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The boy who wouldn't go to bed
Cooper, Helen
Not wanting to go to sleep, a little boy rides away in his car to find someone to stay up and play with him all night. As the determined little boy drives off, he encounters exciting things such as a lion and a parade of soldiers. After searching for someone to play with him, the little boy finds someone who is still awake.

Bird
Elliot, Zetta
Mehkai struggles with the challenges of life: death of his grandfather and his older brother's drug addition. He soon learns how to cope and manage his stress through drawing. In fact, drawing is an outlet for Bird's emotions and imagination. Mehkai learns the benefits of perseverance, hard work, and family.

Roy makes a car: Based on a story collected by Zora Neale Hurston
Lyons, Mary
Roy Tyle is known around town as the best mechanic in Florida. Roy makes it his mission to create a car that will be accident proof. No one in the town believes him, but Roy proves them wrong time and time again. Roy's creativity and perseverance leads to the making of the best cars in the area.

Hush harbor: Praying in secret
Evans, Freddi Williams
Simmy is both excited and nervous for his job as Scout during the community meeting. Simmy is excited because this means the elders trust him, but he is nervous because slaves are not supposed to gather and sing together. Simmy must be very careful and listen for the master during the meeting.

Yesterday I had the blues
Frame, Jean Ashford
A family explores the various emotions they face each day. Through the use of colors, the main character realizes that even with all the ups and downs of emotions, one color really matters- LOVE of family.

Say hey: A song of Willie Mays
Mandel, Peter
Willie Mays grows up in a time when black athletes were separate from white athletes in America. But due to Willie's baseball skills, the New York Giants recruit him. Willie breaks many baseball records because of his fast running and powerful hitting power.

Molasses man
May, Kathy L.
A young boy and his family make molasses every summer. This summer the sourghum turns into a recipe that the boy's Grandfather has perfected. The boy spends his summer days helping his family make molasses and playing outside during the cooking process. While some molasses is cooling, Mama and her sisters pour it into glass jars and set up a stand near the road for passers-by.

The bus ride
Miller, William
Sara stands up for justice on her city bus. Sara gets tired of sitting in the African American section of the bus. Sara does not undertsand why she does not have the same rights as the white Americans, so she takes a stand to change that law.

In my momma's kitchen
Nolen, Jerdine
A young girl's fondest memories happen in her momma's kitchen. Achievements, family, stories, cooking and love are all celebrated in the kitchen. Great-Aunt Caroline, corn-pudding time and nighttime serenades are a few of the special moments in this loving family.

Freedom river
Rappaort, Doreen
John Ripley shows courage and perseverence in Southern Ohio through his actions. John crosses the Ohio River into the slave state of Kentucky to help other African Americans escape to freedom. John listens to nature as he rows a slave family across the Ohio River to freedom along the Underground Railroad.

Bessie Smith and the night riders
Stauffacher, Sue
Emmarene always loved to listen to Blues music. When Bessie Smith comes to town, Emmarene can't wait to hear Bessie sing. Not everyone likes Bessie though. Emmarene and Bessie Smith have to stand up against people who tried to destroy their nights. And boy, could Bessie sing on stage and off!

The julia rockhound
Karwoski, Gail Langer
When a girl becomes interested in rocks, she becomes Julia the Rockhound. Julie learns how to dig for minerals and explain the wonder of crystal information from her Dad.

Animals are sleeping
Slade, Suzanne
Lyrical text provides fascinating information onnimals such as location, position, and duration of their sleep patterns on animals living in different habitats. Learn about the interesting sleeping habits of different animals that live on land, in water, and fly through the air.

I wish I had glasses like Rosa/ Quisiera tener lentes como Rosa
Heling, Kathryn & Hembrook, Deborah
Abby goes to elaborate and comical lengths to get glasses like Rosa. She realizes that she might have something that is just as desirable as the longed-for glasses. Abby gains appreciation for her own uniqueness.

One child, one seed: A south african counting book
Cave, Kathryn
Play a simple counting game. Watch a pumpkin grow. Follow young Nothando and discover the rhythms of her daily life in her South African village.

For you are a Kenyan child
Cunnane, Kelly
Follow a little Kenyan boy through his village on a typical but eventful day in Kenya. He learns an important lesson about listening to his elders as he visits with the neighbors in his village.

Jamela's dress
Daly, Niki
Jamela's mama has just bought some beautiful fabric for a new dress. While she's watching it dry outside in the South African air, Jamela wraps it around herself and starts parading down the street. Everyone is watching her, she is so proud. When she gets home, Jamela finds her mama very upset because her fabric is ruined. With the help of a friend, Jamela buys her mama more fabric. At this South African wedding, both Jamela and her mama are beautiful in their new dresses.

Lazy lion
Hadithi, Mwenye & Kennaway, Adrienne
Lazy lion orders everyone to build him a house, but he is not satisfied with it. When a big rain comes, all the other animals go into the house that was built for the lion to keep dry. This is why lions must roam the earth.

Creativity
Steptoe, John
Charles speaks English and Hector speaks Spanish. They learn that even though they speak different languages, they both come from African ancestors. Charles helps Hector adjust to life in the U.S. through fun activities.

Before John was a jazz giant: A song of John Coltrane
Weatherford, Carole Boston
Before John became a jazz giant, he loved music, singing, instruments, and the radio. The bustling of the south and the foundation of his church and family allows John to listen and create his own music.

River beds: Sleeping in the world's rivers
Karwoski, Gail Langer
Take an around-the-world boatride to learn how mammals sleep in or around ten of the world's major rivers. Row down the Mississippi and watch two river otters slip into a hollow tree, or look to the bank of the Bribane River as a platypus pops into a hole and disappears into a narrow tunnel.

The rainforest grew all around
Mitchell, Susan K.
Imaginations soar while following the circle of life in the rainforest. Children learn about the wide variety of creatures lurking in the jungle. Search each page to find unique rainforests with bugs and butterflies hiding in the illustrations.

ABC safari
Lee, Karen
Go on an around-the-world rhyming journey with animals, in different habitats, biomes, and geographic regions. From the cold tundra to the hot deserts and from the jungles of Africa to the high mountains, find the hidden safari boy and his pet parrot in each illustration.

If a dolphin were a fish
Wlodarski, Loran
A dolphin imagines that she is a fish, a turtle, a bird, an octopus, a shark, and a manatee. Learn how special she really is and how special each of her other sea animal friends are too.

Grandpa, is everything black bad?
Holman, Sandy Lynne
Montsho struggles with the dark color of his skin. Everything around him that is black is considered bad. Thankfully, Muntsho's grandfather teaches him to appreciate his black skin by telling him stories about his African heritage.

A child's day in a Ghanaian city
Provencal, Francis & McNamara, Catherine
Nii Kwei gets up with the sun, and at half past five, he's already hard at work chasing the chickens and sweeping the compound clean with his straw broom. As the city begins to wake up, he washes, changes into his school uniform, and sits down to chocolate milk and sandwiches for breakfast. Photographs capture the lively rhythms of West African daily life, and this delightful dawn-to-dusk journal will encourage young readers, wherever they live, to compare and contrast Nii Kwei's day with their own.

Recycle every day!
Wallace, Nancy Elizabeth
Through a poster contest at school, Minna and her family discover many ways they can recycle. Many of the other contestants' posters demonstrate ways to recycle, however Minna ultimately wins the contest through her poster that reminds everyone to re-re-remember, re-re-recycle every day.

My rows and piles of coins
Mollel, Tololwa M.
What would you buy if your mother gave you some money? Saruni wants a bicycle- a bicycle of his very own! Saruni saves his coins and works hard to help his mother. Unfortunately, Saruni is disappointed because he does not have enough to buy his very own bicycle. Where there is a will, there is a way, so Saruni finally gets a bicycle to help his mother to the Tanzanian market.

Buenas noches luna
Brown, Margaret Wise
A small rabbit is getting ready to go to bed. He says goodnight to everything he can see. Each page grows darker and darker until the rabbit falls asleep. (Written in Spanish)

Welcome dede!: An African naming ceremony
Onyefulu, Ifeoma
Amarlai has a new baby cousin and he can't wait for her to be given a name. A tradtional African name will tell people where she comes from and which child she is in the family.

In the time of the drums
Siegelson, K.
Raised by his grandmother Twi, a young boy named Mentu learns of the toils and tragedies of slavery and how one day he too will have to be strong in the cotton fields. As Mentu grows, Twi shares her talks of living in Africa through the use of drums. When Twi's spirit calls her home to Africa, Mentu's day to be strong arrives.

Meet Kofi, Maria and Sunita: Family life in Ghana, Peru and India
Simmons, Lesley Anne
Kofi, Maria, and Sunita come from Ghana, Peru, and India. They tell about traditions of their country, their school, and their family.

Gorilla doctors: Saving endangered great apes
Turner, Pamela
African mountain gorillas are fascinating creatures that have been studied for many years. African gorillas are presently endangered due to disease and human interaction. Join the journey as scientists race against time to save these gentle giants.

Count on your fingers African style
Zaslavsky, Claudia
This beautifully illustrated four color picture book takes children through the markets, showing traditional finger counting of various African people - the Maasai, the Kamba, and the Taita in Kenya, the Zulu of South Africa, and the Mende of Sierra Leone. This book examines the role that numbers play in creating a common language across cultural boundaries.

No! No! No!
Rockwell, Anne
It's been a terrible day and nothing has gone this young child's way. Fortunately, Mom knows just what to do and reads a bedtime story which helps the young boy fall asleep.

Things that go
Rockwell, Anne
Tractor trailers, convertibles, police cars, and tankers are some of the things that travel on the road. Food is delivered in some of these vehicles. Things that go in the air, in the city, in the yard, and in the park are also described. Can you ride a bicycle?

Turkey trouble
Silvano, Wendi
Turkey is in trouble. Bad trouble. The kind of trouble where it's Thanksgiving...and you're the main course! But Turkey has an idea- what if he doesn't look like a turkey? What if he looks like another animal instead? After many hilarious attempts, Turkey comes up with the perfect disguise to make this Thanksgiving the best ever!

Doctor De Soto goes to Africa
Steig, William
Dr. and Mrs. De Soto travel all the way to Africa to fix an elephant's tooth. When the elephant's enemy kidnaps Dr. De Soto, the elephant worries that Dr. De Soto will never get away.

Mufaro's beautiful daughters: An African tale
Steptoe, John
The king of Zimbabwe is choosing a new wife. Mufaro sends his two beautiful daughters to be considered. The main difference between the daughters is that one has a kind temperment and the other has a bad temper.

Mama Elizabeti
Strure-Bodeen, Stephanie
Elizabeti has been taking care of her rock doll, Eva, and is not worried when it comes time for her to take care of Obedi, her younger brother. Throughout the day, Elizabeti quickly finds out Obedi is a handful compared to her rock doll Eva, but is rewarded with Obedi's love at the end of a difficult day.

Babu's song
Stuve-Bodeen, Stephanie
Bernardi lives with his grandfather, Babu, who is mute and makes toys. Because they do not make much money, Bernardi can not afford to go to school in his native Tanzanian town. Bernardi wants to go to school and play soccer with the other children. Through the unconditional love of Babu, Bernardi learns that sacrifice leads to achieving the impossible dream.

Safari journal
Talbot, Hudson
Carey is a young boy who goes on vacation to Kenya with his aunt. While there he learns about the culture and all of the animals.

Meet the gizmos
Tocco, John V.
Pong, a young Chinese Gizmo, journeys to the International Space Station (ISS) for the first time. She is welcomed by Gizmos from other parts of the world, such as Russia, Africa and America. The other Pong is given a tour of the station while sharing the creative and imaginary world of the other Gizmos. The Gizmos do a fabulous job in working as a team to welcome Pong into her new space.

Why the bush fowl calls at sunrise
Tredgold, Margaret
In this folktale from Zimbabwe, a repeated sequence of inadvertent events between people, animals, and objects lead to the bush fowlメs eggs being crushed. The bush fowl is too sad to call the sun in the morning so the Great Spirit intervenes. As each participant is questioned by the Great Spirit, the sequence is repeated and deconstructed. Finally, the buzzing fly is restricted to saying only モBUZZヤ and the bush fowl promises to always call the sun in the morning.

Cool dog, school dog
Heiligman, Deborah
Tinka is a cool dog, a breaking-all-the-rules dog! A hall dog, a ball dog, a crash-into-the-wall dog! Join Tinka, a dandy, sandy Golden Retriever, as she unexpectedly visits her owner at school and helps his class learn to read.

I am eyes-nimacho
Ward, Leila
A young girl from Kenya wakes up one morning by saying Nimacho, which means I am awake or I am eyes in Swahilian. Her eyes lead her to observe brilliant things that appear in the African environment and landscape.

Genghis Khan
Demi
The author's interpretation of Genghis Khan's life is based upon both historical resources and Mongolian folklore.

Three names of me
Cummings, Mary
Ada is a Chinese American girl. Ada shares her experiences of being adopted and moving to a new country. She collects new names that melt into one compelling identity for her.

Stellaluna: A pop-up book and mobile
Cannon, Janell
After being separated from Mother Bat, Stellaluna falls into a nest of baby birds. The family of birds adopt Stellaluna as one of their own, while Stellaluna does her best to eat bugs without making faces, sleep during the night, and stop hanging upside down. In the end, Stellaluna rejoins her mother.

Clean your room, harvey moon!
Cummings, Pat
Harvey Moon's room is a mess. His mother makes him clean it up all day on Saturday and he must miss his favorite television shows. Although he was upset he had to clean, he feels a sense of accomplishment in the end.