Black Voices & Culture: Books for Kids

How about celebrating Black History Month by reading a title by a Black author that is new to you? And, keep reading Black books all year long! Black books matter. From learning to read to reading to learn, all kids need books that reflect their own lived experience, as well as books that depict a multiplicity of cultures, skin colors, and points of view.

Updated January 17, 2025
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LINCC (Libraries in Clackamas County) Happy Valley Library
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The Juneteenth cookbook : recipes and activities for kids and families to celebrate
Agostini, Alliah L.
Paper Book
Celebrate and explore Juneteenth with your kids through Black American food and cultural traditions.
An American story
Alexander, Kwame
Paper Book
A Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Book A 2023 New York Times Best Children's Book A 2023 Publisher's Weekly Best Picture Book An NPR Best Book of the Year #1 New York Times Bestselling and...
Amari and the night brothers
Alston, B. B.
Paper Book
New York Times bestseller! Artemis Fowl meets Men in Black in this exhilarating debut middle grade fantasy, the first in a series filled with #blackgirlmagic. Perfect for fans of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, the Percy Jackson series, and Nevermoor. Amari Peters has...
Words are magic!
Avant-garde, Zaila
Paper Book
Scripps National Spelling Bee champ Zaila Avant-garde shares her love of words with new readers in this level 1 Step Into Reading book. A SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Words are magic! Have you heard? Pick a letter. Make a word!
Ketanji Brown Jackson : a justice for all
Charles, Tami
Paper Book
Discover the incredible story of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who followed her childhood dream of becoming a lawyer and eventually became the first Black woman to sit on the US Supreme Court in this picture book biography. After 232 years and 115 appointments, Ketanji Onyika...
Swim team
Christmas, Johnnie
Paper Book
"Combines wonderful characters and history to create a story that will make you want to dive right in!" JERRY CRAFT, author of the Newbery Medal-winning New Kid A splashy, contemporary middle grade graphic novel from bestselling comics creator Johnnie Christmas! Bree can't wait for...
One big open sky
Cline-Ransome, Lesa
Paper Book
A Newbery Honor Book Three women narrate a perilous wagon journey westward that could set them free--or cost them everything they have--in this intergenerational verse novel that explores the history of the Black homesteader movement. 1879, Mississippi. Young dreamer...
Dragons in a bag
Elliott, Zetta
Paper Book
The dragon's out of the bag in this diverse, young urban fantasy from an award-winning author! When Jaxon is sent to spend the day with a mean old lady his mother calls Ma, he finds out she's not his grandmother--but she is a witch! She needs his help delivering...
A walk in the woods
Grimes, Nikki
Paper Book
In this moving account of loss, a boy takes a walk in the woods and makes a discovery that changes his understanding of his father. A week after the funeral I stare in the morning mirror, angry that my father's eyes stare back at me....
Freedom Fire: Black Girl Power: 15 Stories Celebrating Black Girlhood
Johnson, Leah
Paper Book
AN INSTANT USA TODAY BEST SELLER Kirkus Reviews Best of 2024 list, Best of Middle Grade A vibrant, heartwarming collection of 15 middle grade stories and poems that celebrates the joy, strength, and experience of Black girlhood, including stories from Ibi Zoboi, Sharon M...
Do you know them?
Keller, Shana
Paper Book
A moving and triumphant picture book inspired by the printed newspaper ads placed by African Americans who were separated from family members by the Civil War, enslavement, and emancipation. After the war's end, everyone is missing someone. Lettie's missing her family. They had...
Freewater
Luqman-Dawson, Amina
Paper Book
Winner of the John Newbery Medal Winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award  An Indiebound Bestseller A New York Times Bestseller Award-winning author Amina Luqman-Dawson pens a lyrical,...
Camp-out
Lyons, Kelly Starling
Paper Book
Ty makes his I Can Read Comic debut! Featuring a bold comic styling by New York Times bestselling illustrator Niña Mata and a compelling easy-to-read text by Kelly Starling Lyons, this Level One I Can Read Comic is the perfect summertime story for beginning readers! ...
Rise of the green flame
Mensah, Bernard (Children's author)
Paper Book
Magic, adventure, and friendship come together in Kwame's Magic Quest, an action-packed, fully illustrated early chapter book series perfect for fans of Dragon Masters! Pick a book. Grow a Reader! This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line, Branches, aimed at newly...
Jerry changed the game! : how engineer Jerry Lawson revolutionized video games forever
Tate, Don
Paper Book
Junior Library Guild Selection | Eureka! Excellence in Nonfiction Honor | CBC Best STEM Book List | Mathical Book Prize Honor | BCALA Youth Literary Nonfiction Award | Communication Arts Illustration Shortlist Meet Jerry Lawson, the Black engineer who revolutionized the video...
How do you spell unfair? : MacNolia Cox and the National Spelling Bee
Weatherford, Carole Boston
Paper Book
A Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book "This moving picture book portrays a girl who met injustice with dignity and excelled."--Booklist (starred review) From a multi-award-winning pair comes a deeply affecting portrait of...
Lotus Bloom and the Afro Revolution
Winston, Sherri
Paper Book
Longlisted for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature Member of the 2023 Notable Books for a Global Society (NGBS) List From the beloved author of President of the Whole Fifth Grade, a story about a young Black girl who summons the...

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