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An American story
Alexander, Kwame
An African American story is an American story of slavery, brutal conditions, struggle, and oppression. Remember the American story of hard work, pride, and strength in the fight for liberty as Black people stand up and speak out while "holding history in one hand and clenching hope in the other".

We are here
Charles, Tami
In a journey of progress, love and, possibilities, this prose shows the music, art, speakers, and food that have celebrated African Americans and their impact in society. With the big hands and small hands that built the Black legacy, there are countless steps of heroes who have made a contribution to the world.


Crown: An ode to the fresh cut
Barnes, Derrick
A boy goes to the barbershop to get a haircut. As he sits there, he notices everyone around him, gaining confidence with each unique style. Once his haircut is complete, the boy feels ready to accomplish anything with a newfound conviction and trust in himself.

One million men and me
Lyons, Kelly Starling
A young high school girl goes with her father to a march on the United States capitol during a civil rights gathering. She is surrounded by "one million men" and she experiences pride as she and her father witness history in Washington, D.C.

Monster on the bus
Blance, Ellen // Cook, Ann
Join Monster and a little boy as they take a ride on a bus. While Monster and the little boy are enjoying looking at the sights, the bus suddenly stops. The people on the bus are scared, but soon realize a dog is in the way and refuses to move. The people, bus driver, and policeman try to push and chase the dog away, but he does not want to get out of the way. Luckily, Monster steps in and scares the dog away, so everyone cheers, gets on the bus, and goes to their important destinations.

The spider who never gave up
Flores, Travis
Sparkey the spider tries hard to overcome his inability to spin a web. With encouragement from his mom and his friends and a strong will to never give up, Sparkey finally achieves his goal of spinning the perfect web. Read about the real life struggle of Sparky, as he tries one medicine after another in hope of beating Cystic Fibrosis.

The goat lady
Bregoli, Jane
Two young children new to Lucy Little Road, help us reveal the simple yet important life of the goat lady; a life that many people in the town despise. Through the children's time spent helping the goat lady, they learn of her vast life experiences. It isn't until after the children's mother takes portraits of the goat lady, that the rest of the town see waht a truly wonderful person the goat lady is.

Shades of black:  A celebration of our children
Pinkey, Sandra L.
Common traits of African Americans are correlated with illuminating photographs. Traits such as skin color, hair texture, and eye color are described. Discover the diversity among the African American culture and how this culture is unique to others.

Elephant games and other playful poems to perform
Bagert, Brad
An entertaining and exciting array of poems cover many issues that children face. Gleeful elephants help explore child-friendly issues such as bullying, feelings, nutrition, parents, animals, dreams, school, pets, trouble-makers and sports. Entertaining illustrations and catchy poems invite the reader to continue exploring.

How the amazon queen fought the prince of Egypt
Bower, Tamara
The land of Khor was a peaceful place free of men, in which woman could live side by side in harmony. One day, Pedikhous, of Egpyt decides to test the strength of the women through various attacks. To his surprise the women are stronger and more determined than he ever imagined. Instead of fighting against them, de decides to live in peace and love beside them.

Leo: the little st. bernard
L'Hommediev, Dorthy K.
Leo wants to be a working dog for the monks at the Hospice. When they do not choose him, he decides to runaway to the Hospice. On his way up the mountain he encounters Angelena, a cashmere goat. Together they set out on a snowy and dangerous adventure.

A song for ba
Yee, Paul
A young, ambitious boy spends a lot of time with his grandfather learning how to sing and follow in the footsteps of his father who travels with a Chinese opera troupe. Wei, the little boy, loves to go to the opera and watch his father perform hoping one day, he too, will be a star. Through difficult times and financial loss, a young boy comes to the rescue of both his father and his cultural background.

Amelia to zora
Chin-Lee, Cynthia
Explore in an alphabet formula, biographies that examine different successes and triumphs of famous women in history from Amelia Earhart to Zora Neale.

Umbrella
Yashima, Taro
A little girl named Momo impatiently waits for a rainy day to use her brand new umbrella. When she finally uses her umbrella, she stands tall and carries it with pride because she now feels grown up.

A day's work
Bunting, Eve
Fransico takes his grandfather out to look for work. His grandfather does not speak English, so Fransico must translate. Fransico accepts a gardening job for his grandfather by telling the man he is a great gardener. When the man comes at the end of the day, he finds the job done incorrectly. Fransico's lie teaches him an invaluable lesson.

Lift every voice and sing
Johnsson, James Weldan
Lift every voice puts pictures to the African American National Anthem. The lyrics tell the story of Black people's past struggles and the hope that Blacks will continue to have towards their future.

Arthur's eyes
Brown, Marc
Arthur's friends tease him when he gets glasses. Soon other children get glasses, and Arthur learns to wear his glasses with pride.

Cinnamon and the April shower
Crane Johnson, Amy
An April shower frightens Cinnamon Bear, her new cub, and their woodland friends. Solomon Raven explains the importance of rain for animal and forest survival.

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!

My sister's wedding
Mkatshaw, Dumazile
Nhlanhla is getting married and her cousin, Priscilla, is going to sing at the ceremony. The day before the ceremony Priscilla loses her voice. Priscilla's family comes up with many different remedies, including eating raw eggs and drinking hot garlic. Upset, Priscilla cries over her lost voice and sits down on a box of pins! With a hearty scream, her voice returns and she can sing for the wedding.

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.

Something to tell the grandcows
Spinelli, Eileen
Hoping to have a wonderful adventure to tell her grandcows, Emmadine volunteers to go to the South Pole in 1933. Emmadine learns a lot of interesting facts about Antarctica. After being there for a while, Emmadine misses the other animals on the farm. When she returns home from her adventure, her grandcows are very impressed with her experiences on the Byrd Antarctic Expedition

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.

The day gogo went to vote: South africa, 1994
Batezat Sisulu, Elinor
Thembi and her beloved great-grandmother, who has not left the house for many years, go together to vote on the momentous day when black South Africans are allowed to vote for the first time.

Bintou's braids
Diouf, Sylviane
When Bintou, a little girl living in West Africa, finally gets her wish for braids, she discovers that what she dreamed for has been hers all along.


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.

Georgia's bones
Bryant, Jen
A young girl, Georgia, is fascinated with shapes, colors, and objects. Her family does not share nor comprehend her love for art, so they deem her different. With her strong will and determination, Georgia moves to New York to discover a life as an artist. The illustrations help the reader detail the beauty of her work as they take us through the life of Georgia O'Keffe.

Making room
Taylor, Joanne
John William Smith dedicated his life to helping others, especially people in need by inviting them into his very own home! His dedication to family is heart-warming and his marriage is strong. Readers will find a unique meaning of home in this story.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I was born about 10,000 years ago
Kellogg, Steven
A young boy tells some tall tales by claiming that he's been alive for 10,000 years. He explains how he ate part of the apple with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, how he married Queen Elizabeth, and how he flew to the moon. Even though he stretches the truth quite a bit, it's fun to learn about some important events in history.

A fine, fine school
Creech, Sharon
Mr. Keeene knows he has a fine school with great teachers and students. Since everyone is learning so much, he decides to have school on Saturdays, then Sundays, and then eventually all summer. Eventually, one student named Tillie tells Mr. Keene that they are not learning anything outside of school. Everyone is relieved when Mr. Keene announces the return of a normal school year.

Arthur's birthday party
Hoban, Lilliam
Arthur's determination to have the best birthday party and be the best all-around gymnast causes him to be inconsiderate of the feelings of his sister and friends. When Arthur forgets to be fair and have fun at the competition, his younger sister is quick to point out that each chimpanzee has his or her own special skill to be honored with a medal at the birthday competition.

The biggest pumpkin ever
Kroll, Steven
Two mice fall in love with the same pumpkin and each one waters it, fertilizes it, and protects it from the frost. The pumpkin grows into the biggest pumpkin ever, wins the town contest, and is made into a jack-o-lantern that can be seen for miles.

Rabbit moon
Rowe, John
Albert, an old rabbit, does not sleep well so he finds nightly comfort in gazing at the moon. One night, Albert does not see the moon, so he takes full responsibility for putting the moon back into the sky, once he finds it. Can Albert really do this?

The practical princess
Williams, Joy
A young princess is given three gifts. One of her gifts is common sense. In the beginning, Princess Bedelia saw this as insignificant, because all she needed was charm. After realizing that charm won't fight off a dragon and save her life, Bedelia values her common sense.

The garden of happiness
Tamar, Erika
A multicultural community works together to clear out an empty lot and turn it into a garden. Marisol plants a sunflower seed in the garden, and watches how it grows and changes through the seasons, contributing to The Garden of Happiness.

Happy to be nappy
Hooks, Bell
A whimsical rhythm of sweet jive jumps from watercolored illustrations on different pages to portray portraits of little girls who celebrate their African American culture. Hooray for the frizzy, fuzzy, nappy, twisty hair!Hooray for the sizzling semblance and fantastic flare that shines in every hair on every head. Beauty lies everywhere.

The ingredients of a q.t. pie
Sanders, Stephanie
What does it take to make a Q.T. Pie? Meet Quintessence T. Pie, or Q.T. Pie for short. Discover with Q.T. what ingredients make up her charming personality. Grace, twinkling eyes and self-respect are just a few of the things that make her so sweet. Every girl is a Q.T. Pie, no matter what her name is. What makes you a Q.T. Pie?

The christmas donkey
McClure, Gillian
When news arrives that everyone has to return to the place where they were born to pay tax, a local donkey dealer sells all of his donkeys, including Arrod, a wild and proud donkey. Arrod believes only a king is good enough to have him, but he leads the way to Bethlehem when Joseph, a poor carpenter, and his pregnant wife, Mary, buys him.

Pizza man
Pillar, Marjorie
The Pizza Man explains his daily duties and the procedure of making a pizza, from making the dough to assembling the pie to cleaning up at the end of the day.

Gregory, the noisiest and strangest boy in grangers grove
Bright, Robert
Gregory is the noisiest and strangest boy in Grangers Grove, and he knows it. One day he goes to his grandma's house for griddle cakes. All she needs is a few eggs, but Gregory is too busy showing off to listen.

Annie's gift
Medearis, Angela Shelf
All of Annie's family members have musical talents; however, Annie cannot find hers. She feels despair until her father points out that everyone has unique talents, and hers is writing poetry.

Osa's pride
Grifalconi, Ann
Osa has a lot of pride in herself and her father, but when her friends get tired of hearing about Osa all of the time, they don't stick around. Osa receives a wise lesson from her grandma that will set her straight.

White socks only
Coleman, Evelyn
A young African American girl walks into town and is faced with prejudice. The community proudly stands up for her and the rights of all African Americans.

Martha blah blah
Meddaugh, Susan
A dog Martha has the ability to speak when she eats alphabet soup. But when the soup company starts using only half the letters in the soup to save money, Martha can't say what she wants. Afraid of what will happen to her, Martha confronts the owner of the company who agrees to put all the letters back in.