Category: The Kids Are All Right

In this enchanting picture book, a king and queen unable to have children are gifted a son and daughter in the form of a wooden robot and a log princess. But the log princess turns back into a log each night, and when she’s accidentally taken away, the robot takes off to find her. Along the way, both robot and princess must rescue one another.

While this is far from lighthearted fare, this is a powerful and moving picture book about the anguish of war. For anyone looking for a way to start a conversation about it, especially considering the current crisis in Afghanistan, this may be a good starting point.

In this sweet picture book, a mother, daughter, and grandmother take a trip to the end of the earth, the southern tip of India, where three oceans meet. Along the way they reconnect with old friends, revisit memories, and experience new sights.

In this funny book, Lin is a cuddly, cute panda whose adorableness makes her a star at the zoo. But all she really wants is to return to the panda sanctuary where her brother is. Lin reasons that if being a good panda landed her in the zoo, being a bad one would ensure her return to her brother so she sets off a plan to be a bad panda but finds her cuteness may be insurmountable.

Elvis is a Calico kitten recently adopted by Georgina. Elvis misses his sister, Etta, left behind, and Georgina is still struggling after her parents have split. As Elvis looks for a way to reunite with Etta, he begins to admire Georgina and her intricate Lego builds, and they both begin to consider they may be able to build a world that they love even if its not what they’d have first chosen for themselves.

Wow wow wow. This is the perfect picture book for read alouds. Gorgeous poetry, gorgeous words, gorgeous illustrations. This anthem is a triumphant call to action for everyone to use their abilities to make a difference. “I am just what the world needs,” proclaims the children, their beautiful smiles radiating from the page. “There is love where my change sings.”

At the southern tip of India, three oceans meet. But when Sejal travels there for a trip, the three oceans aren’t the only thing she’s excited about. With her are Sejal, Mommy, and Pati, each with their own style and food preferences and languages. This lovely book captures the love and wisdom that can only be passed down through generations.

I adore this book about Yo-Yo Ma, an incredible cellist who has personally inspired me and my family with his gorgeous music. Born in France to Chinese parents and raised in America, Yo-Yo picked up the cello at an early age (because double bass was too big). After a life of learning and performing around the world, he ended up at the Rio Grande on April 13, 2021, playing music at the US-Mexico border as part of his multi continent “Bach Project” tour.

This is such a fun and silly book, and I especially love Andrea Tsurumi’s illustrative style that reminds me of the illustrators I loved as a child. Mr. Watson starts out with three chickens, but pretty soon they multiply until chickens are everywhere! Mr. Nelson finally puts his foot down – the chickens are a problem! – but what should Mr. Watson do? My favorite page spread is a cross-section of the house – so fun!

You know when you read something and it takes your breath away? This book did that to me. Seen through the eye of two children as they settle down for the night, they say goodbye to everything around them in their grandparent’s house: the bowls of fresh marigolds, the droning planes, the gecko in the curtains. Each page spread is a feast for the eyes!

In this funny, spooky picture book, a chicken crosses the road and wakes up as a ghost on the other side. Surrounded by new ghost animal friends, the poultrygeist learns how to be scary.

This graphic memoir follows author Alyssa Bermudez through her own seventh grade diary entries. As Alyssa copes with the usual middle school concerns, from friends to her divorced parents to being mistreated by kids at school, the novel accelerates toward 9/11, where Alyssa’s dad works in the World Trade Center.

In this creepy novel, Noelle learns her family’s new home houses the terrifying Smashed Man. Alongside her new friends, Noelle must figure out a way to defeat the Smashed Man for good.

In this middle grade thriller, Tia witnesses a murder outside her window, and the killer sees her. Though she’s determined to stay quiet and her friends and grandmother comfort her, the killer’s threats mean Tia can’t ignore it.

This book serves as an educational introduction to the Black Lives Matter movement. It retells how the organization’s founders came together as well as the stories of victims of police brutality such as Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and George Floyd, discussing systemic racism and the civil rights movement.

This beautiful picture book examines a question that the author herself asked when she was a child: Do you love me? Do you love me from the inside out? Do you love me from the outside in? The book continues to ask questions that I believe all young people ask themselves. Does their country love them? Does their country love them even when they stand in, stand up, and stand out?

One of the qualifications to be an American citizen is to be born on American soil, but did you know that a Supreme Court Case decided that? When American-born Wong Kim Ark returns home to San Francisco after a visit to China, he’s stopped and told he cannot enter because he isn’t American. After being imprisoned on a ship for months, Wong Kim Ark takes his case to the Supreme Court and argues any person born in America is an American citizen.

I loved this picture book in verse by Ibi Zoboi that is gorgeously illustrated by Loveis Wise. The book tells the journey of African descendants in America by connecting their history to the seven principles of Kwanzaa. This book is perfect to read aloud so young readers can deepen their understanding of African American history in relation to their own lives and current social justice movements.

This middle grade book in verse tells the story of Reha. At school she is the only Indian American student but at home she is surrounded by family, Indian culture, and customs. Reha feels especially estranged from her mother, who has high expectations for her. But when Amma gets sick, Reha knows she has to do everything she can to make her mom better, even if it means doing everything she can to be the perfect Indian daughter.

This incredible picture book won the Caldecott Medal as well as the Newbery Honor, and it’s no surprise because it’s a fantastic book. 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.

This sweet picture book follows Zahra, a helpful girl who begins to feel self-conscious about her generosity when her classmates tease her about it.

This picture book bursts with positivity and can-do optimism. It centers around Brayden Harrington, the young boy who came to realize his stutter is one of his greatest attributes, leading to speaking at the Democratic National Convention and at President Biden’s inauguration.

This picture book is a bright and energetic introduction to patterns. Nine kittens go on a boating adventure and stumble into a variety of surprises.

There’s something so satisfying about summer being when all the new kids’ horror and other spooky season works start hitting the shelves. This one is the third installment of Katherine Arden’s series that began with Small Spaces that finds Brian and his friends stranded on a haunted island.

This savvy mystery follows three friends, the Renegade Reporters, as they stumble upon a mystery about their school newsroom’s partnership with a media company infringing on student privacy.

Malian is visiting her beloved grandparents on a Wabanaki reservation when suddenly all travel shuts down. Her parents aren’t able to pick her up, so Malian stays where she is. Everyone is worried about the pandemic, but Malian knows how to keep her family and community safe: She protects her grandparents, and they protect her. And when Malsum, one of the dogs living on the rez, shows up at their door, Malian’s family knows that he’ll protect them too. This is a gorgeous novel-in-verse that belongs in the hands of every middle grade reader.

When New York City abruptly shut down in March 2020, the normally bustling streets transformed overnight. Author Brian Floca observed these changes in the city landscape and started painting what he saw. The paintings eventually became this gorgeous picture book honoring all the essential workers who kept the essentials operating so the rest of the city could shelter in place during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the pandemic hits New York City, nobody expects a little virus to change the whole world in such a big way. But when school closes to keep everyone safe, Shayla, Liam, Ai, and Ben struggle to adjust to life in quarantine. As time goes by, they discover they are not alone: their apartment building is full of people who need their help. Working together, they begin to see that there is power in numbers. When they cooperate, they can ease each other’s challenges and help their neighbors through tough times.

Meticulously researched, author Kate Messner conducted interviews with Dr. Fauci himself and recounts his Brooklyn beginnings through medical school and his challenging role working with seven US presidents to tackle some of the biggest public health challenges of the past fifty years, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Extensive back matter rounds out Dr. Fauci’s story with a timeline, recommended reading, a full spread of facts about vaccines and how they work, and Dr. Fauci’s own tips for future scientists.

This sweet and hopeful picture book was inspired by the multitude of rainbows found in the windows of homes around the world following the COVID-19 lockdown. The rainbows are reminders that despite the fact that we are separated by distance and might feel alone, we are all just on one end of a rainbow—connected by all that color and light, there is always something, or someone, waiting for us on the other side.