Category: The Kids Are All Right

This is the companion to the bestselling Eyes That Kiss in the Corners, this one focusing on an Asian boy who realizes his eyes look different from those of his friends. When he talks to his dad, he learns that his eyes resemble those of the other men in his family, and he recognizes the strength and vision they all share.

In this beautiful, lyrical picture book Estrella helps her Tia Fortuna move from her Miami apartment to an assisted living facility. As they pack up her apartment, Tia Fortuna explains the significance of all of her most important things, all from her Jewish Cuban background.

Sofia’s talented family loves ballet, and even though Sofia’s own dancing skills can’t compete with her parents’, there’s more than dance that bonds them together. When her family hosts dancer friends from Cuba, Sofia learns they plan on defecting to the United States. But when she confides in one of her friends, Sofia realizes that their suburban community isn’t interested in “outsiders”, leading her to wonder how her own immigrant family is viewed.

When James and his younger sister Ava move from Texas to Oregon, James knows it’s not going to be any fun. But it’s even less fun than he expected when he starts getting notes from someone called “The Keeper”, who’s watching them and is likely behind the neighborhood’s long line of missing kids. But James has a history of practical jokes, so no one believes him, but he and Ava will need to find the Keeper before they become the next victims.

One of my favorite things to do is read about inventions and how they came to be. (I loved the book 99% Invisible City by Roman Mars and Kurt Kohlstedt!) In this fictionalized picture book of the inventor Garrett Morgan, we meet Garrett as a little boy with a head full of ideas on how to make life better for everyone. When he is hit by a car, his parents send him to the city where Garrett grows up to become a prominent business man and skilled inventor who produced the traffic signal, a gas mask, and others objects still used today.

I will buy any picture book that is illustrated by Ekua Holmes! In this stunning picture book biography, Heidi Tyline King and Ekua Holmes bring to life the story of MaVynee Betsch. As a young girl, MaVynee loved to swim. But segregation prevented her from going to any beach, so her grandfather bought a beach and named it American Beach and made it open to everyone. When MaVynee grew up, she traveled the world as an opera singer, but when her mom became ill, MaVynee returned home to care for her. Finding American Beach neglected, MaVynee was determined to restore her childhood beach to its former glory.

This beautiful book gave me chills from the very first page. The story begins in 1962 with eleven-year-old Elijah Cummings and other African American children protesting to integrate a city pool in Baltimore. The march inspired Elijah to pursue a career in law. With encouragement and sacrifice from his parents, he graduated at the top of his class and went on to be elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1983 and then to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996. He was a voice for people of color and spoke out to ensure that everyone was treated fairly and equally.

Kahlil Gibran grew up as a small, shy boy in Lebanon, a land of beautiful mountains and ancient trees. While he loved his country, Christians and Muslims clashed and one day his family lost their home and his father was jailed. It was no longer safe to stay in Lebanon, and Kahlil, his mother, and his three siblings took a ship to America. They settled in Boston where Kahlil saw divisions in the form of wealthy and poor. He began to draw and later to write, eventually becoming one of the most famous poets of all time.

I was captivated by this story of Francis Meilland, a cultivator of flowers at his family’s farm in France. He was endlessly fascinated by cross pollination and sought to create a beautiful rose. After years of experimentation and meticulous record keeping, he create a rosed like no other. But at the same time, World War II broke out, forcing him to make cuttings and send them all over the world. Not knowing whether the roses would make it with the global disruptions to shipping during the war, he waited in hope. At the same time, his family destroyed their flower farm in order to plant crops, burning all but a handful of their rose bushes. I loved this story of resilience and hope during a time of heartbreaking darkness.

This cute picture book encourages growth and positivity and is full of colorful florals and nature-themed art.

In this picture book, mermaid Kenzie begins cleaning up the ocean, enlisting other kids to help her. This also serves as a nice introduction to ocean conservation and encourages kids to get involved in protecting our oceans.

In this graphic reader, Geraldine Pu embarks on a new adventure, Picture Day. Though she loves her Cat Hat, Geraldine’s feelings about her own hair aren’t as positive, and there’s a rule against wearing hats for picture day. Now Geraldine must figure out how to appreciate her hair in time for her picure.

After accidentally setting fire to dry grass, seventh grader Gabe is assigned to community service helping people who were affected by the fire he started. At the same time, a young coyote named Rill, burned in the fire, now hides in a small cave. When the two discover each other, Gabe sets out to help her, beginning a journey of healing for them both.

In this middle-grade, a high school senior is transported back to seventh grade, and the moment he traces every bad thing in his life back to: the implosion of his friendship with his best friend, Ty. The two fell out over a girl in seventh grade, and when Mason finds himself back there, he’s determined to correct everything that’s gone wrong since then.

This delightful book is truly a love letter to Harlem, New York City. I loved this story of a combined, modern family. When Bo and her mom move in with her mom’s boyfriend and their (big!) family and (lots of!) pets, Bo isn’t sure there’s room for her anymore. Can Bo find where she belongs in this new family?

Sofía Acosta loves to dream up costumes. She takes comfort in her talent because unlike her parents, who danced under prima ballerina Alicia Alonso before immigrating to the suburbs of New York, Sofía is NOT a dancer. When the Acostas host their dancer friends from Cuba for a special performance with the American Ballet Theatre, Sofía finds out about the dancers’ secret plans to defect to the United States. When Sofía makes a serious mistake confiding this information to her best friend, it threatens to ruin everything. Can Sofía find the courage to make a scene and take a stand?

This is the second book in a series (if you haven’t already read it, check out Shirley and Jamila Save Their Summer!), and the art is gorgeous! In this new book, Jamila gets back into the swing of school rhythms while Shirley has a new mystery on her mind. Her archenemy Chuck is blackmailing kids all over school, and Shirley knows that she and Jamila can put a stop to it… which may involve breaking into Chuck’s house… 

This wonderful book is set during the summer of 1965 when Eden’s cousin from Mississippi comes to visit her in L.A., just as the Watts Riots erupt. But Winter is not just visiting to hang out, he wants to figure out what happened to his dad who disappeared ten years earlier from the Watts area of L.A. Their investigations lead them all over the city while also opening up a whole new understanding of their world.

This companion book to Dragon Pearl is another space opera inspired by Korean mythology, told from the point of view of a nonbinary tiger spirit. This middle grade fantasy, published by Rick Riordan’s imprint, follows Sebin, a young tiger spirit from the Juhwang Clan, who wants nothing more than to join the Thousand World Space Forces. But when he finds out that his uncle has been accused of treason, Sebin must clear his uncle’s name and restore order to his family.

This picture book celebrates the Civil Rights protest song with its lyrics and beautiful illustrations from Caldecott winner Bryan Collier. It depicts the ongoing fight for justice and combines it with the protests and demonstrations that preceded today’s social justice work.

If you, like me, were obsessed with Madeline (and even watched the movie on a loop for months on end), treat yourself to this cute book that celebrates love from one of children’s literature’s best characters.

In this cute middle grade, people pleaser June is forced to tell the truth and nothing but when she’s blessed by her fairy godmother. Suddenly June can’t help but be honest about her feelings, including how overwhelmed she is by everything going on at school and at home.

In this middle grade anthology, music’s most influential Black women are celebrated. Spanning genres and time periods, this book acknowledges the way these women used music to change the world, influencing listeners not only emotionally but socially and politically.

When young Misty discovers her love of dance through the ballet Coppélia – a story about a toymaker who devises a villainous plan to bring a doll to life – she is so captivated by the story that she decides to audition for the lead role, even though it’s only just her first dance class! But as she learns from her fellow bunheads, she makes wonderful friends and together they put together a production they will remember forever.

In 2019, Charlotte Nebres became the first Black dancer to be cast as Marie in the New York City Ballet’s production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker. This sweet autobiographical picture book tells the story of how her hard work led to starring as Marie as well as her holiday traditions.

This fantastic book delves into the lives of Black women in ballet and their dance journeys and how they’ve changed the landscape of American ballet from the early 20th century until today. This compilation includes stories of dozens of dancers, including Raven Wilkinson, Ebony Williams, Virginia Johnson, Nora Kimball-Mentzos, and many more.

This interactive board book with pull tabs is both beautifully illustrated and very sweet. Watch animals spin and fly and bustle from their dens in a riotous celebration of spring!

This wonderful children’s book is filled with tender illustrations and a lovely story about a boy who is waiting for his turn at Friday Assembly where they have a “Sharing Gifts” portion. I just loved this book, especially the ending. 🙂

This is a cute picture book about discovering more about where you’re from and learning to appreciate those different places. Growing up in Hawaii, Claire has never seen snow. With a school assignment that requires her to recreate it, her parents take her to Mauna Kea to see it, but she’s disappointed when it isn’t what she expected.

This sweet, call-and-response picture book explores all the ways, and all the reasons, people love one another. It’s meant to be read aloud by two people, exploring all the complexities and simplicities of love.

For those waiting for a sequel to Dragon Pearl, this is not it, but it is a companion novel introducing a new family, this one of tiger spirits. Juhwang Sebin is a nonbinary thirteen year old recruited into Space Forces Command just as their uncle’s accused of treason. Alongside new friends, Sebin struggles with the idea of their uncle’s guilt as they try to learn who sabotaged their ship.

This graphic novel adapts Kwame Alexander’s bestselling Booked, illustrated in striking black and white (with green accents) and telling the story of talented soccer star Nick Hall. Nick is coping with a difficult period in his life, compounded by his parents’ approaching separation, bullies at school, and others’ high expectations of him.

In this joyous middle-grade read that’s reminiscent of The Babysitter’s Club, Bo struggles with her new life and her new family. It’s always been just Bo and her Mum until it’s not. Now their pair has increased to eight, including her mom’s boyfriend, his daughter, a pair of twins and their parents, as well as a host of animals. Crammed together in a single brownstone, Bo begins to wonder if there’s a place for her.

This fun middle grade book follows seventh-grader Maya, now doing deliveries at her parents’ pizza shop. And it’s off to a bad start. She clashes with a rude customer, who turns out to be one of her new classmates, and after making a new friend who shares her passion in art, Maya’s parents won’t let her participate in an art contest because she has to work. Cue Maya and her new friends scheming up a plot to let her take part anyway.

This sweet book is all about food traditions. Shanté Keys’s grandma always makes the best food for New Year’s Day: fixed chitlins, baked ham, greens, and cornbread. But this year, she forgot the peas! It’s up to Shanté Keys to save the day and find some lucky peas!

I love this atypical New Year’s story. It’s Lunar New Year (this year it is on February 1st), a time when families come together for a wonderful feast. But gathering is difficult, and a father longs to be with his daughter who lives in a different country. As he imagines how his daughter is spending the festivities, he recalls fond memories of time spent with her and treasures that time in his heart.

This is the perfect book for young readers wondering about new year’s resolutions! Squirrel knows that it’s time for making resolutions, but what does a resolution mean? She travels around the forest looking for answers to this very important new year tradition.

This is a late arrival but perfect for the holidays, and is about the true story of Charlotte Nebres, the first dancer of color to play the lead in The Nutcracker. This lovely book follows Charlotte’s journey to the stage of her dreams, weaving it with the original story.

Now available in paperback is this classic picture book by Terry and Eric Fan. From his window William discovers that a tree has been shaped into a stunning owl. More topiaries appear, transforming their community long after the mysterious gardener has left.

In this sweet picture book, a child goes looking for love and finds that it’s actually everywhere. Even in the darkest of moments, there is still love to be found.

Now out in paperback is this fun and spooky adventure about two friends who accidentally stir evil spirits in their hometown. With their whole town at risk, Lucely and Syd team up with Syd’s witchy grandmother and her cat, to save the day and make everything right again.