Stories in Black and White

One of the big stories with last night's Oscars ceremony was the lack of African-American nominees.  This was upsetting considering how many great acting performances were given by African Americans this past year.  So, I want to draw attention to some great teen books featuring African American characters . . . .

How It Went Down by Kekla Magoon
When sixteen-year-old Tariq Johnson is shot to death, his community is thrown into an uproar because Tariq was black and the shooter, Jack Franklin, is white, and in the aftermath everyone has something to say, but no two accounts of the events agree.

Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee
In 1845, Sammy, a Chinese American girl, and Annamae, an African American slave girl, disguise themselves as boys and travel on the Oregon Trail to California from Missouri.

Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein
Having moved to Ethiopia to avoid the prejudices of 1930s America, Emilia Menotti, her black adoptive brother Teo, and their mother Rhoda, a stunt pilot, are devoted to their new country even after war with Italy looms, drawing the teens into the conflict.

Fake ID by Lamar Giles
An African-American teen in the Witness Protection Program moves to a new town and finds himself trying to solve a murder mystery when his first friend is found dead.

Jimi & Me by Jaime Adoff
After his father's tragic death, twelve-year-old Keith James moves from Brooklyn to a small midwestern town where his mixed race heritage is not accepted, but he finds comfort in the music of Jimi Hendrix and the friendship of a white classmate.


More Books --
Black and White by Paul Volponi
Boy21 by Matthew Quick
Copper Sun by Sharon Draper
Dancer by Lorri Hewett
Fabulous by Simone Bryant
Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson
If I Grow Up by Todd Strasser
Invasion! by Walter Dean  Myers
Kendra by Coe Booth
Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley
Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers
Money Hungry by Sharon Flake
My Name Is Not Friday by Jon Walter
New Boy by Julian Houston
The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson
X: A Novel by Ilyasah Shabazz


Check out these books on display through March, 18, 2015.

The Times Were A-Changin'

The 1960's were a time of great change for America.  The Civil Rights movement, the Cuban Missle Crisis, the counterculture movement all occurred during those turbulent years.  Here are some great books set during the 1960's for kids . . .

Gentle's Holler by Kerry Maden

In the early 1960s, twelve-year-old songwriter Livy Two Weems dreams of seeing the world beyond the Maggie Valley, North Carolina, holler where she lives in poverty with her parents and eight brothers and sisters, but understands that she must put family first.

90 Miles to Havana by Enrique Flores-Galbis

Julian's parents, hoping to protect him from the dangers of the turmoil in Cuba, send him to the United States in 1961 as part of Operation Pedro Pan, not realizing that life in a Miami refugee camp holds its own perils.

Countdown by Deborah Wiles

As eleven-year-old Franny Chapman deals with drama at home and with her best friend in 1962, she tries to understand the larger problems in the world after President Kennedy announces that Russia is sending nuclear missiles to Cuba. 

The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon

In 1968 Chicago, fourteen-year-old Sam Childs is caught in a conflict between his father's nonviolent approach to seeking civil rights for African-Americans and his older brother, who has joined the Black Panther Party.

Spitting Image by Shutta Crum

In the small town of Baylor, Kentucky, twelve-year-old Jessie K. Bovey and her friends confront some of life's questions during their summer vacation in the late 1960s.

More Novels of the 1960s --

Abby Takes a Stand by Patricia McKissack

The Crazy Man by Pamela Porter

Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins

Dancing in Cadillac Light by Kimberly Willis Holt

Flying South by Laura Elliott

Neil Armstrong Is My Uncle & Other Lies Muscle Man McGinty Told Me by Nan Marino

The Private Thoughts of Amelia E. Rye by Bonnie Shimko

Sources of Light by Margaret McMullan

Spelldown by Karen Luddy

The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis

When Pirates Came to Brooklyn by Phyllis Shalant

Check out these books on display at the Arnold Branch through October 9, 2015.