Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can't resist-books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak, author of I Am the Messenger, has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

Borders is a masterfully told story of a boy and his mother whose road trip is thwarted at the border when they identify their citizenship as Blackfoot. Refusing to identify as either American or Canadian first bars their entry into the US, and then their return into Canada. In the limbo between countries, they find power in their connection to their identity and to each other. Borders explores nationhood from an Indigenous perspective and resonates deeply with themes of identity, justice, and belonging.

Coretta Scott King Medal Winner
Raised in South Carolina and New York, Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 1970s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, each line a glimpse into a child's soul as she searches for her place in the world. Woodson's eloquent poetry also reflects the joy of finding her voice through writing stories, despite the fact that she struggled with reading as a child. Her love of stories inspired her and stayed with her, creating the first sparks of the gifted writer she was to become.

Newberry Medal Winner
Every Sunday after church, CJ and his grandma ride the bus across town. But today, CJ wonders why they don't own a car like his friend Colby. Why doesn't he have an iPod like the boys on the bus? How come they always have to get off in the dirty part of town? Each question is met with an encouraging answer from grandma, who helps him see the beauty--and fun--in their routine and the world around them. This energetic ride through a bustling city highlights the wonderful perspective only grandparent and grandchild can share, and comes to life through Matt de la Peña's vibrant text and Christian Robinson's radiant illustrations.

Magnificent Homespun Brown is an exploration of the natural world and family bonds through the eyes of young, mixed raced heroines--a living, breathing, dazzlingly multi-faceted, exuberant masterpiece, firmly grounded in a sense of self-worth and belonging. This is a story--a poem, a song, a celebration--­about feeling at home in one's own beloved skin.If Walt Whitman were reborn as a young woman of colour, this is the book he might write. With vivid illustrations by Kaylani Juanita, Samara Cole Doyon sings a carol for the plenitude that surrounds us and the self each of us is meant to inhabit.

Una conmovedora biografía ilustrada de una de las cantantes y defensoras de derechos humanos más queridas de América Latina, Mercedes Sosa. A stirring picture book biography of one of Latin America's most beloved singers and human rights advocates, Mercedes Sosa. ¿Alguna vez has oído una canción que te elevó a lo más alto? ¿Una canción que capturó tu corazón? ¿Una voz tan poderosa que te hizo sentir listo para cambiar el mundo? Esta es la historia de una cantora cuya voz navegó por el aire como las alas de un cóndor, inspirando al pueblo en cada latido de la tierra. Escrita e ilustrada por Aixa Pérez-Prado, esta es la conmovedora historia de la cantante folklórica y defensora de derechos humanos argentina Mercedes Sosa. Conocida cariñosamente como la Negra, Mercedes utilizó su talento musical y su poderosa voz para denunciar la pobreza y la desigualdad en su país. Ante una cruel dictadura, Mercedes se negó a ser silenciada. Con valentía subió al escenario para "dar voz a los que no tienen voz" con canciones edificantes de empatía y empoderamiento. Su música inolvidable y sus mensajes de esperanza continúan resonando en personas de todo el mundo hasta el día de hoy.
Written and illustrated by Aixa Pérez-Prado, this is the powerful biography of Argentinean folksinger and human rights advocate Mercedes Sosa. Affectionately known as La Negra, Mercedes used her musical talents and powerful voice to speak out against poverty and inequality in her home country. In the face of a cruel dictatorship, Mercedes refused to be silenced. She bravely stepped on stage to lend a "voice to the voiceless" with uplifting songs of empathy and empowerment. Her unforgettable music and messages of hope continue to resonate with people across the world to this day.

A heartwarming story about the new girl in school, and how she learns to appreciate her Korean name. Being the new kid in school is hard enough, but what happens when nobody can pronounce your name? Having just moved from Korea, Unhei is anxious about fitting in. So instead of introducing herself on the first day of school, she decides to choose an American name from a glass jar. But while Unhei thinks of being a Suzy, Laura, or Amanda, nothing feels right. With the help of a new friend, Unhei will learn that the best name is her own.  From acclaimed creator Yangsook Choi comes the bestselling classic about finding the courage to be yourself and being proud of your background.

Robert F. Sibert Award Winner
"The first thing I can remember," Ben Shahn said, "I drew." As an observant young child growing up in Lithuania, Ben yearns to draw everything he sees - and, after seeing his father banished by the Czar for demanding workers' rights, he develops a keen sense of justice, too. So when Ben and the rest of his family make their way to America, Ben brings with him both his sharp artistic eye and his desire to fight for what's right. As he grows, he speaks for justice through his art - from challenging classmates who bully him for being Jewish, to resisting his teachers' calls to paint beautiful landscapes in favor of painting stories true to life, to using his work to urge the US government to pass Depression-era laws that help people find food and security. This book honors an artist, immigrant, and activist whose work still resonates, as Shahn was a true painter for the people." -- Provided by publisher.

The audience was completely silent the first time Billie Holiday performed a song called "Strange Fruit." In the 1930s, Billie was known as a performer of jazz and blues music, but this song wasn't either of those things. It was a song about injustice, and it would change her life forever. Discover how two outsiders--Billie Holiday, a young black woman raised in poverty, and Abel Meeropol, the son of Jewish immigrants--combined their talents to create a song that challenged racism and paved the way for the Civil Rights movement.

Seventeen-year-old Avery Anderson is convinced her senior year is ruined when she's uprooted from her life in DC and forced into the hostile home of her terminally ill grandmother, Mama Letty. The tension between Avery's mom and Mama Letty makes for a frosty arrival and unearths past drama they refuse to talk about. Every time Avery tries to look deeper, she's turned away, leaving her desperate to learn the secrets that split her family in two. While tempers flare in her avoidant family, Avery finds friendship in unexpected places: in Simone Cole, her captivating next-door neighbor, and Jade Oliver, daughter of the town's most prominent family--whose mother's murder remains unsolved. As the three girls grow closer--Avery and Simone's friendship blossoming into romance--the sharp-edged opinions of their small southern town begin to hint at something insidious underneath. The racist history of Bardell, Georgia is rooted in Avery's family in ways she can't even imagine. With Mama Letty's health dwindling every day, Avery must decide if digging for the truth is worth toppling the delicate relationships she's built in Bardell--or if some things are better left buried.