Geography & Cultures

Some kids have one job: to be a kid! Cecilia has two. When she isn't on the soccer field scoring goals, she's accompanying her parents to all kinds of grown-up places, like the DMV, the accountant's office, and the auto shop. She helps them translate from Spanish to English and from English to Spanish. It’s an important job, and it can even be fun. It’s also hard work. Sometimes Cecilia's second job is so much responsibility, it feels like she'll split in two! Is it time for Cecilia to blow her whistle and call for a time-out?

Shirley Chisholm showed interest in politics early on, majoring in sociology at Brooklyn College in New York City. During this time she was awarded for her debate skills, became a champion for inclusion in the Harriet Tubman society, and graduated cum laude. She dedicated much of her career to fighting for the rights of Black people and women, eventually becoming the first Black woman elected to Congress in 1968. Remarkably, Shirley represented New York's 12th district, including the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, from 1969 to 1983.

Fifty years after her refusal to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, city bus, Mrs. Rosa Parks is still one of the most important figures in the American civil rights movement. This tribute to Mrs. Parks is a celebration of her courageous action and the events that followed.

This gripping, accessible novel by celebrated Ukrainian Canadian author Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch follows two sisters as they struggle to survive the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

This loving guide to nurturing strong, confident, and resilient Black children contains 1000 carefully crafted affirmations. It's a treasure trove of positivity designed to uplift young Black minds and hearts.

Pedro the penguin looks after his egg and keeps it safe until it is ready to hatch. Leveled text brings Pedro's story to life.

Kendrick Lamar draws influences from many areas in his life when it comes to music, but his biggest inspiration is Tupac Shakur. Discover both performers' history in the music industry, their lives offstage, and more with the help of captivating photos and accessible text.

Black women are a force in the gymnastics world. But it wasn't until 1992 that Betty Okino and Dominique Dawes became the first Black women to compete in the Olympics for Team USA. Learn about the Black gymnasts and coaches of the past and present who have made historic firsts, including Simone Biles, Sloane Blakely, and Corrinne Tarver. Then discover how Black women in gymnastics are making a difference on and off the mat.

Heidi uses her hooves for many things. Leveled text helps young listeners understand why a reindeer's hooves are so important.

Major League Baseball (MLB) is a diverse sport played by athletes from around the world. But in the late 1800s and the first half of the 1900s, MLB was mostly segregated. Black players and coaches were not welcome. The Negro Leagues gave these players and coaches other options to play pro baseball. Meet unsung Negro Leagues stars such as Moses Fleetwood Walker and Toni Stone, and learn about the activists and heroes who helped integrate America's Pastime.

The National Football League (NFL) changed forever in 1946. That year the Forgotten Four—Kenny Washington, Woody Strode, Marion Motley, and Bill Willis—joined the league. Learn about the history of Black football players, the integration of the league, and the first Black coaches, referees, and team owners in the NFL. Then discover how Black football players continue to make a difference on and off the field.

One of Beyoncé’s biggest idols is Whitney Houston. The two met in a hotel lobby for the first time when she was just fifteen, but even before then, Beyoncé was influenced by Houston’s singing. Discover how both artists made it big, how they stole every stage, and more.

When much of the US was segregated, Black athletes were not allowed to play alongside white athletes. Black athletes started their own sports leagues, including the Black Fives. Learn about basketball's beginnings and the stars of the Black Fives Era, including Charles "Tarzan" Cooper and Ora Washington. Then discover how the National Basketball Association became integrated, what led to the creation of the Women's National Basketball Association, and how the Black Fives had a lasting impact.

Before James Baldwin was a celebrated novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and activist, he was a boy who fell in love with stories. Words opened up new worlds for young Jimmy, who read and wrote at every opportunity. He ultimately realized his dreams of becoming an author and giving voice to his community, and in doing so he showed the world the fullness of Black American life. This book biography of an American icon is a poetic introduction to James Baldwin and celebration of the power of language.

As school begins in 1963, Cooper Dale wrestles with what it means to “shine” for a black girl in a predominantly white community near Pittsburgh. Set against the historic backdrop of the Birmingham church bombing, the Kennedy assassination, and Beatlemania, Radiant is a finely crafted novel in verse about race, class, faith, and finding your place in a loving family and a complicated world.

From imaginative child to visionary storyteller, Toni Morrison was a fiercely inspiring writer that helped change the world. This poetic book is part love letter and part biography, praising the power of this Nobel Prize winner. With its tender refrain, readers will know how much Morrison's stories -- and their own -- mean to the world. She was loved -- and so are they!

The fight for civil rights in America didn’t begin in the 1960s—Black Americans have been working for justice, freedom, and equality since the first slave ships came to its shores. In I Am the Spirit of Justice, Jemar Tisby demonstrates that that arc of history bends toward equality. Throughout, the spirit of justice is personified as it moves through time, loving the oppressed and supporting the freedom fighters. The poetic text not only informs listeners of the countless and often nameless people who have taken up the fight, it also inspires them to continue working for equality for all.

Yvonne Clark had an engineering spark—an instinct for figuring out how things worked. Broken lamp? She screwed, rewired, and wrenched until…light! Wrecked radio? She twisted, snipped, and hammered until…music! Clogged furnace? She picked, plucked, and cleared until…heat! When she grew up, Yvonne’s problem-solving power took her to NASA, where fellow engineers had a serious problem with the Saturn V rocket’s F-1 engine: It had hot spots—high temperatures in the engine. Can Yvonne Clark and her engineering spark solve the problem?

Today’s the day! Rosa will take the stage next to her mami and play along with her popular mariachi band. But as they fasten the shiny botonaduras and tie the moños on their charra suits, Rosa begins to worry. What if the audience doesn’t like her? Is she ready to perform? With her “mamiachi” and madrinas by her side, Rosa’s stage fright is soothed away by the sound of trumpets, guitars, and violins.

Rachel thinks she will feel like Queen Esther when she rides an elephant draped in fancy fabric through the streets of Rangoon. Then she notices the old elephant's bruised and cracked feet, and she doesn’t feel so royal. So when Rachel wins the gold Purim crown at the synagogue celebration, she has an idea about how she can help the elephant.

Jojô chega na casa de seus avós com o rosto pintado e cocar de penas na cabeça. A discussão sobre sua vestimenta e o motivo da suposta comemoração é o assunto de mais essa aventura da coleção Sara e sua turma. Neste livro, a autora propõe a conscientização de que a ampliação do debate sobre a história e a cultura das diversas tribos indígenas no Brasil é necessária e já tardia.

It’s 1889, barely twenty-five years after the Emancipation Proclamation, and a young Black family is tired of working on land they don’t get to own. So when Will and his father hear about an upcoming land rush, they set out on a journey from Texas to Oklahoma, racing thousands of others to the place where land is free—if they can get to it fast enough. But the journey isn’t easy—the terrain is rough, the bandits are brutal, and every interaction carries a heavy undercurrent of danger.

Listen to the sound of survival, courage, and democracy—the soundtrack of America. Hear Billie Holiday's raspy, mournful voice, and tap your foot to Louis Armstrong's trumpet. Scream with James Brown and bop your head to Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Can you spot the 80+ references to artists like Robert Johnson, Ella Fitzgerald, Jimi Hendrix, Whitney Houston, Lauryn Hill, and Beyonce?

Even long ago, there was day and night. The day was full of light and warmth, and people and animals alike rejoiced in the rays of the sun. But what happens when people get greedy and take the Night for granted? What will become of the Earth and those who dwell upon it? Katherine Jumbe masterfully brings the world of the Malawian savanna to life, telling a rhythmic tale perfect for bedtime.

One question must be answered before Afia can slip into a peaceful sleep: What does love look like? With the companionship of her loving papa, Afia journeys to find love and learns that it is the warmth of the sun’s hugs, the brook’s soothing song, and other mesmerizing gifts of nature. But Afia’s quest also teaches her that she may not have to go too far to see the emotion at the heart of the world’s wonders.