Awards: ALA Notable Children’s Book 2022

Bookstore: http://www.thisoldbook.com/

Authors Website: Reem Faruqi Website

Annotation: Amira is a young girl excited to celebrate Eid with her family. Unfortunately, the celebration falls on the same day as her school picture day. Amira is distraught and torn between celebrating an important cultural celebration or joining her peers on picture day. Azim’s illustrations use warm jewel-tones to depict the richness of the clothes worn at the Eid celebration. The illustrations use a combined artistic style of realism and cartoon to depict the emotions the characters feel throughout the story, but also keeps them playful with vibrant jewel-tones.

Rationale:This title was included since the teacher mentioned they would want more representation of BIPOC characters. Specifically, the teacher is looking for more books that represent BIPOC characters other than Black characters because they have an abundance of Black representation already. This book is appropriate for students 4 - 8 years old.

Annotation: Julian is a young boy who is captivated by the vibrant costumes he witnesses on the subway one day with his abuela. Julian then decides to create his own mermaid costume, and hopes his abuela will see him for who he truly is. The author does a beautiful job of creating a picture storybook to depict Julian’s love and appreciation for the glamorous mermaids he witnessed on the subway. The readers are immersed in his magical daydreams of being a whimsical mermaid, and Love intentionally uses vibrant watercolor illustrations to detail Julian’s daydreams for readers.

Rationale: There is an apparent need for more books on diversity in the focal teacher’s library. This story is a great addition to start creating a section of her library with themes on LGBTQ+ topics. This book is appropriate for students 4 - 8 years old.

Annotation: This story brings the beloved Little Lobo back to readers with a fun experience of going to the food market. Little Lobo and his crew are tasked with going to the luchador to pick up lunch orders for the Mexican wrestlers, or luche libres, before their wrestling match that night. The story shows love and devotion to Mexican food as Little Lobo goes around to each vendor that already knows the exact orders of their customers. In the end, they all gather for a delicious meal before the show. The playful watercolor illustrations are filled with vibrant colors and shapes, and the illustrations follow the cartoon artistic style.

Rationale: I chose this book with the intention to add more representation of diverse cultures to my focal teacher’s classroom library. Our school serves a 60% Hispanic population. This story is a playful, and accurate, depiction of the importance of food and luche libres in Mexican cultures. This story is part of a series, which can also be a fun addition to the classroom library. I accessed this story digitally using Epic! Books, which is also a resource I would like my focal teacher to implement in the future. This is a great opportunity to show her the benefits of using Epic! Books. This book is appropriate for students 4-8 years old.

Awards: This book does not have any awards, but is essential to any library. 

Annotation: Thuy is a Vietnamese American girl with two moms. She is a victim of bullying due to her dual cultures and because she has two moms. While she is walking home from school one day, Thuy’s imagination takes over and she mimics the footprints of many creatures in the snow. She imagines soaring through the sky like a dragon or sprinting freely like a deer. Thuy struggles to share she is a victim of bullying with her moms, but they soon realize she uses her vivid imagination to cope with her struggles. The illustrations use contrasting colors with the stark white snow against the colorful creatures she imagines to portray the power of Thuy’s emotions.

Rationale: I chose this book because of the multiple themes portrayed. This can be used to add diversity to the library, but can also be used to discuss bullying and LGBTQ+ representation. This tradebook is appropriate for students aged 4 - 8.

Awards: School Library Journal 2018 Best Books, Junior Library Guild selection Fall 2018, Kirkus Best Books 2018

Annotation: This series follows Yasmin, a Pakistani American child who is always looking for ways to solve life’s little problems. Yasmin is a creative thinker and a joy to read about. The author and illustrators both use culture-specific language and illustrations to immerse readers in this diversity-rich story. The intent of this series is to show young readers that children from dual cultures are just like them. This is a great resource for students to also read about age-appropriate examples of perseverance as well.

Rationale: I chose this book for my focal teacher’s classroom library because it is extremely versatile in its purpose. First, this is a great diverse story to show students a window into Pakistani American cultures. Also, I love that this is an early reader in a series. Seeing that this project is for a first-grade classroom, early readers are essential to meet multiple reading levels. This story is appropriate for students in grades 1st - 3rd.

Annotation: The Vast Wonder of the World: Biologist Ernest Everett Just is about an African American scientist that made significant scientific discoveries during his time. This book follows his story from childhood to adulthood and the hardships he faced along the way. There are themes of racism and segregation throughout the story. The illustrations provide rich details about the rural life Ernest must have lived in South Carolina and throughout the world. Additionally, the illustrator made sure to use intentional light throughout the pages especially when covering harsh themes, such as racism.

Rationale: The themes of this book are a great addition to my focal teacher’s library. The book shows a representation of the black community, and also tells the story of a BIPOC character who had a lasting impact on the scientific world. This book is appropriate for students 8-12 years old.

Awards: This book has many accolades. Notable ones are 2020 Robert F. Sibert Medal, 2020 American Indian Youth Literature Honor

Annotation: This story is set in verse and shows readers the significance of fry bread to the Native American community because it is a staple food that has been passed down through generations. The author uses this book to share how fry bread was created due to the insignificant amount of food and ingredients Native Americans were left with once they were removed from their native lands. The illustrations used a mixture of warm, natural tones and I noticed the artistic style to be a mixture of watercolors and pencil sketches. This intentionally shows readers the different variations of skin tones and hair textures of the characters. This is a historical fiction novel based on research. 

Rationale: I chose this story because it provides more representation of diverse cultures. I am specifically looking for BIPOC characters that expand outside of the black community. This is a great addition to the classroom library because it is also poetry, and the focal library does not have a wide variety of poetry for students. This book is appropriate for students 4-8 years old.

Awards: 2015 Pura Belpre Illustrator Honor Book, 2015 Robert F. Sibert Informational Honor Book

Annotation: This story follows Sylvia Mendez and her family as they fought to desegregate schools for Mexican families in California. When her family moved, Sylvia was excited to start her new school. However, when her family was denied entry to the school she could not understand why she was considered different from the students enrolled. Her family then takes on the school in a monumental court case that ended segregated schools in California. While this is a picturebook biography, it does an excellent job of teaching students about the content in an age-appropriate way. The author used a naive art artistic style with watercolors and thick outlines. This looks intentionally done to show the naivete of Sylvia when faced with racism and segregation. The natural color tones help readers feel they are reading an informational text by setting a more serious tone.

Rationale: In keeping with my desire to find more diverse literature with BIPOC character representation, this is a great addition to the focal library. Additionally, this story is an informational picture book that will also fill the focal teacher’s request for more diverse topics. This book is appropriate for students aged 6-12.

Annotation: My City Speaks follows a young girl, who is blind, and her father in a single day. Readers engage with the characters as they navigate through the city and complete a full day of daily tasks. The characters do many things such as go to the park, the market, and other various places. The story ends with the young girl playing her violin in the park for a local concert. The illustrations use vibrant colors that support the playful theme of this story. 

Rationale: This story represents two themes within diverse literature. First, the protagonist is a person of color, and they represent the blind community. This is a great story to fill a weakness in the focal library. My City Speaks is also on Epic! Books which is an added bonus. This book is appropriate for children aged 3-7.

Awards: This book does not have any rewards, but it does have a few notable reviews. Kirkus Reviews describes it as “humorous and upbeat”. Booklist Online calls this story an “inspiration in several senses of the word”.

Annotation: A Church for All is about community and acceptance. The story opens with an illustration of a family eating breakfast. Readers can imply this is an LGBTQ+ family that is getting ready for church. While this book is not print-heavy, the illustrations leave much to imply to the readers. We see pictures of same-sex families, multiracial families, and people of various levels of wealth and cultures on their way to church. The illustrations are cheerful and full of action that allows readers to interpret and engage on many levels.

Rationale: This is an age-appropriate text to expose first-grade students to LGBTQ+ themes. The story can be used as a read-aloud when discussing themes of diversity with young students. Additionally, this story can be used to facilitate excellent discussions about families and people who might be different from us. This book is appropriate for children aged 3-7. 

Awards: There aren’t awards for this book, but it can be found as a suggested read on databases for LGBTQ+ literature such as Stanford Libraries and Welcoming Schools.org.

Annotation: This picturebook opens with the picture of a lesbian couple sharing that they met and fell in love. When the couple moves into their new home, they are faced with many challenges - including homophobia. The couple did not feel a part of their community. The book then jumps ahead and shares all the changes this couple advocated for in their community. Readers take a look out of their windows and see many LGBTQ+ landmarks around San Francisco. The illustrations in this book do not fail. The artist used a collage style with pictures that varied from pencil drawings to paintings. The colors are warm and cheerful and will definitely engage readers. 

Rationale: This is an excellent story to add to the LGBTQ+ theme my focal teacher is wishing to build. Not only does this book tell a beautiful story, but readers get to take a tour of San Francisco and the two activists that worked to build a community of love and acceptance. This book is appropriate for children aged 4-8.

Awards: This book does not have any noted awards but can be found on the Cooperative Children's Books Center list of books about families with gay and lesbian parents. Kirkus Reviews calls this book a “sweet portrait of family love”.

Annotation: This book is sweet and full of joy. It follows a loving lesbian family and their child throughout the day. The family does many things together such as playing at the park, visiting the zoo, and taking a bike ride to the local farm stand. The illustrations appear to be pencil sketches with light and natural tones. This gives the book a lighthearted tone and shows readers how all families are full of love. The story ends with the moms sharing a bedtime story with their baby before all going to sleep.

Rationale: This book shows students that even though we might not everything we want, we can always find everything we need within. This is a great story to show students LGBTQ+ themes such as having two moms. This book is appropriate for students aged 3-7.

Awards: I accessed this book on the Cooperative Children's Book Center list of books with LGBTQ+ themes.

Authors Website: Peter Brown Website This link is the author’s discussion about various elements of the book that guided his thinking. It is a must-read!

Annotation: Fred is a playful boy who loves to be naked! However, one day he stumbles into his parents’ closet and decides to play dress-up. He quickly realizes he is not interested in his dad’s side of the closet and loves the pink and bright hues of his mom’s clothes. His family indulges in Fred’s fun game of dress-up and does not try to confine him to any gender norms. Be sure to read the author’s link above to read more about the ideas behind the illustrations. He mentions only using pink, green, black, and white and digitally manipulating the colors to design the illustrations.

Rationale: This is another LGBTQ+/Gender Identity book I found that does not have any awards. It was published in 2021, so this could be one reason why. However, it is a must-have for teachers looking to expand their LGBTQ+ book collection. It is light, playful, and full of great discussion points for teachers. I had to add this book! It is appropriate for students aged 3-8.

Awards: 2022 Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award, 2022 Christopher Award Winner - Books for Young People

Annotation: Elsie can’t wait to go to the father-daughter dance with her daddy. After buying a special dress for the dance, she is so excited to show her family what she chose at the store, but she is also worried an incoming snowstorm might cancel the dance. After some struggles with the snow, Elsie and her family arrive at the dance. She is fearless and enjoys the entire night dancing away with her family. Not only is this a heartwarming story, but the deep jewel tones of the illustrations help to show the playful and joyous nature of this book.

Rationale: This story is full of love and is an essential book to add to my focal teacher’s classroom library. Elsie is a child with a genetic disorder that leaves her nonverbal and needs a wheelchair. She communicates through gestures and with a book of pictures. Our school does not have a special education program for children with high needs, so this book is an excellent resource to teach our population about various disabilities. This book is appropriate for children aged 4-8.

Annotation: Temple was an unusual girl and knew she was different at an early age. She didn’t like loud noises, being hugged, and was often told she will never be “normal”. Her family decided it was best for Temple to live on a farm with animals. These animals were able to provide comfort and confidence to Temple. This experience led Temple to graduate from college and make groundbreaking discoveries in the scientific world that improved farm life. The cartoon illustrations accentuate the playful vibe of this story. It also allows for students to empathize with the character due to the student-friendly illustrations.

Rationale: This story is set as a poem that adds to the emotions portrayed throughout. Not only is this story a biography, but it is also about a person with autism. This is a strong resource to share with students to share about autism and the impact it can have on a person’s life. This book is appropriate for students aged 5-9.