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Our collection of picture books featuring Black and Indigenous Peoples and People of Color (BIPOC) is available to the public.

*Inclusion of a title in the collection DOES NOT EQUAL a recommendation.*

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11 matching books

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Jude Saves the World

2023

by Ronnie Riley

“Twelve-year-old Jude struggles with some things: focusing at school, feeling like everything rests on their shoulders, not being able to come out as nonbinary to their old-fashioned grandparents. But Jude doesn’t struggle with Dallas, their best friend in the whole world. Their person. Jude and Dallas’s world changes when they learn Stevie, a girl in their class, has been ousted from the popular clique at school. Worried it had something to do with Stevie’s rumored crush on another girl, Jude reaches out to see if Stevie is okay. Stevie quickly becomes an important friend to Jude and Dallas, whose unwavering acceptance of her is a stark contrast to the tests and dysfunction she experienced with her former friend group. As their friendship deepens and the three open up to each other, Stevie’s unconditional and open acceptance when Jude comes out to her motivates them to create a queer safe space in their community. Jude has the courage and determination it takes to create the first Diversity Club in their community, but will they be able to find the support they need to make it happen?” — publisher

Centering Culture & Identity Cross Group

Beware the Heartman

2024

“For once, everything in twelve-year-old Josephine’s life is going according to plan. She’s finally proved that girls belong on the cricket team and earned a spot as a starting player! And she’s confident that she and her best friend, Ahkai, will both be accepted to their dream secondary school. Nothing can stop Jo now — not even the memory of the vengeful sea spirit she vanquished last year. But then a series of disasters strike. Ahkai suddenly seems to have a new best friend — the annoyingly perfect Lynne. Then Jo isn’t accepted to the same school as Ahkai! Even worse, Jo keeps having eerie encounters with a mysterious figure lurking in the shadows — a figure who bears an unsettling resemblance to the fearsome Heartman rumored to steal children’s hearts… Jo doesn’t know where to turn. With Daddy away, the only person who’ll believe her is Ahkai, but Jo is too proud to ask for help after being replaced. By the time she musters the courage to approach him, it’s too late. Ahkai has disappeared without a trace. He’s been taken by the Heartman. None of the adults believe Jo. The Heartman is just a legend, after all. But Jo knows that the fearsome creature is real and that if she doesn’t find his lair soon, Ahkai will be lost forever.” — publisher

Centering Culture & Identity Folklore

The Unforgettable Logan Foster and the Shadow of Doubt

2023

by Shawn Peters

“After using his photographic memory to save the world, Logan Foster is finally settling into a new, more normal life with his superhero foster parents, Gil and Margie. But because of all the information still locked in his brain, Logan is kept under tight observation by the Multinational Authority for Superhuman Control (MASC) in case Necros dares to return. But when Logan learns that Necros was there, at the airport, on the day Logan became an orphan, he has to wonder if MASC is hiding the truth about who his birth parent really is? As superheroes mysteriously start going missing, it all points by back to one supervillain—and she just might be Logan’s real mom. Can Logan, along with his superstrong best friend Elena and their new friend Connie, uncover the truth, find the missing superheroes, and stop Necros from destroying the world before it’s too late?” — publisher

Any Child/Teen Cross Group

Unseelie

2023

by Ivelisse Housman

“Iselia “Seelie” Graygrove looks just like her twin, Isolde…but as an autistic changeling left in the human world by the fae as an infant, she has always known she is different. Seelie’s unpredictable magic makes it hard for her to fit in—and draws her and Isolde into the hunt for a fabled treasure. In a heist gone wrong, the sisters make some unexpected allies and find themselves unraveling a mystery that has its roots in the history of humans and fae alike. Both sisters soon discover that the secrets of the faeries may be more valuable than any pile of gold and jewels. But can Seelie harness her magic in time to protect her sister and herself?” — publisher

Any Child/Teen Folklore

Lalo Lespérance Never Forgot

2023

by Phillippe Diederich

“Lalo Lesperance lives with his older brother and Mexican American mother in a low-income apartment building in Fort Myers. They moved there from a subdivision after the family lost Lalo’s Haitian American father. At school, Lalo is known as the boy who can’t remember anything and needs special help in all his classes. But when the first COVID lockdown hits, he finds himself in a friendship of convenience with Vivi, a Mexican American kid his age who gets perfect grades and who never gave him a second thought when they were in school. Vivi’s abuela watches the kids while their mothers work long shifts as nurses at a clinic slammed by COVID. As Lalo navigates his much smaller pandemic world, he discovers his apartment building has its own mysteries, like a sinister stranger in an old RV and a storage closet full of junk, including an old radio that just might hold the key to remembering why Lalo’s family moved to the apartment and what happened to his father.” -publisher

Centering Culture & Identity Race/Culture/Identity Concepts

Figure It Out, Henri Weldon

2023

by Tanita S. Davis

“Seventh grader Henrietta Weldon gets to switch schools—finally! She’ll be “mainstreaming” into public school, leaving her special education school behind. She can’t wait for her new schedule, new friends, and new classes. Henri’s dyscalculia, a learning disability that makes math challenging to process and understand, is what she expects to give her problems. What she doesn’t expect is a family feud with her sister over her new friends, joining the girls’ soccer team, and discovering poetry. Henri’s tutor and new friend, Vinnie, reminds her to take it slow. One problem at a time.” — publisher

Any Child/Teen Cross Group

Hurt You

2023

by Marie Myung-Ok Lee

“Moving beyond the quasi-fraternal bond of the unforgettable George and Lenny from Of Mice and Men, Hurt You explores the actual sibling bond of Georgia and Leonardo da Vinci Daewoo Kim, who has an unnamed neurological disability that resembles autism. The themes of race, disability, and class spin themselves out in a suburban high school where the Kim family has moved in order to access better services for Leonardo. Suddenly unmoored from the familiar, including the support of her Aunt Clara, Georgia struggles to find her place in an Asian-majority school where whites still dominate culturally, and she finds herself feeling not Korean “enough.” Her one pole star is her commitment to her brother, a loyalty that finds itself at odds with her immigrant parents’ dreams for her, and an ableist, racist society that may bring violence to Leonardo despite her efforts to keep him safe.” — publisher

Centering Culture & Identity Cross Group

ThunderBoom

2023

by Jack Briglio and Claudia Dávila

“An action-packed superhero story about the power of imagination. In this graphic novel, Logan’s going on the train to see the Santa Claus parade. Logan loves parades and trains. But Logan isn’t like most 11-year-olds – he can’t speak, and he mostly lives in his head. This adventure means facing his greatest fears: masks, dogs and the unknown. When he’s separated from his parents at the parade, Logan goes where he’s the bravest version of himself – his imagination. Transforming into superhero ThunderBoom, Logan is ready to stomp through any challenge! Eisner-nominated author Jack Briglio tells an entertaining story about the kinds of challenges faced by those who are developmentally delayed, nonverbal or both. Claudia Dávila’s dynamic art brings Logan’s real and imaginary worlds to vivid life and will appeal to comic book and graphic novel fans.”– publisher

Any Child/Teen

You Are Here: Connecting Flights

2024

by Ellen Oh

“A powerful and engaging exploration of contemporary East and Southeast Asian American identity through interwoven stories set in a teeming Chicago airport, written by award-winning and bestselling Asian American authors. An incident at a TSA security checkpoint sows rumors and chaos, creating a chain of events that impacts twelve young Asian Americans in a crowded and restless airport. As their disrupted journeys crisscross and collide, they encounter fellow travelers—some helpful, some hostile—and discover the challenges of friendship, the power of courage, the importance of the right word at the right time, and the unexpected significance of a blue Stratocaster electric guitar. Twelve powerhouse Asian American authors explore themes of identity and belonging in the entwined experiences of young people whose family roots may extend to East and Southeast Asia, but who are themselves distinctly American. Written by Linda Sue Park, Erin Entrada Kelly, Grace Lin, Traci Chee, Mike Chen, Meredith Ireland, Mike Jung, Minh Lê, Ellen Oh, Randy Ribay, Christina Soontornvat, and Susan Tan, and edited by Ellen Oh.” — publisher

Centering Culture & Identity Cross Group Oppression & Resilience

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