, her grandpa tells her about the Pampas in Argentina, about the gaucho cowboys that raised cattle and wheat, and the beautiful Caribbean islands. But still she isn't satisfied with his answer, so he points to his heart and says "You're from here, from my love and the love of all those before us, from those who dreamed of you because of a song sung under the Southern Cross or the words in a book written under the light of the North Star."

Be Kind by Pat Zietlow Miller; illustrated by Jen Hill.

A classmate watches Tanisha spill grape juice on her very special dress and frets about how to make her feel better. She remembers her mother saying "Be Kind." But what does that mean exactly? Throughout the day, the girl ponders the possibilities. Does it mean giving to others? Is it helping others? Is it paying attention to others? Is it easy to do? Or is it hard? Or scary sometimes? She wonders if she can "solve" Tanisha's problem for her. But she realizes even little things can add up.

Because Amelia Smiled by David Ezra Stein.

As Amelia skips down the street through the rain her smile inspires a neighbor to bake some cookies for her son in Mexico. Her son is inspired to teach his class a song in English about cookies (you know the one!). And so on and so on. Good feelings spread around the world in this way every day. Who can you make smile today?

Happy Fourth of July

It was hot and the parades were canceled, but the Kalamazoo Pipe Band played for anyone who happened to be walking through Bronson Park this morning.

The Colors of Us by Karen Katz.

"My mom's the color of French toast. She's an artist. Mom's teaching me how to mix colors. She says that if I mix red, yellow, black, and white paints in the right combination, I will have the right brown for a picture of me." A mother and daughter explore their neighborhood and discover their neighbors remind them of favorite foods: cinnamon, chocolate, peanut butter, honey, coffee, toffee, and butterscotch. What flavor are you?

Let the Children March by Monica Clark-Robinson; illustrated by Frank Morrison.

The author chose to make this book a fictional story about an imagined  girl and her brother, but the story is true. In May 1963, families met with Dr. Marin Luther King to plan a march in a church in Birmingham, Alabama. The parents worried about losing their jobs if they marched, so thousands of children and teenagers volunteered to march for their civil rights. What were some of the things that the marchers protested against? What were some of the ways the police tried to stop the marches? Available online on Hoopla.

Juneteenth for Mazie by Floyd Cooper

Like most kids, Mazie is tired of hearing the word "no." "No" you can't stay up late, "no" you can't have a cookie. But her daddy promises her tomorrow they will celebrate. Tomorrow is Juneteenth, the 19th of June. Her daddy tells her the story of her great-great-great-grandpa Mose who grew up a slave in Texas and was there on June 19th, 1865 the day that the last slaves heard that President Lincoln had proclaimed an end to slavery. That night everyone who heard that announcement celebrated their freedom late into the night. And every year on June 19th, Americans celebrate the end of slavery in the United States.