Women's History Month: Books for Kids, Middle Grades, and Families

Updated February 26, 2025
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Ablaze With Color : A Story of Painter Alma Thomas
Harvey, Jeanne Walker/ Wise, Loveis (ILT)
Paper Book
Celebrate the life-changing power of art in this inspiring and stunningly illustrated picture book biography of American artist Alma Thomas. Meet an incredible woman who broke down barriers throughout her whole life and is now known as one of the most preeminent painters of...
Alia's mission : saving the books of Iraq : inspired by a true story
Stamaty, Mark Alan.
Paper Book
The inspiring story of an Iraqi librarian's courageous fight to save books from the Basra Central Library before it was destroyed in the war. It is 2003 and Alia Muhammad Baker, the chief librarian of the Central Library in Basra, Iraq, has grown worried given the increased likelihood of war...
I am Amelia Earhart
Meltzer, Brad
Paper Book
Groundbreaking American pilot Amelia Earhart is the 2nd hero in the New York Times bestselling picture book biography series for ages 5 to 8. Amelia Earhart refused to accept no for an answer; she dared to do what no one had ever done before, and became the first woman to...
I am Jane Goodall
Meltzer, Brad
Paper Book
This tenth book in the New York Times bestselling biography series profiles Jane Goodall, the scientist and conservationist who is famous for her work with chimpanzees. After receivinga stuffed animal chimpanzee for her first birthday, Jane Goodall's love of animals only...
Art from her heart : folk artist Clementine Hunter
Whitehead, Kathy
Paper Book
A picture book biography of the remarkable folk artist Clementine Hunter. Can you imagine being an artist who isn't allowed into your own show? That's what happened to folk artist Clementine Hunter. Her paintings went from hanging on her clothesline to hanging in museums, yet...
Astronauts : women on the final frontier
Ottaviani, Jim
Paper Book
In the graphic novel Astronauts: Women on the Final Frontier, Jim Ottaviani and illustrator Maris Wicks capture the great humor and incredible drive of Mary Cleave, Valentina Tereshkova, and the first women in space. The U.S. may have put the first man on the moon, but...
The belly song
Mother Moon
Paper Book
Sing along in this joyful celebration of your baby's perfect belly. Named one of the Best Books of 2024 by Chicago Public Library! "As the pages celebrate many different kinds of human bellies, they simultaneously model a wealth of loving connections...
Miles Morales. Suspended
Reynolds, Jason
Paper Book
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Jason Reynolds comes the "action-packed...banter-filled" (School Library Journal, starred review) sequel to his groundbreaking young adult novel Miles Morales: Spider-Man about the adventures of the unassuming, everyday kid who just...
Child of the flower-song people : Luz Jim?ez, daughter of the Nahua
Amescua, Gloria
Paper Book
She was Luz Jiménez, child of the flower-song people, the powerful Aztec, who called themselves Nahua- who lost their land but who did not disappear. As a young Nahua girl in Mexico during the early 1900s, Luz learned how to...
Classified : the secret career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee aerospace engineer
Sorell, Traci
Paper Book
An American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award Honor Picture Book Mary Golda Ross designed classified airplanes and spacecraft as Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's first female engineer. Find out how her passion for math and the Cherokee values she was raised with shaped her...
Coretta : the autobiography of Mrs. Coretta Scott King
King, Coretta Scott
Paper Book
Celebrate the life of the extraordinary civil and human rights activist Coretta Scott King with this picture book adaptation of her critically acclaimed adult memoir. This is the autobiography of Coretta Scott King--wife of Martin Luther King, Jr.; founder of the Martin Luther...
Danza! Amalia Hernández and el Ballet Folklórico de Mexico
Tonatiuh, Duncan
Paper Book
Award-winning author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh tells the story of Amalia Hern\u00e1ndez, dancer and founder of El Ballet Folkl\u00f3rico de M\u00e9xico. Published in time for the 100th anniversary of Hern\u00e1ndez's birth, Danza! is the first picture book about the famous...
Drum dream girl : how one girl's courage changed music
Engle, Margarita
Paper Book
Girls cannot be drummers. Long ago on an island filled with music, no one questioned that rule--until the drum dream girl. In her city of drumbeats, she dreamed of pounding tall congas and tapping small bongós. She had to keep quiet. She had to practice in secret. But when at...
Exquisite : the poetry and life of Gwendolyn Brooks
Slade, Suzanne
Paper Book
A picture-book biography of celebrated poet Gwendolyn Brooks, the first Black person to win the Pulitzer Prize Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) is known for her poems about "real life." She wrote about love, loneliness, family, and poverty-showing readers how just about anything could become a beautiful...
Finding Junie Kim
Oh, Ellen
Paper Book
For fans of Inside Out and Back Again and Amina's Voice comes a breathtaking story of family, hope, and survival from Ellen Oh, cofounder of We Need Diverse Books. When Junie Kim is faced with middle school racism, she learns of her grandparents' extraordinary strength and...
The first rule of punk
P
Paper Book
A2018 Pura Belpre Author Honor Book The First Rule of Punk is a wry and heartfelt exploration of friendship, finding your place, and learning to rock out like no one's watching. There are no shortcuts to surviving your first day at a new school-you can't fix...
Gaga mistake day
Straub, Emma
Paper Book
When Grandma comes for a visit, silliness and creativity are guaranteed, in this funny and endearing book by bestselling novelist Emma Straub; her kids' gaga, Susan Straub; and award-winning illustrator Jessica Love. Gaga days are the best! That's when this eccentric, mischievous...
Go forth and tell : the life of Augusta Baker, librarian and master storyteller
McDaniel, Breanna J.
Paper Book
Ezra Jack Keats Writer Award Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Kirkus Best Books of the Year Chicago Public Library Best Books of the Year New York Public Library Best Books of the Year ALSC Notable Children's Books Horn Book Fanfare BolognaRazzi Award...
Grace for president
DiPucchio, Kelly.
Paper Book
A fresh, fun, and "thought-provoking" New York Times bestseller about the American electoral college and why every vote counts from bestselling and award-winning duo Kelly DiPucchio and LeUyen Pham. "Where are the girls?" When Grace's teacher reveals that the...
Hidden figures : the true story of four black women and the space race
Shetterly, Margot Lee
Paper Book
Based on the New York Times bestselling book and the Academy Award-nominated movie, author Margot Lee Shetterly and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award winner Laura Freeman bring the incredibly inspiring true story of four black women who helped NASA launch men into space to picture book...
How women won the vote : Alice Paul, Lucy Burns, and their big idea
Bartoletti, Susan Campbell
Paper Book
This is how history should be told to kids--with photos, illustrations, and captivating storytelling. From Newbery Honor medalist Susan Campbell Bartoletti and in time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage in America comes the page-turning, stunningly illustrated, and...
Kamala Harris : rooted in justice
Grimes, Nikki
Paper Book
Discover the incredible story of a young daughter of immigrants who would grow up to be the first woman, first Black person, and first South Asian American ever elected Vice President of the United States--and in a history-making turn of events, became the Democrats' 2024 Presidential...
Ketanji: Justice Jackson's Journey to the U.S. Supreme Court
Magoon, Kekla
Paper Book
From two Coretta Scott King Honor winners comes this uplifting picture book biography about Ketanji Brown Jackson, who is making history as the first Black woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice. Ketanji Brown Jackson is no stranger to overcoming obstacles. When a high school guidance...
A kind of spark
McNicoll, Elle
Paper Book
Perfect for readers of Song for a Whale and Counting by 7s, a neurodivergent girl campaigns for a memorial when she learns that her small Scottish town used to burn witches simply because they were different. "A must-read for students and adults alike." ...
Ladies of liberty : the women who shaped our nation
Roberts, Cokie
Paper Book
"This collection succeeds in emphasizing that many unsung women left their mark well before the suffrage movement." --Publishers Weekly Fans of #1 New York Times bestselling author Cokie Roberts, who was also a celebrated journalist for ABC and NPR, will love this stunning nonfiction...
The Last Cuentista
Higuera, Donna Barba
Paper Book
Winner of the John Newbery Medal Winner of the Pura Belpré Award From Pura Belpré Award winner and Newbery Medalist, Donna Barba Higuera--a brilliant journey through the stars, to the very heart of what makes us...
Mae among the stars
Ahmed, Roda
Paper Book
A beautiful picture book for sharing and marking special occasions such as graduation, inspired by the life of the first African American woman to travel in space, Mae Jemison. An Amazon Best Book of the Month! A great classroom and bedtime read-aloud, Mae Among the Stars is the...
Malala's magic pencil
Yousafzai, Malala
Paper Book
Nobel Peace Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author Malala Yousafzai's first picture book, inspired by her own childhood. Malala's first picture book will inspire young readers everywhere to find the magic all around them. As a child in Pakistan, Malala...
Mary wears what she wants
Negley, Keith
Paper Book
From the award-winning creator of My Dad Used to Be So Cool and Tough Guys Have Feelings Too comes a charming picture book inspired by the true story of Mary Edwards Walker, a trailblazing 19th-century doctor who was arrested many times for wearing pants. Once upon a time (but not that...
Miss Dorothy and her bookmobile
Houston, Gloria.
Paper Book
Dorothy's dearest wish is to be a librarian in a fine brick library just like the one she visited when she was small. But her new home in North Carolina has valleys and streams but no libraries, so Miss Dorothy and her neighbors decide to start a bookmobile. Instead of people coming...
Miss Mary reporting : the true story of sportswriter Mary Garber
Macy, Sue
Paper Book
"A heartfelt, informative, and thoroughly engaging picture book biography." --School Library Journal (starred review) From beloved author Sue Macy comes an illustrated biography of Mary Garber, one of the first female sports journalists in American history! ...
Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales 11 : Cold War Correspondent
Hale, Nathan
Paper Book
Discover the Korean War through the eyes of a journalist who covered it in author-illustrator Nathan Hale's Cold War Correspondent, a Hazardous Tale in the New York Times bestselling graphic novel series. In 1950, Marguerite Higgins (1920-1966) was made bureau...
Nina : a story of Nina Simone
Todd, Traci N.
Paper Book
A 2022 Coretta Scott King Book Award Honoree!   This luminous, defining picture book biography illustrated by Caldecott Honoree Christian Robinson, tells the remarkable and inspiring story of acclaimed singer Nina Simone and her bold, defiant, and exultant legacy. ...
The oldest student how Mary Walker learned to read
Hubbard, Rita L.
Paper Book
Imagine learning to read at the age of 116! Discover the true story of Mary Walker, the nation's oldest student who did just that, in this picture book from a Caldecott Honor-winning illustrator and a rising star author. In 1848, Mary Walker was born into slavery. At age 15, she...
Olga and the smelly thing from nowhere
Gravel, Elise
Paper Book
A Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year! Meet Olga, the amazing child scientist who LOVES animals (because they are super-cute)! Brightly put this heavily illustrated don't-miss book on their "Ultimate Summer Reading List for 9- to 12-Year-Olds." Olga and...
Planting stories the life of librarian and storyteller Pura Belpré
Denise, Anika
Paper Book
RECIPIENT OF THE PURA BELPRÉ HONOR  * A Today Show's Best Kids' Books of 2019 * Indie Next List Pick * Junior Library Guild Selection *  "An appealing tribute and successful remedy to the lack of titles about the groundbreaking librarian...a must...
The power of her pen : the story of groundbreaking journalist Ethel L. Payne
Cline-Ransome, Lesa
Paper Book
"A powerful story." --The Horn Book "A worthy addition to children's biography collections." --Booklist "A solid treatment of an important but little-known figure, and it may prompt kids to think about the role and composition of a free press....
Rock, Rosetta, rock! Roll, Rosetta, roll! : presenting sister Rosetta Tharpe, the godmother of rock & roll
Bolden, Tonya
Paper Book
"A profile as bold and vivacious as the singer herself." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Terrific for all collections that want to inspire the musically inclined and highlight innovative pioneers." --ALA Booklist (starred review) "Bolden uses alliteration, assonance, repetition,...
She caught the light : Williamina Stevens Fleming, astronomer
Lasky, Kathryn
Paper Book
From Newbery Honor-winning author Kathryn Lasky comes a nonfiction picture book about the stars! Lasky tells the inspiring true story of astronomer Williamina Fleming, who helped lay the foundations for modern astronomy and overcame impossible odds as an immigrant and a woman. For stargazers...
That Book Woman
Henson, Heather.
Paper Book
An exquisitely illustrated paean to everyone who struggles to learn how to read, and to everyone who won't give up on them. Cal is not the readin' type. Living way high up in the Appalachian Mountains, he'd rather help Pap plow or go out after wandering sheep than try some book...
To boldly go : how Nichelle Nichols and Star trek helped advance civil rights
Dalton, Angela
Paper Book
A CCBC 2024 Choices for the Historical People, Places, and Events selection! Perfect for fans of Hidden Figures and Mae Among the Stars! To Boldly Go tells the true story of Nichelle Nichols and how she used her platform on Star Trek to inspire and recruit a new generation of...
Unbeatable Betty : the first female Olympic track & field gold medalist
Kimmel, Allison Crotzer
Paper Book
An inspiring picture book biography of the first woman to win a gold medal in track and field. Young readers intrigued by the Summer 2021 Olympics in Tokyo will be inspired by this story. This nonfiction picture book is an excellent choice to share during homeschooling, in particular for...

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