May is Jewish Heritage Month. Check out some of these titles to celebrate throughout the month!
Beautiful Yetta: the Yiddish Chicken by Daniel Pinkwater
The People’s Painter : How Ben Shahn Fought for Justice with Art by Cynthia Levinson
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Check out some books celebrating these cultures!
Check out the top circulating items during the first quarter of the year!
Early Readers
Picture Books
Chapter Books
Graphic Novels
Perfect for your budding environmentalist, these books celebrate the Earth and discuss how everyone can help take care of it!
Let’s Celebrate! In honor of Arab American Heritage Month, we put together a list of books for children. This booklist is intended to highlight Arabic culture, history, and authors.
Picture Books
Chapter Books
Books for Teens
April is National Poetry Month! Here are some books to get you started!
Happy Spring! Check out some some of our spring themed books for children!
Picture Books
Biographies
Chapter Books
Previous year’s list: 2021
Check out our lists of recommended picture books, chapter books, non-fiction, and biographies to celebrate Black History Month and beyond.
Picture Books
All Because You Matter by Tami Charles | Request this book
A lyrical, heart-lifting love letter to Black and Brown children everywhere reminds them how much they matter, that they have always mattered and they always will.
Black is a Rainbow Color by Angela Joy | Request this book
Red is a rainbow color. Green sits next to blue. Yellow, orange, violet, indigo, They are rainbow colors, too, but my color is black . . .And there’s no BLACK in rainbows. From the wheels on a bicycle to the robe on Thurgood Marshall’s back, Black surrounds our lives. It is a color to simply describe some of our favorite things, but it also evokes a deeper sentiment about the incredible people who helped change the world and a community that continues to grow and survive.
The Year We Learned to Fly by Jacqueline Woodson | Request this book
On a dreary, stuck-inside kind of day, a brother and sister heed their grandmother’s advice: “Use those beautiful and brilliant minds of yours. Lift your arms, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and believe in a thing. Somebody somewhere at some point was just as bored you are now.” And before they know it, their imaginations lift them up and out of their boredom. Then, on a day full of quarrels, it’s time for a trip outside their minds again, and they are able to leave their anger behind. This precious skill, their grandmother tells them, harkens back to the days long before they were born, when their ancestors showed the world the strength and resilience of their beautiful and brilliant minds.
The Electric Slide and Kai by Kelly J. Baptist | Request this book
Kai’s aunt is getting married, and everyone in the Donovan family is excited about the wedding … except Kai. The highlight of every Donovan occasion is dancing the electric slide – a groovy line dance with footwork that Kai can’t quite figure out. More than anything, he wants to prove that he can boogie with the rest of his family and earn a cool nickname from his granddad. Can Kai break through his nerves and break it down on the dance floor?
The Old Boat by Jarrett Pumphrey | Request this book
Together, boy and boat ride the shifting tides, catching wants and wishes until fate calls for a sea change. Brothers and collaborators Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey’s newest picture book is a masterfully crafted celebration of the natural world and tribute to the families we make and the homes that we nurture.
Chapter Books & Graphic Novels
Stuntboy, In the Meantime by Jason Reynolds | Request this title
Portico Reeves’ secret identity as Stuntboy allows him to use his superpower keep everybody safe, but when his superhero parents start fighting a lot he feels the responsibility to save them.
Simon B. Rhymin’ by Dwayne Reed with Ellien Holi | Request this book
Eleven-year-old Simon Barnes dreams of becoming a world-famous rapper that everyone calls Notorious D.O.G. But for now, he’s just a Chicago fifth grader who’s small for his age and afraid to use his voice.
From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks | Request this book
From debut author Janae Marks comes a captivating story full of heart, as one courageous girl questions assumptions, searches for the truth, and does what she believes is right–even in the face of great opposition.
Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson | Request this title
For as long as ZJ can remember, his dad has been everyone’s hero. As a charming, talented pro football star, he’s as beloved to the neighborhood kids he plays with as he is to his millions of adoring sports fans. But lately life at ZJ’s house is anything but charming. His dad is having trouble remembering things and seems to be angry all the time. ZJ’s mom explains it’s because of all the head injuries his dad sustained during his career. ZJ can understand that–but it doesn’t make the sting any less real when his own father forgets his name. As ZJ contemplates his new reality, he has to figure out how to hold on tight to family traditions and recollections of the glory days, all the while wondering what their past amounts to if his father can’t remember it. And most importantly, can those happy feelings ever be reclaimed when they are all so busy aching for the past?
Class Act by Jerry Craft | Request this title
Eighth grader Drew Ellis recognizes that he isn’t afforded the same opportunities, no matter how hard he works, that his privileged classmates at the Riverdale Academy Day School take for granted, and to make matters worse, Drew begins to feel as if his good friend Liam might be one of those privileged kids and is finding it hard not to withdraw, even as their mutual friend Jordan tries to keep their group of friends together.
Twins by Varian Johnson | Request this title
Maureen and Francine Carter are twins and best friends. They participate in the same clubs, enjoy the same foods, and are partners on all their school projects. But just before the girls start sixth grade, Francine becomes Fran — a girl who wants to join the chorus, run for class president, and dress in fashionable outfits that set her apart from Maureen. A girl who seems happy to share only two classes with her sister! Maureen and Francine are growing apart and there’s nothing Maureen can do to stop it. Are sisters really forever? Or will middle school change things for good?
Dragons in a Bag by Zetta Elliott | Request this title
In Brooklyn, nine-year-old Jax joins Ma, a curmudgeonly witch who lives in his building, on a quest to deliver three baby dragons to a magical world, and along the way discovers his true calling.
Non-Fiction & Biographies
Jump at the Sun: the True Life Tale of Unstoppable Storycatcher Zora Neale Hurston by Alicia Williams | Request this book
Zora was a girl who hankered for tales like bees for honey. Now, her mama always told her that if she wanted something, “to jump at de sun”, because even though you might not land quite that high, at least you’d get off the ground. So Zora jumped from place to place, from the porch of the general store where she listened to folktales, to Howard University, to Harlem. And everywhere she jumped, she shined sunlight on the tales most people hadn’t been bothered to listen to until Zora. The tales no one had written down until Zora. Tales on a whole culture of literature overlooked…until Zora. Until Zora jumped.
The power of her pen : the story of groundbreaking journalist Ethel Payne / written by Lesa Cline-Ransome | Request this book
Ethel Payne always had an ear for stories. Seeking truth, justice, and equality, Ethel followed stories from her school newspaper in Chicago to Japan during World War II. It even led her to the White House briefing room, where she broke barriers as the only black female journalist. Ethel wasn’t afraid to ask the tough questions of presidents, elected officials, or anyone else in charge, earning her the title, “First Lady of the Black Press.”
Shirley Chisholm Dared : the Story of the First Black Woman in Congress by Alicia D. Williams | Request this book
Meet Shirley, a little girl who asks way too many questions! After spending her early years on her grandparents’ farm in Barbados, she returns home to Brooklyn and immediately makes herself known. Shirley kicks butt in school; she breaks her mother’s curfew; she plays jazz piano instead of classical. And as a young adult, she fights against the injustice she sees around her, against women and black people. Soon she is running for state assembly…and winning in a landslide. Three years later, she is on the campaign trail again, as the first black woman to run for Congress. Her slogan? “Fighting Shirley Chisholm–Unbought and Unbossed!” Does she win? You bet she does.
The Highest Tribute : Thurgood Marshall’s Life, Leadership, and Legacy by Kekla Magoon | Request this book
Growing up in Baltimore, Thurgood Marshall could see that things weren’t fair. The laws said that Black and white people couldn’t use the same schools, parks, or water fountains. When Thurgood had to read the Constitution as punishment for a prank at school, his eyes were opened. It was clear to him that Jim Crow laws were wrong, and he was willing to do whatever it took to change them. His determination to make sure all Americans were treated equally led him to law school and then the NAACP, where he argued cases like Brown v. Board of Education in front of the Supreme Court. But to become a Justice on the highest court in the land, Thurgood had to make space for himself every step of the way.
Opening the Road : Victor Hugo Green and His Green Book by Keila V. Dawson
Request this book
In the late 1930s when segregation was legal and Black Americans couldn’t visit every establishment or travel everywhere they wanted to safely, a New Yorker named Victor Hugo Green decided to do something about it. Green wrote and published a guide that listed places where his fellow Black Americans could be safe in New York City. The guide sold like hot cakes! Soon customers started asking Green to make a guide to help them travel and vacation safely across the nation too. With the help of his mail carrier co-workers and the African American business community, Green’s guide allowed millions of African Americans to travel safely and enjoy traveling across the nation.
This list has been complied by our Youth Services Department. Note: Excerpts are taken from our LS2 PAC.
Previous lists: 2021
Check out some of our books for children that focus on Lunar New Year.
Playing with lanterns by Wang Yage | Request this book
In this cheerful book first published in China, readers are invited along with Zhao Di and her friends as they experience all the joy and excitement of this folk Chinese custom.
The Little Pigs and the Sweet Rice Cakes: a Story told in English and Chinese by Li Jian | Request this book
Told in a bilingual Chinese and English edition, this is the story of three little pigs whose appetites initially get the better of them. In a shared dream, they met an old man who tells them to deliver sweet rice cakes to him a week before New Year’s Eve. The next morning, they see some sweet rice cakes on their kitchen table. The three little pigs completely forget the old man and eat every bit of them. When their mother comes home, she is very angry to discover all the cakes gone. Seeing their mother unhappy, the three little pigs help her make more delicious sweet rice cakes.
Chinese New Year Colors by Rich Lo | Request this book
Hóng is the color of firecrackers! Jīn is the hue of lucky coins. Zŏng is the shade of sweet peanut puffs. Welcome to the festivities of the Chinese New Year, where symbolic gifts, foods, and objects come together in a celebration of beautiful colors.
Lunar New Year by Hannah Eliot | Request this book
Introduces lunar new year, describing the food, decorations, and activities of the holiday.
Mulan’s Lunar New Year by Natasha Yim | Request this book
It’s the Lunar New Year, and it happens to be Mulan’s favorite festival! There is a lot to do to prepare for this important celebration, and for the first time, Mulan is old enough to help out. But everything Mulan does seems to turn out wrong… Follow along with Mulan in this special Lunar New Year story that captures the unique sense of magic, imagination, and possibility that surrounds the holiday!
Goldy Luck and The Three Pandas by Natasha Yim | Request this title
One Chinese New Year, her mother sends Goldy Luck to the pandas next door with a plate of turnip cakes, but the pandas are out and disaster follows. Includes a recipe for turnip cakes and an explanation of Chinese New Year.
The Nian Monster by Andrea Wang | Request this title
Tong tong! The legendary Nian monster has returned at Chinese New Year. With horns, scales, and wide, wicked jaws, Nian is intent on devouring Shanghai, starting with Xingling! The old tricks to keep him away don’t work on Nian anymore, but Xingling is clever. Will her quick thinking be enough to save the city from the Nian Monster?
Sam and The Lucky Money by Karen Chinn | Request this title
Sam must decide how to spend the lucky money he’s received for Chinese New Year
Celebrate Chinese New Year by Carolyn Otto | Request this title
Children have never had so many reasons to learn how Chinese people everywhere ring in the new and ring out the old. As China takes its new place on the global stage, understanding Chinese culture and values becomes ever more essential to our next generation.
The Animals of Chinese New Year by Jen Sookfong Lee | Request this title
Drawing on the myth of the Chinese zodiac, The Animals of Chinese New Year follows twelve animals as they speed across a river, competing to represent the imminent new year in a race held by the Jade Emperor, the most powerful Chinese god. Each animal competes in its own unique way. The ox works hard, the tiger is brave, the dog smiles kindly, but who will win?
Mindy Kim and the Lunar New Year Parade by Lyla Lee | Request this title
Mindy is excited to go to the Lunar New Year parade in her new town with her father and her friend Sally.
The Year of The Rat by Grace Lin | Request this title
In the Chinese Year of the Rat, a young Taiwanese American girl faces many challenges: her best friend moves to California and a new boy comes to her school, she must find the courage to forge ahead with her dream of becoming a writer and illustrator, and she must learn to find the beauty in change.
*Book summaries are taken from our library catalog
