One Plastic Bag, by Miranda Paul and illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon

 

BUY HERE (or, even better, request from your local library!)

Serena: The Littlest Sister, by Karlin Gray and illustrated by Monica Ahanonu

 

BUY HERE (or, even better, request at your local library)

Tiny Stitches: The Life of Medical Pioneer Vivien Thomas, by Gwendolyn Hooks

 

BUY HERE (or, even better, request at your local library)

Rocket Says Look Up and Rocket Says Clean Up, by Nathan Bryon and illustrated by Dapa Adeola

 

BUY HERE (Look) and BUY HERE (Clean) (or, even better, request at your local library)

Don't Touch My Hair, by Sharee Miller

Aria loves her hair but is fed up with everyone attempting to touch it.  She devises elaborate avoidance techniques, hides in the bushes, and even runs away to the tallest castle, but people (or fantastical creatures) STILL try and touch her hair. She finally gets fed up and yells "DON'T TOUCH MY HAIR!" and elaborates that people need to ask permission and respect her wishes.

It's simple but effective. To be honest, I somewhat reluctantly picked up Don't Touch My Hair by author-illustrator Sharee Miller, thinking my son probably wouldn't be interested and there wouldn't be much of a story involved. We've read a lot of books (seriously, so so many) that celebrate Black hair, but don't go beyond that and tell any sort of story to grab a child's interest. This and Bippity Bop Barbershop are the only two that my son has actually enjoyed and requested again.   

BUY HERE (or, even better, request at your local library)

WHOOSH! Lonnie Johnson's SUPER-SOAKING Stream of Inventions, by Chris Barton

We discovered this book when I was researching Black inventors to study that would catch my son's interest. Like most kids, he's obsessed with water guns and so a book about the inventor of the super soaker seemed perfect.

This book more than delivered! It manages to go through Lonnie Johnson's whole life -- from his childhood inventing rockets to his time at NASA, and finally to his invention of the super soaker and his struggles to find a toy company interested in his product -- with enough fun details to keep kids interested.  My son's favorite detail was that he "borrowed" his sister's walkie-talkie to finish up a robot he was building. 

The illustrations by Don Tate, a wonderful Black illustrator, which include a fold out page with water spraying all over toy company executives, were the icing on the cake.

            BUY HERE (or, even better, request at your local library)

The Last Last-Day-of-Summer, by Lamar Giles

I read The Last Last-Day-of-Summer out loud to my son in the days leading up to his first day of 1st grade.  We both loved it.  Some of the jokes and references were over his head, but he was generally able to follow the plot and was beginning to continue reading at the end of each chapter.  

The two main characters are Otto and Sheed Alston, Black cousins famous for their otherworldly adventures in their unusual town.  They are extremely close and both live with their grandmother (why this is or where their parents are goes unmentioned) and their main competitors are two Black sisters - one a wizard at robotics and the other nicknamed "Wiki" for the vast amount of knowledge she carries around in her head.  There's a nice aside at one point where Otto recalls his grandmother's reminder never to touch anyone without their permission - even if their body is frozen in time - and asks Wiki if he can touch her arm to unfreeze her.  

The book is a long and engaging read full of adventure, traps, "manuevers" to escape tricky situations, complex relationships, and richly drawn characters.  We're already eagerly waiting for the next book, and though we borrowed this from the library it may be one of the few we purchase to keep on the bookshelf for years to come.  

BUY HERE (or, even better, request at your local library)

Sergio Sees the Good, by Linda Ryden

I don't know how it's possible we hadn't come across this book previously - I love it, my son loves it, and it teaches an amazing lesson - it really should be a classic.  Sergio comes home fuming about his awful day at school, but his mom proposes a test of sorts - why don't they take a scale and put marbles on the 'good' and 'bad' sides representing everything that happened to him during his day.  The details are ones that will engage kids, such as mean kids stealing a basketball at the playground.  Sergio takes his mom through his day and realizes that maaaybe things weren't so bad after all.  There's a bit of an over-explanation of the concept of 'negativity bias' at the end of the book that I rush through as my son's eyes glaze over, but maybe an older child would be more into the concept - which is nicely illustrated through the story.

A couple times when we've read this book my son has enthusiastically tested out his own day - stacking magnatiles to represent 'good' and 'bad' things that happened to him and marveling at how much taller the good pile is!  This would be an especially good book if you happen to have a 'glass half full' type of kid.  

BUY HERE (or, even better, request at your local library!)

The Bat Boy & His Violin, by Gavin Curtis

Reginald, a young black boy who excels at the violin, lives with a father who prefers baseball, and in fact manages the Dukes - a team in the Negro National League.  His father signs him up to be bat boy, a task Reginald is largely uninterested in.  However, it turns out that the players love Reginald's music and it even seems to inspire them to play better!

This book was a natural fit for my sports (and music) obsessed son.  It does require that your child have a basic understanding of discrimination - the book is set in 1948, when baseball teams are becoming integrated but at the same time the Dukes aren't able to find a hotel to sleep in the night before their big game (with one clerk stating "We don't exactly cotton to coloreds sleepin' in our beds").  If your child loves Jackie Robinson as much as mine, this will deepen their understanding of his bravery and historical significance.

An added bonus is that this book is both written and illustrated by black men!

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

Hallelujah! A Christmas Celebration, by W. Nikola-Lisa

A brief, lyrical retelling of the Christmas story featuring a black Mary and Joseph and, repeatedly emphasized, a black baby Jesus.  I suspect that the bright, simple illustrations and poetic text appeal more to adults (in our case, my 5 year old listened impatiently and tossed the book aside when we were done), but it really depends on your child - may work best for younger children.

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

The All-I'll-Ever-Want Christmas Doll, by Patricia C. McKissack

Another lukewarm endorsement of a Christmas book.  This one featuring a black family living during the Great Depression, written by a black author and illustrated by the amazing Jerry Pinkney, a black illustrator.

Laura wishes for a Baby Betty Doll more than anything, and miraculously receives on one Christmas morning.  She refuses to share the doll with her sisters, but finally realizes that she'll have more fun if they all play with the doll together - eventually throwing a tea party and proclaiming it the best Christmas ever.  My son found this story a bit of a downer for Christmas -- it's so hard to find books featuring black kids that it stands out when they are the ones that feature a family in hard times.  Though this if a function of the scarcity of books featuring black families rather than a criticism of the story itself.  In addition, a very minor point, but Santa is referred to as "Santy Claus" throughout which I find incredibly grating, though perhaps appropriate for the period of time the book is set in?

BUY HERE (or request from your local library!)

I Got the Christmas Spirit, by Connie Schofield-Morrison

A somewhat reluctant endorsement for this book.  For two reasons - first, the book features a white Santa (see photo below).  And second, there isn't much of a story - a young black girl wakes up on a day leading up to Christmas and goes about festive activities: holiday shopping, caroling, ice skating, visiting Santa (all beautifully illustrated).  However, the text focuses on the spirit of the holiday.  "I sparkled in the spirit of the lights.  Bling Bling!  I felt the sprit deep down in my soul... "  We read it once and it's going back to the library because my son concluded that he didn't enjoy the story.  However, if your child (and you) is more tolerant of picture books that aren't plot-driven or if you're just desperate for a beautiful holiday book that features a black girl then definitely check this out.

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

Sisters & Champions, by Howard Bryant

My son and I are both obsessed with the Williams sisters (and tennis), which is why I was so excited when I came across this children's book discussing their childhood and rise to fame!  The fact that it is written by Howard Bryant (a black author) and illustrated by Floyd Cooper (a black illustrator) is an added bonus.

The book does touch on the fact that Venus and Serena were raised in a rough neighborhood and have faced racism, but the focus is on their hard work, incredible talent, and close relationship.  The story doesn't have too much of a narrative arc, so I'd primarily recommend this book for tennis fans and those interested in exposing their children to important black historical figures.

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

Astronaut Annie, by Suzanne Slade

Annie (a black girl) comes home from school excited about career day, and each of her family members is positive that she plans on following in their footsteps.  Annie finds a way to connect her true goal to each of her family member's interests - and finally announces at a school assembly that she plans on being an astronaut.

This book shows a close family where the grandparents appear to live in the same home with grandchildren and parents.  Annie is supported, encouraged, and loved by the adults in her life.  My son loves this book because nobody (aside from him!) is able to guess what Annie plans on being as an adult.  After the story, there is a a brief summary of 4 female astronauts (we focus on 1 each time we read the story) as well as the phases of the moon.

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

The Ring Bearer, by Floyd Cooper

I've hesitated to recommend this book since I've seen it so widely recommended already - but my son and I were reading it yet again today and so, why not?  It's a great book that can be read over and over without parent or child getting tired of it (and a must for children whose mom or dad is getting married).  Though this book was published in 2017, it already feels like a classic.

In this book entirely populated by black characters, Jackson's mom is getting married to Sophie's dad.  Jackson is worried about lots of things, but primarily about tripping while carrying the rings down the aisle.  However, when flower girl Sophie trips in front of him, Jackson forgets his fears and rushes to assist his little sister-to-be.  Everyone cheers, and a new family is formed!

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History, by Vashti Harrison

I'm always super ambitious about Black History Month, but never feel like I'm doing a good enough job.  This year, thanks to Little Leaders, our son is obsessed with reading about "amazing black people."  We stumbled onto a really fun and easy approach about a week ago when we bought this book, each day (or, more honestly, most days) we let our son page through the book and pick one person he wants to learn more about.  Then we read that page to him, along with a lot of discussion, and then supplement!  For example, when we read the Nina Simone entry we listened to her music during dinner.  The day we read about Dominque Dawes we watched her gymnastics routines on YouTube.  Some are more difficult to add to, but that hasn't decreased our son's interest so far.  His favorite entry was that of Mary Bowser (pictured below), in part because we have recently started to discuss slavery with him (and read him Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad for the first time), but more importantly because she was a SPY, which is like one step away from being a superhero.  

BUY HERE

(And if you're looking for other books about black history, 

our favorite remains Ron's Big Mission, which I wrote 

about previously here.

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

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.  

The Nutcracker in Harlem, by T.E. McMorrow

Parents will find this retelling of The Nutcracker with an all black cast (except for the mouse army, of course) particularly appealing.  My son enjoys it as well, though not as much as my husband and me.  The story is set during the Harlem Renaissance with references to musicians Cab Calloway and Adelaide Hall, and focuses on the main character Marie gaining confidence as a singer and drummer.

BUY HERE