Black History Month is amazing but we know that celebrating the black experience shouldn’t just last one month, it should go on all year long. That’s why we’re so excited to share some of our upcoming books that will keep the momentum from Black History Month going through to the end of the year!
We Shall Overcome by Bryan Collier
“We Shall Overcome” is one of the most recognizable anthems of the Civil Rights movement, widely performed at protests and rallies to promote nonviolent civil rights activism. Now, these inspirational, empowering, legendary lyrics are brought to life with the stirring, evocative, and breathtaking illustrations from Caldecott Honor recipient and nine-time Coretta Scott King Award winner Bryan Collier.
Because of You, John Lewis by Andrea Davis Pinkney with Illustrations by Keith Henry Brown
Ten-year-old Tybre Faw is obsessed with history and the civil rights movement, and he devours every book he can find on the subject. When he learns of Congressman John Lewis's harrowing and heroic march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in the fight for the right to vote, Tybre is determined to meet him.
Tybre's two grandmothers take him on the seven-hour drive to Selma. And as the two meet and become fast friends, Tybre joins Lewis for the annual walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge!
When John Lewis is laid to rest, Tybre is invited to read Lewis's favorite poem, "Invictus," at the funeral service. Pinkney weaves this story of a boy with a dream--with the story of a true-life hero (who himself was inspired by Martin Luther King when he was a boy). Both John Lewis and Martin Luther King, Jr. have left indelible marks on future generations. Will Tybre be next to carry the mantle?
Bright Brown Baby: A Treasury by Andrea Davis Pinkney with Illustrations by Brian Pinkney
Cuddle up with your little one, read aloud, and REPEAT: This gorgeous picture book treasury is sure to become your favorite storytime anthem. Dive into these five beautiful poems that celebrate the tender, cozy, early days between parent and child, and the exuberant joy of watching a brand-new life take shape. Warm, winsome, and welcoming illustrations from Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Award-winning illustrator Brian Pinkney exude joy and love on every page. Bouncing, rhythmic text from New York Times bestselling author Andrea Davis Pinkney rolls off the tongue and begs to be read aloud, in these poems that include "Count to Love," "Hey, Baby Girl!," and "Baby Boy, You are a Star."
Last Gate of the Emperor by Kwame Mbalia & Prince Joel Makonnen
Yared Heywat lives an isolated life in Addis Prime -- a hardscrabble city with rundown tech, lots of rules, and not much to do. His worrywart Uncle Moti and bionic lioness Besa are his only family... and his only friends.
Often in trouble for his thrill-seeking antics and wisecracking sense of humor, those same qualities make Yared a star player of the underground augmented reality game, The Hunt for Kaleb's Obelisk. But when a change in the game rules prompts Yared to log in with his real name, it triggers an attack that rocks the city. In the chaos, Uncle Moti disappears.
Suddenly, all the stories Yared's uncle told him as a young boy are coming to life, of kingdoms in the sky and city-razing monsters. And somehow Yared is at the center of them.
Together with Besa and the Ibis -- a game rival turned reluctant ally -- Yared must search for his uncle... and answers to his place in a forgotten, galaxy-spanning war.
Playing the Cards You're Dealt by Varian Johnson
Ten-year-old Anthony Joplin has made it to double digits! Which means he’s finally old enough to play in the spades tournament every Joplin Man before him seems to have won. So while Ant’s friends are stressing about fifth grade homework and girls, Ant only has one thing on his mind: how he’ll measure up to his father’s expectations at the card table. Then Ant’s best friend gets grounded, and he’s forced to find another spades partner. And Shirley, the new girl in his class, isn’t exactly what he has in mind. She talks a whole lot of trash — way more than his old partner. Plus, he’s not sure that his father wants him playing with a girl. But she’s smart and tough and pretty, and knows every card trick in the book. So Ant decides to join forces with Shirley–and keep his plans a secret. Only it turns out secrets are another Joplin Man tradition. And his father is hiding one so big it may tear their family apart…
Josephine Against the Sea by Shakirah Bourne
Ten-year-old Josephine Cadogan loves two things above all else:
1) Playing cricket
2) Scaring away her fisherman father’s new girlfriends
That’s why she’s desperate to make it onto her school’s cricket team. She’ll get to play her favorite sport AND make sure Daddy is too busy attending her matches to date. But then Coach Broomes throws a wrench into her plan and announces that girls can’t try out for the team. Frustrated and unsure where else to turn, Josephine makes a wish in front of the powerful Silk Cotton Tree. But instead of solving her problems, an even bigger one arises…
That afternoon, Daddy brings home a new catch, a beautiful woman named Mariss. And unlike the other girlfriends, this one doesn’t scare easily. Josephine can tell there’s something fishy about Mariss — she sings in a strange language, eats weird food, and seems to exert mysterious control over everyone she meets. And even worse, she seems to be turning Daddy against Josephine.
Josephine knows that Mariss isn’t what she seems… she might not even be human! But who’s going to believe her? Can Josephine convince her friends to help her and use her cricket skills to save Daddy from Mariss’s dark magic before it’s too late?
The Drowned Girl by India Hill Brown
Twelve-year-old Celeste knows she should be excited to spend two weeks at her grandparents' lake house with her brother, Owen, and their cousins Capri, Daisy, and Baby, but she's not. Bugs, bad cell reception, and the dark waters of the lake... no thanks. On top of that, she just failed her swim test and has no interest in trying again. She hates being in the water — it's terrifying. But her grandparents are strong believers in their family knowing how to swim, especially having grown up during the horrific and racist time of segregation at pools and because Grandma's sister died in the lake when they were kids. Grandpa insists on giving Celeste lessons while she's there.
But soon strange things start happening, like Celeste's cousins accusing her of waking them up in the middle of the night. But Celeste hasn't been awake during the night — in fact she's been having terrible nightmares about drowning. Things at the old house only get spookier until one evening when Celeste looks in the steamy mirror after a shower and sees her face, but twisted, different...Who is the girl in the mirror? And what does she want?
Miles Morales: Shock Waves by Justin A. Reynolds & Pablo Leon
Miles Morales is a normal school kid who happens to juggle school at Brooklyn Visions Academy while swinging through the streets of Brooklyn as Spider-Man. After a disastrous earthquake strikes his birthplace of Puerto Rico, Miles springs into action to help set up a fundraiser for the devastated island. But when a new student's father goes missing, Miles begins to make connections between the disappearance and a giant corporation sponsoring Mile's fundraiser. Who is behind the disappearance, and how does that relate to Spider-Man?
Rise to the Sun by Leah Johnson
Three days. Two girls. One life-changing music festival.
Toni is reeling in the wake of the loss of her roadie father and desperate to figure out where her life will go from here — so she's heading back to the festival that taught her to love music in a last ditch effort to rediscover her passion.
Olivia is a hopeless romantic whose heart has just taken a beating (again), and is beginning to believe that someone like her may never find "the one" — but the Farmland Music and Arts Festival is a chance to at least find a place where she fits.
When the two collide, it feels like kismet. But when something goes wrong and the festival is sent into a panic, Toni and Olivia find that they need each other, and the music, more than they ever imagined.
Simone Breaks all the Rules by Debbie Rigaud
Simone Thibodeaux's life is sealed in a boy-proof container.
Her strict Haitian immigrant parents enforce no-dating rules and curfews, and send Simone to an all-girls school. As for prom? Simone is allowed to go on one condition: her parents will select her date (a boy from a nice Haitian immigrant family, obviously).
Simone is desperate to avoid the humiliation of the set up — especially since she's crushing on a boy she knows her parents wouldn't approve of. With senior year coming to a close, Simone makes a decision. She and her fellow late-bloomer friends will create a Senior Year Bucket List of all the things they haven't had a chance to do. On the list: kissing a boy, sneaking out of the house, skipping class (gasp!), and, oh yeah — choosing your own prom date.
But as the list takes on a life of its own, things get more complicated than Simone expected. She'll have to discover which rules are worth breaking, and which will save her from heartbreak.
Things We Couldn't Say by Jay Coles
There's always been a hole in Gio's life. Not because he's into both guys and girls. Not because his father has some drinking issues. Not because his friends are always bringing him their drama. No, the hole in Gio's life takes the shape of his birth mom, who left Gio, his brother, and his father when Gio was nine years old. For eight years, he never heard a word from her… and now, just as he's started to get his life together, she's back.
It's hard for Gio to know what to do. Can he forgive her like she wants to be forgiven? Or should he tell her she lost her chance to be in his life? Complicating things further, Gio's started to hang out with David, a new guy on the basketball team. Are they friends? More than friends? At first, Gio's not sure… especially because he's not sure what he wants from anyone right now.
There are no easy answers to love — whether it's family love or friend love or romantic love. In Things We Couldn't Say, Jay Coles, acclaimed author of Tyler Johnson Was Here, shows us a guy trying to navigate love in all its ambiguity — hoping at the other end he'll be able to figure out who is and who he should be.
