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Where does the trail lead?
Albert, Burton
A boy explores Summertime Island and observes many things. At the end of the trail, he is back with his family.

The drinking gourd
Monjo, F.N.
Tom misbehaves in church and is sent home early. He goes to play in the barn and discovers runaway slaves. He and his father help them escape and Tom learns all about freedom through the Underground Railroad.

Molly bannaky
McGill, Alice
After spilling a bucket of milk and being brought before the court, Molly Walsh is sent from England to America as an indentured servant. After seven long years she gains her freedom, a farm of her own, and an African slave who becomes her husband.

Richard wright and the library card
Miller, William
Due to segregation in the 1920s, African Americans are not allowed to check out books from the library. Richard Wright discovers his passion which becomes a road to his freedom - books.

Tar beach
Ringgold, Faith
A young, 8 year old, African American girl dreams of flying above her Harlem home and having the many things she sees. She speaks of her wish to have money and liberation for her family and herself.

A picnic in october
Bunting, Eve
Tony and his extended family celebrate the birthday of the Statue of Liberty every October. They travel out to Libery Island to have a picnic and show their appreciation to the meaning the statue brings. Tony is embarrassed by his family's dedication, but in the end realizes the meaning of the statue.

Up and down on the merry-go-round
Martin, Bill Jr.//Archambault, John
A little girl describes her adventure on a merry-go-round using the sights and sounds around her.

Casper and the rainbow bird
Hyman, Robin//Hyman, Inge
One day, Casper flies all the way to town. Through a window, Casper sees Rainbow, a bright, colorful bird who lives in a cage in the city. Rainbow is afraid to leave the comfort of her cage, but Rainbow overcomes her fear and lives with Casper in the forest after Casper proves that he is a true friend.

A visit to the country
Johnson, Herschel
A young boy named Mike lives with his grandparents near the train tracks. One day he finds a bird and takes it home. However, he realizes that the bird must be let go so it can live in the country.

The blues of flats brown
Myers, Walter Dean
Flats the dog loved to play the blues on his guitar, but his master, A.J. Grubbs had another idea. He wanted Flats, and his friend Caleb, to become fighting dogs. Finally tired of Grubbs' abuse, Flats and Caleb run away. They decide to pursue Flats' musical career, but everywhere they go Grubbs finds them. In the end, their owner has a change of heart about Flats playing the blues.

Black cowboy, wild horses: A true story
Lester, Julius
Using his amazing tracking ability, black cowboy Bob Lemmons is accepted by a herd of wild horses allowing him to corral them. Based on a true story, the reader gets a glimpse of the struggles that faced the cowboys in the plains of the United States.

An ellis island christmas
Leighton, Maxine Rhea
Krysia and her family leave Poland around Christmas to meet their father, who is already living in New York. It is a long trip on land and by water, but they eventually land at Ellis Island where their father is waiting.

The unbreakable code
Hoagland Hunter, Sara
A young boy is insecure about moving away and leaving what is familiar to him. His grandfather tells about the time when he felt the same way and how he grew proud of his accomplishments.

Poppy's puppet
Gauch, Patricia Lee
Poppy is an amazing puppeteer who has the magical ability to listen to wood and carve beautiful marionettes. When he comes across the unique teakwood, Clarinda, he makes the mistake of not listening to what she wants to be. He wants her to be a ballerina, but that is not her passion. Will Poppy help this special marionette achieve her dream and allow her to blossom?

The red comb
Pico, Fernando
Vitita discovers a runaway slave under her porch. Vitita is determined to save the slave woman from the slave catcher. Vitita and sina Rosa furnish the woman with supplies through a mango tree. Vitita and sina Rosa come up with a plan to get the slave catcher out of town. After the slave catcher leaves, Vitita and sina Rosa introduce their new friend to the neighbors.

Goodbye little bird
Damjan, Mischa
Ben goes bird catching for the first time and catches a beautiful jay. Ben takes the bird home but it grows sick and lonely and Ben must set it free. The jay doesn't forget Ben and they remain life-long friends.

The tiny patient
Pederson, Judy
A little girl and her grandma find an injured bird, so they nurse it back to health. When the bird recovers, they let it go into the wild.

Butterfly house
Bunting, Eve
A young girl and her grandfather save a caterpillar and keep it while it goes through its changes. They build it a beautiful house and care for it until it turns into a butterfly. Although it was hard for her to let it go, she has mysterious visitors surprise her every spring, even when she grows up to be a grandmother herself.

Sweet clara and the freedom quilt
Hopkinson, Deborah
Claro makes a quilt that describes the path that slaves must take to walk to freedom. She runs away with Jack and gets to freedom because of the quilt.

A is for Africa
Owoo, Ifr
The country of Africa is explored from A to Z. Africa has a rich culture, many customs, and hardworking people that have lasted throughout history.

The invisible princess
Ringgold, Faith
Mama and Papa Love are two of Captain Pepper's slaves. They are going to have a baby, but they fear for it's life. With the help of the Powers of Nature, their baby is saved. For years Mama and Papa Love live peacefully until Captain Pepper threatens their child once again. By asking for help from the Powers of Nature, the slaves are able to live happily and peacefully with out any fear of Captain Pepper.

Wingfin and topple
Valens, Evans
Topple, the long-finned herring, learns that his difference is actually a blessing. He learns from another long-finned herring that he can fly, and in turn his seemingly unlucky fins save his life.

The wagon
Johnston, Tony
A slave boy grows up on a plantation with his family. He hates being a slave and wishes that he could be free. Soon the war comes and President Lincoln sets the slaves free. The boy and his family celebrate as they leave the plantation in the wagon they built.

More than anything else
Bradby, Marie
Booker and all the other African Americans have been set free. Money is tight and food is scarce, but the one thing that Booker cares most about is learning to read. His mother gives him an alphabet book, so he seeks the help of a man who knows how to read.


Yertle the turtle
Seuss, Dr.
Yertle the turtle is the king of all turtles and everything that he can see. In order to see more things, therefore becoming more powerful, he would stack turtles to stand on. Finally, the stack of turtles got so high that Yertle came crashing down and set all the other turtles free.

Kite flier
Haseley, Dennis
A young man leaves home, marries, and begins to fly kites. He teaches his son the joy of kite flying, and with each changing event in their lives, a new kite is launched. When the son wants to travel, too, they make a very symbolic kite for both of them.

Lemon whip
Razvan
A cake and a lemon escape from a refrigerator to explore the world together. They see many things and decide to travel over land and sea together, forever.

Two tickets to freedom
Freedman, Florance
A true story of Ellen and William Craft, two slaves, who run away and try to find freedom.

Return of the shadows
Baruffi, Andrea
Free-spirited shadows leave their maker to roam the world. They eventually grow lonely and return to where they belong.

The big box
Morrison, Toni//Morrison, Slade
Patty, Mickey, and Liza Sue just can't handle their freedom. The things they do frighten the adults around them. The adults decide to put them in a big brown box because they care about the youngsters. The children will have everything they need, except their freedom. Isn't that the one thing children need?

The velveteen rabbit
Bianco, Margery Williams
A stuffed rabbit searches for his life, yearning to be free and real. He reaches his destiny with the help of a few friends.

Petunia, I love you
Duvoisin, Roger
Raccoon hopes to eat Petunia for a goose dinner, but while walking in the forest, they end up as good friends.

I have heard of a land
Thomas, Joyce Carol
Moving across country must have been very hard. Pioneers often picked up their belongings and moved on toward a common goal: starting a new life!

Barefoot: Escape on the underground railroad
Edwards, Pamela Duncan
A boy runs along the pathway of the Underground Railroad until he needs to take a rest. While he is resting, his pursuers are getting closer. They get too close and the boy can not run from his hiding place. Is he bound to be captured or can someone or something help him?

The other side
Woodson, Jacqueline
A fence not only divides two properties -- it segregates two families because of their different cultures. Initial fears from the parents cause them to set rules that will forbid the friendship of their young daughters. Little did they know that their daughters would break the barrier as they climbed the fence together to see the world as it should be, not as it is.

Starring mirette and bellini
McCully, Emily Arnold
Young Mirette and the Great Bellini are high wire partners in Paris. While performing on a tour of Europe, they visit Russia where the people are not free. Bellini speaks to them about freedom during their act and is arrested. Then it is up to Mirette to be brave and rescue him from prison.

A. lincoln and me
Borden, Louise
A young boy discovers that he shares a birthday on the same day as Abraham Lincoln's. Learn how many other common characteristics a boy shares with a past president.

Peacebound trains
Balgassi, Haemi
Sumi, a young Korean girl, lives with her grandmother when her mother goes off to the army. Sumi watches the train go by each day, wishing her mother would come home soon. The train reminds her grandmother of the days of war when she had to leave her own husband.

The roman twins
Gerrard, Roy
Maximus and his twin sister Vanilla are slaves to the cruel master Slobbus Pompius. They run away when Slobbus buys Polydox the horse then quickly decides to kill him. Maximus and Vanilla go through a chariot race and an invasion of Rome before they finally gain their freedom.

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.

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.

The red piano
Leblanc-Barroux, Andre
A young pianist is sent to a re-education camp in China. She lives for her secretive two hours of music after a long day's work. Her parents managed to send a piano to Mother Han's house and she manages to smuggle music in notebooks. One night the pianist is caught at the piano, forcing her to live through an extended-re-education while her love and talent for music are challenged.

The alphabet tree
Lionni, Leo
The alphabet tree is full of letters. After the storm, all the letters grouped together because they were afraid. A bug and a caterpillar teach teamwork so the letters can say something important.

To be a drum
Coleman, Evelyn
Daddy Wes whispers to his two young children about the history of Africans forced into slavery and how the pulse of the drum has moved through them over time. Daddy Wes promises his children that as long as they can hear the heartbeat of the earth, they will be free.

The old Africa
Lester, Julius
An elderly slave uses the power of his mind to ease the suffering of his fellow slaves and eventually lead them back to Africa

Marsupial Sue
Lithgow, John
Marsupial Sue is not a happy kangaroo. She does not enjoy the things kangaroos do. Marsupial Sue decides to go explore and find the place where she belongs. She tries to fit in with many other groups of animals. She finally discovers the place where she is happiest.

The patchwork path: A quilt map to freedom
Stroud, Bettye
Hannah and her father are slaves who decide to escape to freedom. They use the patterns in the quilt made by her mother, who passed away, to follow the Underground Railroad.

A sweet smell of roses
Johnson, Angela
One morning, after a night of rain, Minnie and her sister sneak out of the house to join many men and women to march for freedom and equality. When they arrive at the beginning of the march, the girls walk with many others keeping their eyes straight ahead and their feet steady. Despite the criticism and yells from people standing by, the girls continue to march. As the day passes, more people join the march to where Dr. Martin Luther King gives his famous speech about peace, love, and equality for all.

Memorial day surprise
Golding, Theresa Martin
Marco and his mother are off to see the Memorial Day parade! Today, mother is in a hurry because she has a special surprise for Marco. She is in such a hurry that they don't have time to see Marco's grandfather. Once they reach the parade, Marco sees his two best friends which he believes is the surprise. Yet, they are not the surprise his mother has in store for him. Neither is the marching band, fire engine, Statue of Liberty, or candy. Marco could never imagine the surprise in store for him at the end of the parade!