By Sundee Frazier Melvin Robinson wants a strong, smooth, He-Man voice that lets him say what he wants, when he wants—especially to his crush Millie Takazawa, and Gary Ratliff, who constantly puts him down. But the thought of starting high school is only making his stutter worse. And Melvin’s growing awareness that racism is everywhere—not…
By Marilyn Nelson with Tammi Lawson A powerful biography in poems about a trailblazing artist and a pillar of the Harlem Renaissance—with an afterword by the curator of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Augusta Savage was arguably the most influential American artist of the 1930s. A gifted sculptor, Savage was commissioned to…
By Bil Wright In this moving young adult novel, acclaimed author Bil Wright tells the story of one girl’s search to find a home where she truly belongs. Lahni Schuler is the only black student at her private prep school. She’s also the adopted child of two loving, but white, parents who are on the…
By Bil Wright Strength and resilience fuel an urban teen’s fight for survival in this acclaimed novel from Bil Wright that “delivers a knock-out punch” (Venus Magazine). Fourteen-year-old Louis Bowman lives in a boxing ring—a housing project circa 1968—and is fighting “just to get to the end of the round.” Sharing the ring is his…
By Bil Wright Carlos Duarte knows that he’s fabulous. He’s got a better sense of style than half the fashionistas in New York City, and he can definitely apply makeup like nobody’s business. He may only be in high school, but when he lands the job of his dreams–makeup artist at the FeatureFace counter in…
By Cecil Cross Not every lesson is learned in school… Second semester, second chances, and James “JD” Dawson has a lot to prove at the University of Atlanta. JD needs to shake academic probation, but he and his crew still act as if college is one big frat party. After all the drama of first…
By Cecil Cross James “JD” Dawson grew up in the hood, but left a lifeof violence three thousand miles behind to makesomething of himself at University of Atlanta. But whenthe freshman got off to a fool’s start—kicking it with hisnew homeboys, showing up late to class, not studyingand checking out the shorties—JD was assigned a…
Written by Derrick Barnes Illustrated by John John Bajet Celebrate the unheralded people and stories that helped shape the game of baseball! Meet unsung pioneers, like John “Bud” Fowler, William Edward White, and brothers Moses Fleetwood Walker and Weld Walker, four African Americans who integrated white teams decades before Jackie Robinson. Discover unforgettable moments, like the…
By Bethany Hegedus It’s hard to be a “Black Sheep Baxter,” at least for 12-year-old Polly. From a poor white family, Polly’s best friend, Timbre Ann Biggs, is black, making them the only “salt-and-pepper” friends in town. But in that fall of 1959, life in quiet Holcolm County starts to heat up as one by…
By Bethany Hegedus Lots of families have secrets. Little-Known Fact: My family has an antebellum house with a locked wing—and I’ve got a secret of my own.I thought getting kicked out of the Gifted & Talented program—or not being “pegged,” as Mama said—was the worst thing that could happen to me. W-r-o-n-g, wrong.I arrived in Tweedle, Georgia,…
