English with tribal affiliations. MG & Up History Colonialism Historical Figures Indigenous Voices Adrienne Keene & Ciara Sana summary I recognize that y’all might not believe me when I say that I’ve been looking forward to this arriving for weeks. Peeking into the mailbox with my fingers crossed that this beautiful book would be waiting…
Category: Historical Figures
Playing at the Border: A Story of Yo-Yo Ma
English 4-8 Music Historical Figures Immigration Collective Action Joanna Ho & Teresa Martinez summary I’m confident that you’ve seen this gorgeous book floating around on the internet, and I’m here to try and add my two cents to campaign for why you need this book. Playing at the Border weaves together a specific event when…
Antiracist Family Book Club: the OTHER talk & Deep Diversity
English MG & Up Antiracism White Privilege Action Accountability Unlearning Implicit Bias Social Change Community Organizing summary In an ongoing effort to help facilitate discussions, consider this the first installment of the Antiracist Family Book Club. My goal is to try and pair a book for MG/YA readers with a book for grownup readers (educators,…
Without Separation: Prejudice, Segregation, and the Case of Roberto Alvarez
English 5+ Historical Figures Legislation Racism Mexican American Community Social Change Larry Dane Brimner & Maya Gonzalez summary Roberto Alvarez liked growing up and attending school in Lemon Grove. That is until one day when he gets to school, and he’s turned away. Roberto and the other Mexican American students are being sent to another…
Unstoppable: Women with Disabilities
English 9-12 Disability Own Voices Historical Figures Feminism Helen Wolfe & Karen Patkau summary Aimed at ages 9-12, this book profiles disabled women. And let’s be clear, this isn’t inspiration p*rn. Both author and illustrator are members of the disabled community! I’m asked for recommendations a lot, and there are some books out there that…
Back to School, Back to School…Take These Books, They’re Real Cool!
English 4+ Social-Emotional Learning Back to School Emotional Regulation Empathy Empowerment Historical Figures summary Try not to be too jealous of my sweet rhyming skills when it comes to titles, I’m just brimming with creative talent. ANYWAY, lets begrudgingly talk about back to school book recs. I’m doubling down on recommending books that lean heavily…
The Teen Guide to Global Action: How to Connect with Others (Near & Far) to Create Social Change
English 12+ Youth Activism Community Organizing Global Community Barbara A. Lewis summary For #SweetsAndSocialJustice this week, I want to get to the heart of a matter (…see what I did there?) that is meaningful to the work that I do both on and off-line. And that’s resources to help empower youth to get involved in…
We Are Still Here! Native American Truths Everyone Should Know
english 6-10 years Indigenous History Own Voices Activism Human Rights Historical Figures Empowerment Traci Sorell & Frané Lessac summary Framed around an Indigenous Peoples Day presentation night at a school, We Are Still Here gives snippets of information in the history of Native Peoples in what is now called the United States. The story is…
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…
jump at the sun: the true life tale of unstoppable storycatcher zora neale hurston
english 4-8 years historical figure writers self-empowerment Alicia D. Williams & Jacqueline Alcántara summary: This gorgeous book goes into detail about the life of writer Zora Neale Hurston, who bounded from adventure to adventure and found notoriety in writing along the way. I love the way the illustrations convey movement and joy, always showing Zora…