Please, Baby, Please, by Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee

Please, Baby, Please is our family's favorite book.  We read it daily when my son was younger, and even though he's now 4 we frequently return to this book with fondness.  It follows a willful toddler as she generally creates chaos for her parents and they repeatedly beg her to stop - "please, baby, baby, baby."

We also love it because of Kadir Nelson's gorgeous illustrations.  It's our dream to own one of his prints and we always have one of his New Yorker covers on our refrigerator.  His illustrations bring to life the vivacious, curious, and mischievous girl at the center of this story, as well as her loving and exhausted parents.

You without doubt need to own this book.

BUY HERE

The Story of Martin Luther King Jr., by Johnny Ray Moore

I looked hard to find a book about Martin Luther King Jr. appropriate for a young child.  At first, I didn't think this was it - at age 3 this book was a bit beyond my son given the topic matter.  But when we pulled it out to read this year for MLK Day, my now 4 year old son was engrossed and it lead to a lengthy discussion.  It's good for younger children in that it doesn't touch on how he died, but is clear about some of the wrongs Mr. King was seeking to right (segregated schools, restaurants, water fountains) and shows him experiencing discrimination as a young child.  My only complaint is that it doesn't touch any of the actions that Mr. King took to to achieve his goals, aside from referencing his 'I Have A Dream' speech - though we typically supplement and discuss his marches and meetings with politicians.  This is a board book and is therefore very short, but given that we ended up having a discussion about nearly every page is a great length for somewhat older children.

BUY HERE

Bippity Bop Barbershop, by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley

Every time my husband takes my son to the barbershop, they reenact this book - my husband does a silly knock on my son's door ("Bippity-be-bop-bop"), they get dressed together, and then stop for coffee and pastries on the way (though I've been informed the new cupcake shop has been more of an attraction lately).  Coincidentally, my son has the same haircut the boy and his father get in this story.  My son was initially terrified of the barbershop, and much preparation and many, many readings of this story went into his first trip.

However, this isn't merely an occasion book.  We read it constantly.  It's an appealing story about a boy overcoming his fears with his dad's assistance (similar to Jabari Jumps) and, though this may seem like an odd compliment - a great length.  It was one of the first big-boy books we read with our son and he was so drawn into the story that he didn't notice that it was substantially longer than the books we typically read.

BUY HERE

I Love My Hair! was created by the same author and illustrator team.

Ron's Big Mission, by Rose Blue and Corinne J. Naden

Ron's Big Mission strays from the primary mission of this site, in that rather than being a book that just happens to be about a child of color going about his life, it's a book that is that centers on race.  We generally avoid children's books about race.  They're frequently just bad books.  Preachy and boring with no real plot, they're not books that anyone would reach for if reading purely for pleasure. We have many, and my son never wants to read them (and I don't blame him).  I also dislike using children's books as a crutch for discussing race with children.  Discussions about race need to be frequent, frank, and ongoing - but all too often when parents are urged to discuss race and racism with their children they ask for a book recommendation.

All that said, Ron's Big Mission is an incredible book.  Ron McNair wakes up and bravely heads to South Caroline's Lake City Library - which bans black patrons from obtaining library cards.  Once there, he single-handedly stages a protest and refuses to leave until he is allowed to check out a book.  The head librarian realizes that the library's policy is wrong, and Ron becomes the first black person to check out a book from the library.  Ron's Big Mission is based on a true story, and the real Ron McNair went on to become an astronaut.

There are so many reasons we love this book.  For one, it's actually a good book, with beautiful pictures and an engaging fast-moving story that we've read over and over.  My son has pretended to be Ron McNair during several readings - standing on our coffee table and refusing to leave until he is allowed to check out a book.  Ron's bravery and intelligence is tied to his later accomplishments, and we've poured over the Author's Note detailing Ron's career as an astronaut.  Finally, while in our family we openly acknowledge racism is ongoing and protests are often long and violent and not always successful, this book provides a clear and easy to understand portrait of a single protest and it's a joy to revel in Ron's victory with our son.

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

Edited to add that we recently discovered the book Mae Among the Stars, by Roda Ahmed (a black author).  Although we're not quite as into this story as we are Ron's Big Mission, it's a solid book about Mae Jemison - the first black female astronaut.  And if you have a child interested in space, you should check it out.