Today (and every day) we mourn, commemorate, and decry antisemitism. “The day of remembrance is held each year to honor the millions of lives lost during the Holocaust at the hands of the Nazis, as well as remembering those who died in genocides that followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur. This year, the UN’s…
Tag: middle grade
Black Girl Magic: Ballerinas & Other Historical Figures
English Middle Graders Black Culture & Identity summary Both of these books are beautiful collections of badass historical figures, many of whom are still alive and continuing to make history! If you’re in the market for nonfiction anthologies about historical figures (like I am 100% of the time) make sure you check these out from…
Yummy: A History of Dessert
English MG & Up History Desserts Graphic Novel Victoria Grace Elliott summary Snickerdoodle lovers rejoice, for I have a new recipe for you. And it’s inside this fantastic new graphic novel, Yummy: A History of Desserts. I know, you’re thinking, ‘But Coco, how did a graphic novel get inside your brain like this?’ And I…
The Samosa Rebellion
English MG Politics Oppression Racism Internment Rebellion SEL Activism Government Surveillance Immigration Shanthi Sekaran summary Did I pick up this book expecting a great read? Sure did. Did I expect it to blow my mind in the way that it did? Absolutely not. I love it when that happens. 12 year old narrator Muki lives…
Partly Cloudy
English & Creole MG SEL Family Friendship New Schools Forest Fires Racism Tanita S. Davis Cover Art: Geneva Bowers summary From Tanita S. Davis of Serena Says (which has a melodramatic and lovely narrator) comes Madalyn from Partly Cloudy. Madalyn really loves naps, and I appreciate that personality quirk. She’s moved in with her Great…
While I Was Away
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…
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…
The Magic in Changing Your Stars
English MG Family Black Culture & Identity Harlem Renaissance Fantasy Time Travel Tap Dancing Leah Henderson Summary: This book is really clever, and I love the idea of time travel that other people remember. Ailey is a talented dancer, but he has an utterly crushing tryout for The Wiz. When Ailey talks with his Grampa…
The Sea in Winter
English MG & Up Indigenous Voices Mental health Depression Athleticism Dance Own Voices Christine Day Summary: The Sea in Winter is Christine Day’s latest, and it’s a lovely novel that broaches topics of mental health, blended families, and adapting to unexpected (and disliked) changes in life. Maisie is a ballerina, and healing from a torn…
This Book is Anti-Racist Journal
Written & Illustrated by: Tiffany Jewell & Aurélia Durand For ages: MG & Up Language: English Topics Covered: Historical Figures Sequels Activism Environmental Activism Trailblazers Anti-Racism Journal Summary: Y’all, this book is FINALLY out in the world tomorrow. I’ve been impatiently awaiting it’s release for months, as soon as I heard it was being published. Anti-Racism…