Our collection of picture books featuring Black and Indigenous people and People of Color (BIPOC) is available to the public. *Inclusion of a title in the collection DOES NOT EQUAL a recommendation.* Click here for more on book evaluation.
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22 matching books
Show FiltersTouch the Sky: Alice Coachman, Olympic high jumper
A biography of the first black woman to win an Olympic gold medal, from her childhood in segregated Albany, Georgia, in the 1930s, through her recognition at the 1996 Olympics as one of the hundred best athletes in Olympic history. Includes bibliographical references
Walking for Water: How One Boy Stood Up for Gender Equality
"Victor is a pretty typical eight-year-old: he races to get his chores done, finds math challenging and likes to play with his friends. One day, the new school teacher introduces Vic and the other students to the idea of equality between boys and girls. Vic has never really thought about it before, but he soon begins to notice the disparities around him. Like all the older girls and women in their Malawi village, his twin sister, Linesi, now walks the long walk to the river to collect water for the family. Now she can't go to school anymore. It's just the way things have always been. But does it have to be? And is there a way for Vic to change it? When Vic has an idea about how to help, he discovers that even small changes can have an impact"--
Flying Free
"Before Bessie Coleman blazed a high trail with her plane . . . Before she performed in death-defying flying shows that would earn her fame as "Queen Bess" . . . Before she traveled the country speaking out against discrimination, Bessie was a little girl with a big imagination that took her to the sky, through the clouds, and past the birds." -- publisher
William Still and his freedom stories
"William Still’s parents escaped slavery but had to leave two of their children behind, a tragedy that haunted the family. As a young man, William went to work for the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society, where he raised money, planned rescues, and helped freedom seekers who had traveled north. One day, a strangely familiar man came into William’s office, searching for information about his long-lost family. Could it be? Motivated by his own family’s experience, William Still began collecting the stories of thousands of other freedom seekers. As a result, he was able to reunite other families and build a remarkable source of information, including encounters with Harriet Tubman, Henry “Box” Brown, and William and Ellen Craft." -- publisher
Exquisite
"A picture-book biography of celebrated poet Gwendolyn Brooks, the first Black person to win the Pulitzer Prize" -- publisher
Hector
"On June 16, 1976, Hector Pieterson, an ordinary boy, lost his life after getting caught up in what was supposed to be a peaceful protest. Black South African students were marching against a new law requiring that they be taught half of their subjects in Afrikaans, the language of the White government. The story’s events unfold from the perspectives of Hector, his sister, and the photographer who captured their photo in the chaos. This book serves as a pertinent tool for adults discussing global history and race relations with children. Its graphic novel style and mixed media art portray the vibrancy and grit of Hector’s daily life and untimely death." -- publisher
I am Jackie Robinson
Presents an illustrated biography of the man who broke baseball's color barrier and changed the way Americans viewed equality in sports.
I am Rosa Parks
Recounts Rosa Parks' daring effort to stand up for herself and other African Americans by helping to end segregation on public transportation.
It jes’ happened
"A biography of twentieth-century African American folk artist Bill Traylor, a former slave who at the age of eighty-five began to draw pictures based on his memories and observations of rural and urban life in Alabama. Includes an afterword, author's note, and sources"-- Provided by publisher
My Name is Blessing
Based on a true story about a young Kenyan boy whose mother left him but had named him Muthini which meant suffering because he was born with no fingers on his left hand and only two on his right. Many times he was made fun of or avoided which hurt him deeply. He lives with his very elderly grandmother, his Nyanya, along with many cousins whose parents had either died or left them. They are extremely poor and there is never enough money or food, but plenty of love. A difficult choice must be made and Muthini is the youngest child and needs to have a better chance in life, so his Nyanya takes him to an orphanage where he is blessed and his name is changed to Baraka which means blessing for he was a blessing just as his grandmother always knew