Africa Is Not A Country

BY MARGY BURNS KNIGHT, MARK MELNICOVE, ANNE SIBLEY O'BRIEN
The stories of a Childs life in 53 African countries is briefly explored, from the harshness of life as a refugee in Rwanda to watching TV in S Africa. A good introduction to another world outside most young Americans experience. Lots of information and a nice book, but you may need to guide the young reader as the text romps through countries -highlighted in Capitals in the text - without headings or chapters on areas or countries.

First Avenue 2000 39 PP. Paper

$9.95 (in stock)

Ain't Nobody A Stranger To Me

BY ANNE GRIFALCONI, ILLUSTRATED BY JERRY PINKNEY
Two Caldecott Honor recipients bring you the incredible journey of one man, as he recounts the story of his passage on the Underground Railroad to his granddaughter. Although he and his family found troubles during their escape, he found that folks, black & white, "helped lift us up when we was down." How, then, could he ever turn his back on another human being? "He talks to her of slavery times, when he carried apple seeds in his pocket and dreamed of planting them in his own soil. Then he escaped with his wife and baby (the grandchild's mama), and he describes how a brave white man, Quaker James Stanton, helped them cross the Ohio River to freedom. ..." - Hazel Rochman

Jump at the Sun 2007 32 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (in stock)

All Kinds Of Families

BY MARY ANN HOBERMAN, MARC BOUTAVANT
In rhyme Mary Ann Hoberman shows readers that families, large and small, are all around us. From celery stalks to bottle caps, buttons, and rings, the objects we group together form families, just like the ones we are a part of. And, as we grow up, our families grow, too. Mary Ann Hoberman gives readers a sense of belonging in this all-inclusive celebration of families and our role in them.

Little Brown 2009 40 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (in stock)

All The World

BY LIZ GARTON SCANLON, ILLUSTRATED BY MARLA FRAZEE
With "All The World", Liz Scanlon and Marla Frazee have created a children's book whose every page seems bigger than the books 11x11 dimensions. Wonderfully spacious and full of effortless detail, Frazee's illustrations perfectly compliment Scanlon's rhythmically paced lyrical text. The story follows a family in a charming beachside community through a peacefully busy day. With very few words, the reader really does get a sense of all the world, from the big to little, personal to interpersonal, and the interconnectedness of the whole sha-bang. As the inside jacket says, "All the world is here. It is there. It is everywhere. All the world is right where you are. Now."

Beach Lane Books 2009 38 PP. Cloth

$17.99 (in stock)

And Tango Makes Three

BY JUSTIN RICHARDSON AND PETER PARNALL, ILLUSTRATED BY HENRY COLE
"Tango has two daddies in this heartwarming tale, inspired by actual events in New York's Central Park Zoo. Two male penguins, Roy and Silo, 'did everything together. They bowed to each other....They sang to each other. And swam together. Wherever Roy went, Silo went too....Their keeper... thought to himself, 'They must be in love.' Cole's endearing watercolors follow the twosome as they frolic affectionately...When the keeper discovers an egg that needs tending, he gives it to Roy and Silo, who hatch and raise the female. The keeper says, 'We'll call her Tango, because it takes two to make a Tango.'" - Publishers Weekly

Simon & Schuster 2005 32 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (out of stock but can be backordered)

As Good As Anybody

Martin Luther King Jr. And Abraham Joshua Heschel's Amazing March Toward Freedom

BY RICHARD MICHELSON AND RAUL COLON
Aimed at children grades 2-5, but enjoyable for kids of all ages, As Good As Anybody is an articulately written and beautifully illustrated book. Michelson draws meaningful parallels between the childhoods of Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Joshua Heschel while Colon's rich hues evoke them effortlessly. King and Heschel's powerful and important friendship is the books centerpiece and it provides children with a good introduction to the civil rights movement.

Knopf 2008 38 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (in stock)

The Beatitudes

From Slavery To Civil Rights

BY CAROLE BOSTON WEATHERFORD
This poem draws on the spirit of the beatitudes to tell the story of African Americans who struggled for their rights, from the time of slavery to the election of President Barack Obama. Full-page illustrations.

Eerdmans Books for Young Readers-Eerdmans Publishi 2009 36 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (in stock)

Beatrice's Goat

BY PAGE MCBRIER, ILLUSTRATED BY LORI LOHSTOETER
"An impoverished family begins to flourish after receiving a special gift - of the four-legged variety - in this uplifting picture book set in western Uganda. Beatrice longs to attend school with other village children, but instead she must tend her five younger siblings and help her mother in the fields. Everything starts to change, however, when Beatrice and her family receive a goat... With the goat's bounty, the family soon has enough money to send Beatrice to school. McBrier's tale, inspired by actual events, succeeds in demonstrating the positive ripple effect of the efforts of [the Heifer Project]." - Publishers Weekly

Simon & Schuster 2004 32 PP. Paper

$7.99 (out of stock but can be backordered)

Before John Was A Jazz Giant

A Song Of John Coltrane

BY CAROLE BOSTON WEATHERHEAD
Young John Coltrane was all ears. And there was a lot to hear growing up in the South in the 1930s: preachers praying, music on the radio, the bustling of the household. These vivid noises shaped John's own sound as a musician. Carole Boston Weatherford and Sean Qualls have composed an amazingly rich hymn to the childhood of jazz legend John Coltrane. Ages 4-8.

Henry Holt 2008 32 PP. Cloth

$16.95 (in stock)

Bein' With You This Way

BY W. NIKOLA-LISA, MICHAEL BRYANT
In this rhythmic and rhyming story children notice the differences between people, but focus on the similarities.

Lee&Low Books 1994 27 PP. Paper

$8.95 (out of stock but can be backordered)

The Best Beekeeper Of Lalibela

A Tale From Africa

BY CHRISTINA KESSLER, LEONARD JENKINS
Long ago in the mountains of Ethiopia, bees arrived in Lalibela, and people poured in to buy their honey. A young girl, Almaz vows her honey will be the best of all. The current beekeepers laugh her away and tell her it's men's work. Determined to prove them wrong, she can barely climb the trees to reach the hives. The men think she's learned her lesson, but they don't know Almaz. In this spirited text by Cristina Kessler perseverance is the key to achieving one's dreams. Ages 4-8.

Holiday House 2006 32 PP. Cloth

$16.95 (out of stock but can be backordered)

Bird

BY ZETTA ELLIOTT, SHADRA STRICKLAND
Young Mekhai, better known as Bird, loves to draw. With drawings, he can erase the things that don't turn out right. In real life, problems aren't so easily fixed. As Bird struggles to understand the death of his beloved grandfather and his older brother's drug addiction, he escapes into his art. In time, with the help of his grandfather's friend, Bird finds his own special somethin' and wings to fly. Told with spare grace, Bird is a touching look at a young boy coping with real-life troubles. Readers will be heartened by Bird s quiet resilience, and moved by the healing power of putting pencil to paper.

Lee and Low 2008 48 PP. Cloth

$19.95 (in stock)

The Butterfly

BY PATRICIA POLACCO
Ever since the Nazis marched into Moniques small French village, terrorizing it, nothing surprises her, until the night Monique encounters the little ghost sitting at the end of her bed. She turns out to be a girl named Sevrine, who has been hiding from the Nazis in Moniques basement. Playing after dark, the two become friends, until, in a terrifying moment, they are discovered, sending both of their families into a nighttime flight.

Penquin 2009 32 PP. Paper

$7.99 (in stock)

Chicken Sunday

BY PATRICIA POLACCO
After being initiated into a neighbor's family by a solemn backyard ceremony, a young Russian American girl and her African American brothers determine to buy their gramma Eula a beautiful Easter hat. But their good intentions are misunderstood, until they discover just the right way to pay for the hat that Eula's had her eye on. A loving family story woven from the author's childhood.

Penguin 1998 32 PP. Paper

$7.99 (in stock)

Coretta Scott

BY NTOZAKE SHANGE
A poetic retelling of part of the life of Coretta Scott (King) who with her husband agitated for Civil Rights and an end to legalized racism. Full page painted illustrations.

HarperCollins 29 PP. Cloth

$17.99 (in stock)

Cousin Ann's Stories For Children

With Color Illustrations By Stevie French

BY ANN PRESTON, EDITED BY RICHARD BEARDS
Ann Preston (1813-1872) is best known as a medical pioneer Quaker activist. Though Cousin Ann's Stories for Children is 162 years old, it still speaks to contemporary concerns. In its address "To My Little Readers" she explains, "I thought I would write a little book, and that would be a good way to speak with you, though I am far away." What Cousin Ann speaks of is eating healthily, avoiding tobacco, abhorring slavery, treating others generously and honestly as well as appreciating the bounty and beauty of God's creation. Edited by Richard Beards of Temple University specializing in Victorian Studies and Children's Literature and Folklore . One of the new Illustrations shown here.

Inner Light 2011 40 PP Paper

$12.00 (in stock)

The Dandelion Seed

BY JOSEPH ANTHONY & CHRIS ARBO
The humble dandelion. By roadside, mountainside, in flower beds, lawns and woods it flowers every month of the year throughout the world, a fitting symbol of life. Its journey is a bit like our journey, filled with challenge, wonder and beauty. This popular, simple book is beautiful and touching.

Dawn Publications 1997 32 PP. Paper

$8.95 (in stock)

Desmond And The Very Mean Word

BY DESMOND TUTU AND DOUGLAS CARLTON ABRAMS
Based on an actual event in the South African childhood of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, this colorfully illustrated book tells a story of learning to forgive. Appropriate for ages 6-9, this book is also Tutu's tribute to Father Trevor Huddleston, the cleric who advised him and helped him learn to overcome his anger and work for a world in which love can win over hate.

Candlewick Press 2012 32 PP. Cloth

$15.99 (in stock)

The Earth Book

Includes Go Green Poster!

BY TODD PARR
Todd Parr explores the important subject of environmental protection and conservation in this eco-friendly picture book. Featuring a circular die-cut Earth on the cover, and printed entirely with recycled materials and nontoxic soy inks, this book includes lots of easy, smart ideas on how we can all work together to help the Earth from planting a tree and using both sides of the paper, to saving energy and reusing old things in new ways. The book includes an interior gatefold with a poster with tips on how kids can "go green" everyday.

Little, Brown 2009 32 PP Cloth

$9.99 (out of stock but can be backordered)

Eight Days

A Story Of Haiti

BY EDWIDGE DANTICAT, ALIX DELINOIS
While Junior is trapped for 8 days beneath his collapsed house after an earthquake, he uses his imagination for comfort. Drawing on beautiful, everyday-life memories, Junior paints a sparkling picture of Haiti for each of those days - flying kites with his best friend or racing his sister around St. Marc's Square--helping him through the tragedy until he is finally rescued. Love and hope dance across each page granting us a way to talk about resilience as a family, a classroom, or a friend.

Scholastic 2010 32 PP. Paper

$17.99 (out of stock but can be backordered)

Emma's Poem

The Voice Of The Statue Of Liberty

BY LINDA GLASER, CLAIRE NIVOLA
"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free"...Who wrote these words? And why? In 1883, Emma Lazarus, deeply moved by an influx of immigrants from Eastern Europe, wrote a sonnet that was to give voice to the Statue of Liberty. Originally a gift from France to celebrate our shared national struggles for liberty, the Statue, thanks to Emma's poem, slowly came to shape our hearts, defining us for that time at least as a nation that welcomes and gives refuge to those who come to our shores.

Houghton Mifflin 2010 32 PP. Cloth

$17.00 (in stock)

Encounter

BY JANE YOLEN
When Christopher Columbus landed on the island of San Salvador in 1492, what he discovered were the Taino Indians. Told from a young Taino boy's point of view, this is a story of how the boy tried to warn his people against welcoming the strangers, who seemed more interested in golden ornaments than friendship. Years later the boy, now an old man, looks back at the destruction of his people and their culture by the colonizers.

Voyager Books 1992 32 PP. Paper

$7.00 (out of stock but can be backordered)

F Is For Fiesta

BY SUSAN MIDDLETON ELYA
This rhyming alphabet book follows the Spanish alphabet, telling the story of a birthday party, while introducing the letters of the alphabet with Spanish words. D is for dulces to give to each guest. E is for espejo. You're looking your best.

p, G.P. Putnam's Sons. 2011 32 PP. Cloth

$12.99 (out of stock but can be backordered)

Freedom On The Menu

The Greensboro Sit-ins

BY CAROLE BOSTON WEATHERFORD, ILLUSTRATED BY JEROME LAGARRIGUE
When four courageous black teens sat down at a lunch counter in the segregated South of 1960, the reverberations were felt both far beyond and close to home. This insightful story offers a child's-eye view of this seminal event in the American Civil Rights Movement. Connie is used to the signs and customs that have let her drink only from certain water fountains and which bar her from local pools and some stores, but still . . . she'd love to sit at the lunch counter, just like she's seen other girls do. Showing how an ordinary family becomes involved in the great and personal cause of their times, it's a tale that invites everyone to celebrate our country's everyday heroes, of all ages.

Penguin 2005 32 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (in stock)

The Gift

BY CAROL ANN DUFFY, ROB RYAN
The talents of Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and papercut artist Rob Ryan combine to present the story of a girl's journey through life and the desires that shape it. With a timeless magic, The Gift speaks to everyone who wonders about the mysteries that lie at the heart of the human experience. This lyrical text about life, love and art is accompanied by stunning papercut illustrations portraying the cycle of life in a subtle, accessible way while exploring themes of birth, death, love and the importance of family and friends.

Barefoot 2010 32 PP. Cloth

$16.99 (out of stock but can be backordered)

The Girl Who Drew A Phoenix

BY DEMI
One day a young girl named Feng Huang finds a phoenix feather that has fallen from the sky. When she tries to draw the magical bird and share her inspiration, no one is able to tell what it is. Luckily for Feng Huang, the Queen Phoenix sees her troubles and swoops down from the heavens to offer her help. A phoenix's powers are not easily revealed, however, and Feng Huang embarks on a journey of thought, wonder, and self-discovery. Wisdom, Clear Sight, Equality, Generosity, and Right Judgment are worthy qualities indeed, but Feng Huang finds that they are only truly powerful when shared.

Margaret McElderry 2008 52 PP. Cloth

$21.99 (in stock)

Goal!

BY MINA JAVAHERBIN
In a dusty South African township, Ajani and his friends have earned a brand new, federation-size soccer ball. But when a crew of bullies tries to steal their ball, will Ajani and his friends be able to beat them at their own game? This story, recommended for grades K-3, celebrates the strength that comes from friendship, the resilient spirit of children, and the unifying power of soccer in this evocative and moving tribute to the world's most popular team sport.

Candlewick 2010 32 PP. Paper

$6.99 (in stock)

A Good Night For Freedom

BY BARBARA OLENYIK-MORROW, ILLUSTRATED BY LEONARD JENKINS
Hallie discovers two runaway slaves hiding in Levi Coffin's house and must choose between protecting herself and her family or helping the two strangers she has just met. Ages 6-9.

Holiday House 2004 23 PP. Cloth

$16.95 (in stock)

Grandmama's Pride

BY BECKY BIRTHA, ILLUSTRATED BY COLIN BOOTMAN
Every summer, Mama, Sister, and Sarah Marie take the bus down south to visit Grandmama. The three of them sit in the back of the bus, because, as Mama says, it is the best seat Throughout the summer, Aunt Maria teaches Sarah Marie how to read. Then Sarah Marie notices signs in town she hadn't been able to read before, like the one on the bathroom door that says, "White Women" and another that says "Colored Women." Sarah Marie faces a hard realization about the segregated South. But in the fall she reads about events happening in places like Clinton, Tennessee, and Montgomery, Alabama. And by the next summer, when they go back to visit Grandmama, they all sit in the front of the bus.

A. Whitman 2005 32 PP. Cloth

$16.95 (in stock)

Henry Climbs A Mountain

BY D B JOHNSON
"[In this book] Johnson tackles [Thoreau's] philosophy on civil disobedience... Henry the bear sets off to retrieve one of his shoes from the cobbler. But before he can pick it up, he is jailed for nonpayment of taxes. While there, Henry uses crayons and his imagination to create for himself a new shoe, trees, and a mountain path to explore. [On this] mountain, he meets an unnamed, barefoot traveler. Although the stranger's comments indicate that he is an escaped slave seeking freedom, his fur is the same color as Henry's.. Henry gives the traveler his shoes., then returns . to his cell. . Johnson's text does a fine job of explaining the essential conflicts without oversimplifying them."-SLJ

HM 2003 32 PP. Cloth

$15.00 (in stock)