National Poetry Month 2025 - Books for Children

Updated March 26, 2025
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Black star
Alexander, Kwame
Paper Book
A Coretta Scott King Honor Book The thrilling second book in the #1 New York Times bestselling Door of No Return trilogy stars Kofi's granddaughter, Charley, who's set on becoming the first female pitcher to play professional ball but who...
Deer run home : a novel in verse
LeZotte, Ann Clare
Paper Book
Effie is Deaf, and no one in her family speaks sign language, her language. This moving story of survival and found family, inspired by a true court case, is perfect for fans of Wonder and Out of My Mind. * "Quietly extraordinary." --Kirkus Reviews,...
I heard : an American journey
Avery, J. Nailah
Paper Book
A powerful and poetic picture book about Black history in the United States, from the shores of Africa and slavery, to the civil rights and Black Lives Matter movements. With stunning lyricism reminiscent of traditional African spirituals and today's rhythm and flow of hip-hop, a...
How to write a poem
Alexander, Kwame
Paper Book
In this evocative and playful companion to their New York Times bestselling picture book How to Read a Book, Newbery Medalist Kwame Alexander teams up with poet Deanna Nikaido and Caldecott Honoree Melissa Sweet to celebrate the magic of discovering your very own poetry in the world...
In praise of mystery
Limón, Ada
Paper Book
U.S. poet laureate, Ada Limón was invited by NASA to write a poem to be engraved on the Europa Clipper spacecraft. That poem, "In Praise of Mystery: A Poem for Europa" launched to Jupiter and its moons on October 14, 2024. Reimagined as In Praise of Mystery, Limón's debut picture book, this...
Jam, too?
Brown-Wood, JaNay
Paper Book
Lustrous illustrations and a rhythmic text featuring a cumulative list of sounds bring to life the thrill of an impromptu jam session and the joy of making music together. A drum circle is forming on the beach, and one fascinated child would love to join in. Soon there's...
Louder than hunger
Schu, John
Paper Book
A New York Times bestseller! A Schneider Family Book Award Honor Book "Every so often a book comes along that is so brave and necessary, it extends a lifeline when it's needed most. This is one of those books." --Katherine Applegate, author of the Newbery Medal-winning,...
The mistakes that made us : confessions from twenty poets
Latham, Irene/ Waters, Charles/ Lp ez, Merc (ILT)
Paper Book
Scoring a goal against your own team. Copying a classmate's schoolwork. Accepting a dare to jump down the stairs . . . and getting hurt. This engrossing poetry anthology explores making mistakes and learning from them. Twenty brave poets―Linda Sue Park, Margarita Engle, Allan Wolf,...
Moonwalking
Elliott, Zetta
Paper Book
"This novel in verse, alternately narrated by two boys in 1980s Greenpoint, Brooklyn, one channeled by Elliott and one by Miller-Lachmann, eloquently tackles race, culture and life on the spectrum." -- The New York Times For fans of Jason Reynolds and Jacqueline Woodson,...
Murray out of water
Tracy, Taylor
Paper Book
Perfect for fans of Rebecca Stead, Natalie Lloyd, and Jasmine Warga, this beautiful novel in verse explores one girl's struggle to regain her magic after a hurricane forces her to move away from her beloved ocean that, she believes, has given her special powers. Bighearted...
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...
The Other Side of Tomorrow
Cho, Tina
Paper Book
Booklist Editor's Choice of 2024: Books for Youth School Library Journal Best Book of 2024 Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2024 A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection Perfect for fans of Illegal and When Stars Are Scattered, this poignant and moving...
Remember
Harjo, Joy
Paper Book
THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER .AN AMERICAN INDIAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION HONOR BOOK.A BOSTON GLOBE-HORN BOOK HONOR AWARD . NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY School Library Journal . Publishers Weekly . The Horn Book .NPR . The Bulletin . Kirkus Reviews
The scraps book : notes from a colorful life
Ehlert, Lois
Paper Book
The renowned Caldecott Honoree and illustrator of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom provides a moving, intimate, and inspiring inside look at her colorful picture book career. Lois Ehlert always knew she was an artist. Her parents encouraged her from a young age by teaching her how...
Something, someday
Gorman, Amanda
Paper Book
The stunning new picture book by presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman and Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator Christian Robinson You're told that This won't work, But how will you know If you never try? Presidential...
Stopping by jungle on a snowy evening
Morris, Richard T.
Paper Book
In the spirit of Lane Smith and Jon Klassen, this delightfully irreverent picture book dives into the world of Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening," where a boy with a unique vision gives some creative feedback to the famed poet. When Robert Frost writes, "Whose...
Thank you, garden
Scanlon, Elizabeth Garton
Paper Book
From the author of the Caldecott Honor-winning picture book All the World comes an exuberant, lyrical celebration of the plants--and people--that grow and thrive in a busy community garden. A community garden unites children and neighbors in this celebration of all...
Unsinkable Cayenne
Vitalis, Jessica
Paper Book
2025 NCTE Notable Verse Novel "Intensely readable." --School Library Journal (starred review) When her unconventional parents finally agree to settle down in one place, twelve-year-old Cayenne's dreams come true--but the reality of fitting in is much harder than she imagined....
When I wrap my hair
Grant, Shauntay
Paper Book
In the vein of I Am Enough and Hold Them Close, this inspiring and beautiful picture book celebrates how hair wrapping ties together past and present. When I wrap, my roots run deep. As deep as an African marketplace or a city sidewalk or the...
Zin! zin! zin! a violin
Moss, Lloyd.
CD
A Caldecott Honor book that is the perfect introduction to musical instruments and a counting book that redefines the genre. When this book begins, the trombone is playing all by itself. But soon a trumpet makes a duet, a french horn a trio, and so on until the entire orchestra...

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