Book Finder

Rita Williams-Garcia tells the story of three sisters who travel to Oakland, California, in 1968 to meet the mother who abandoned them.

Readjusting to life in Brooklyn is tough after One Crazy Summer with their mother in California. Delphine and her sisters not only have to deal with their strict grandmother, their uncle has just returned from Vietnam a changed man, and their father has a new love interest. The 1960s come alive in this memorable novel sure to be embraced by those who know Delphine and her family as well as those just meeting them for the first time.

Even though they were born in different countries, Akilah and Victoria are true best friends. But Victoria has been acting strange ever since she returned from her summer in Nigeria, where she had a special coming-of-age ceremony. Why does proud Victoria, named for a queen, slouch at her desk and answer the teacher’s questions in a whisper? And why won’t she laugh with Akilah anymore?

The never-before-told story of how Numair Salmalín came to Tortall. In this first book of the Numair Chronicles, three student mages (Arram, Varice, Ozorne) are bound by fate and fated for trouble.

An engaging look at the many contributions of Frederick Douglass — including his work as a publisher, a diplomat to Haiti, a bank president, and a prolific writer. Chockful of quotes, excerpts from Douglass’s writing, and images that capture the atmosphere of the times.

Tanya Lee Stone deftly uses new research to illuminate the dramatic facts behind the 2013 film of the same name, focusing both on the girls captured on camera and many others. She examines barriers to education in depth—early child marriage and childbearing, slavery, sexual trafficking, gender discrimination, and poverty—and shows how removing these barriers means not only a better life for girls, but safer, healthier, and more prosperous communities.

Before Josh and Jordan Bell were streaking up and down the court, their father was learning his own moves. In this prequel to Newbery Medal winner The Crossover, Chuck Bell takes center stage, as readers get a glimpse of his childhood and how he became the jazz music worshiping, basketball star his sons look up to.

In this poetic memoir that’s nothing short of enchanting, Margarita Engle, the first Latina woman to receive a Newbery Honor, tells of growing up as a child of two cultures during the Cold War.

The journey begins at sea in 1766, with a boy named Billy Marvel. After surviving a shipwreck, he finds work in a London theatre. Nearly a century later, runaway Joseph Jervis seeks refuge with an uncle in London. Albert Nightingale’s strange, beautiful house captivates Joseph and leads him on a search for clues about the house, his family, and the past. A gripping adventure and an intriguing invitation to decipher how the two stories connect

In this powerful memoir told in free verse, Anderson delves into her past and issues a call to action for social justice.

Elliott engages poets from the past two centuries to create a chorus of voices celebrating the creativity, resilience, and courage of Black women and girls and pays tribute to victims of police brutality as well as the activists insisting that Black Lives Matter.

Summertime is filled with joy for a Black child―skateboarding and playing basketball―until his community is deeply wounded by a police shooting. As fall turns to winter and then spring, fear grows into anger, then pride and peace.

In 1991, during Cuba’s el período especial en tiempos de paz — the special period in times of peace — Liana and Amado find love after their severe hunger gives both courage to risk government retribution by skipping a summer of labor to seek food. 

Musician, playwright, and educator Amyra León takes us on a poetic journey through her childhood in Harlem, as she navigates the intricacies of foster care, mourning, self-love, and resilience. In her signature free-verse style, she invites us all to dream with abandon—and to recognize the privilege it is to dream at all.

Picked on at home, criticized for talking trash while beating boys at basketball, and always seen as less than her best friend, Skyy, a Black teenager in California, struggles to like and accept herself.

Sixteen-year-old Amal is convicted of a crime he didn’t commit and is sent to prison where despair and rage almost sink him as he tries to maintain his humanity and fight for the truth in a system designed to strip him of both.

This collection of narrative poetry explores a year in the life of twelve-year-old Güero, a freckled, red-headed, Mexican-American border kid, discovers the joy of writing poetry, thanks to his English teacher.

Poems of the Harlem Renaissance and new poems inspired by Harlem Renaissance poets and poetry combine to give voice to the experiences of Black life. 

Poet Sophia Thakur takes you on an intimate journey through love, loss, sacrifice, and self-discovery. In four parts—titled Grow, Wait, Break, and Grow Again—she shares her raw self and gives voice to experiences that connect people, inspiring readers to explore the tendencies of the heart.

In New Orleans’ Ninth Ward, twelve-year-old Lanesha, who can see spirits, and her adopted grandmother have no choice but to stay and weather the storm as Hurricane Katrina bears down upon them.

Thirteen-year-old Amari, a Black girl who has never stopped believing her missing brother, Quinton, is alive, gets an invitation to join the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs and join in the fight against an evil magician.

Following her grandmother’s death, Jez and her twin brother Jay turn eleven and get the opportunity to learn the root work that has been a part of their family’s Gullah Geechee culture for generations.