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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16 matching books
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Patricia’s Vision
"The inspiring story of Dr. Patricia Bath, a groundbreaking ophthalmologist who pioneered laser surgery—and gave her patients the gift of sight. Born in the 1940s, Patricia Bath dreamed of being an ophthalmologist at a time when becoming a doctor wasn’t a career option for most women—especially African-American women. This empowering biography follows Dr. Bath in her quest to save and restore sight to the blind, and her decision to “choose miracles” when everyone else had given up hope. Along the way, she cofounded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness, invented a specialized laser for removing cataracts, and became the first African-American woman doctor to receive a medical patent." -- publisher
Be Amazing
"This uplifting illustrated nonfiction picture book from twelve year-old social justice advocate Desmond is Amazing is an introduction to the history of the fight for LGBTQ rights, as well as a call to action on embracing your own uniqueness. Desmond is Amazing is a drag-kid, model, fashion icon, and social justice activist. When he isn’t slaying on the catwalk or performing drag, he’s an outspoken anti-bullying and LGBTQ advocate. In this uplifting picture book about being yourself, Desmond shows how he can be amazing thanks to courageous people like Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and RuPaul who paved the way for a safer, more inclusive society for LGBTQ individuals. A kid-friendly primer to LGBTQ history that covers everything from the Stonewall Riots to RuPaul's Drag Race, Be Amazing shows young readers why we should celebrate the fight for LGBTQ rights." -- publisher
Shirley Chisholm Is a Verb!
"A timely picture book biography about Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman in Congress, who sought the Democratic nomination to be the president of the United States. Shirley Chisholm famously said, “If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair.” This dynamic biography illuminates how Chisholm was a doer, an active and vocal participant in our nation’s democracy, and a force to be reckoned with. Now young readers will learn about her early years, her time in Congress, her presidential bid and how her actions left a lasting legacy that continues to inspire, uplift, and instruct." -- publisher
Overground Railroad
"A girl named Ruth Anne tells the story of her family's train journey from North Carolina to New York City as part of the Great Migration"--
A poem for Peter
The story of The Snowy Day begins more than one hundred years ago, when Ezra Jack Keats was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. The family were struggling Polish immigrants, and despite Keats's obvious talent, his father worried that Ezra's dream of being an artist was an unrealistic one. But Ezra was determined. By high school he was winning prizes and scholarships. Later, jobs followed with the WPA (Works Progress Administration) and Marvel comics. But it was many years before Keats's greatest dream was realized and he had the opportunity to write and illustrate his own book. For more than two decades, Ezra had kept pinned to his wall a series of photographs of an adorable African American child. In Keats's hands, the boy morphed into Peter, a boy in a red snowsuit, out enjoying the pristine snow; the book became The Snowy Day, winner of the Caldecott Medal, the first mainstream book to feature an African American child. It was also the first of many books featuring Peter and the children of his -- and Keats's -- neighborhood.
Libba
Elizabeth Cotten was only a little girl when she picked up a guitar for the first time. It wasn't hers (it was her big brother's), and it wasn't strung right for her (she was left-handed). But she flipped that guitar upside down and backwards and taught herself how to play it anyway. By age eleven, she'd written "Freight Train," one of the most famous folk songs of the twentieth century. And by the end of her life, people everywhere from the sunny beaches of California to the rolling hills of England knew her music.
Brave ballerina
Janet Collins wanted to be a ballerina in the 1930s and 40s, a time when racial segregation was widespread in the United States. From her early childhood lessons to the height of her success as the first African-American prima ballerina in the Metropolitan Opera, this is the story of a remarkable pioneer. Full color
Between the lines
When Ernie Barnes was growing up in North Carolina in the 1940s, he loved to draw. Even after he played with his friends, he would draw in the mud with a stick. And he never left home without a sketchbook. He would draw the junk man, families walking home from church, or the old man on the sofa. He drew what he saw. But in the segregated South, Ernie didn't know how to make a living as an artist. Ernie grew tall and athletic and became a football star. Soon enough the colleges came calling. Still, in his heart Ernie longed to paint. Would that day ever come? Ernie Barnes was one of the most important artists of his time, known for his style of elongation and movement. His work has influenced a generation of painters and illustrators and can be found in collections and museums such as the California African American Museum as well as the African American Museum in Philadelphia. -- From dust jacket
Strange fruit
"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." -- publisher
Hiromi’s hands
"A biography of Hiromi Suzuki, a Japanese American girl who, with her father's guidance, defies tradition and trains to become a sushi chef at her family's restaurant in New York City"--Provided by publisher
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