English & Japanese MG & Up Asian-American Experience Japanese-American Own Voices Growing Up Family Language Learning SEL Waka T. Brown summary Waka is a Japanese-American sixth grader in rural Kansas in the 1980’s. At home, her family speaks Japanese almost exclusively, but Waka is behind in reading and writing in kanji. After a few incidents…
Category: Young Adult
Earth Squad: 50 People who are Saving the Planet
english MG & Up Climate Justice Historical Figures Trailblazers STEM Activism Community Alexandra Zissu & Nhung Lê summary For #SweetsAndSocialJustice this week, I want to kickoff what I’ve been calling in my brain an Earth Day social justice bonanza. Make sure you look for the earth icon I’ve put on the photo to be able…
Sweet & Bitter Magic
english MG & Up fantasy witchcraft LGBTQ+ relationships magic adventure Adrienne Tooley summary This is a great fantasy novel with LGBTQ relationships (normalized throughout the society), and most importantly, the strife experienced doesn’t come from homophobia but from dark magic. Tamsin is an incredibly powerful witch, but was banished for using dark magic to save…
Latinitas
English & Spanish MG & Up english Juliet Menéndez summary I couldn’t let Women’s History Month end without featuring this incredible book! First of all, how gorgeous is this cover? I’m kind of obsessed with the limited color palette and over the moon to see how many countries are represented (helpfully with flags by the…
Living the Confidence Code
english MG & Up Activism Feminism Historical Figures Current-day trailblazers Katty Kay, Claire Shipman, & Jillellyn Riley Cover Art: Lucia Picerno Hand Lettering: Nan Lawson summary This follow-up book tells stories about real girls that have embodied their inner confidence and self-esteem to take on projects that changed the world. Collected on a global scale,…
answering the cry for freedom: stories of african americans and the american revolution
English YA & Up History Enslavement Colonization Revolution Gretchen Woelfle & R. Gregory Christie Summary: For #SweetsAndSocialJustice this week, I looked into what the colonizers would be baking in the area where I live (what is now called Massachusetts). Fruit, maple syrup, and molasses were all popular ingredients. This made me go on a deep…
a dark and hollow star
The ease with which Shuttleworth infuses the existing mythology and lore with nonbinary characters and frank discussions of the trauma inherent in growing up with a marginalized identity is striking.
topics for change: racial justice in america
For #sweetsandsocialjustice this week, I’m bringing you a new release that every classroom needs to have. I’m also bringing you a strawberry lime tea cake recipe!
Red, White, and Whole
English MG & Up Bicultural Kids Indian Culture Parents Cancer CW: Parent Death Rajani LaRocca Summary: This beautiful novel in verse set in 1983 is narrated by Reha, whose parents moved from Bangalore. Reha is sometimes frustrated that she can’t do the “typical American” teen thing, and feels like her mother in particular doesn’t understand…
The Black Panther Party: A Graphic Novel History
English YA & Up Black Culture & Identity Historical Figures Politics Violence Racism Police Brutality Government Interference Sabotage David Walker & Marcus Kwame Anderson Summary: Social justice and the Black Panthers go hand in hand. Inspired by the free food programs that the organization is known for, I searched online for information about what they…