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IMC Book Displays: Home

What's in this guide?

Our latest acquisitions in Children's and Young Adult Literature, as well as Teacher Resources, are featured here. 

Click on any cover to see more information about that book in the library catalog, or stop by the IMC to check them out!

New Children's and Young Adult (YA) Books in the IMC

Bear in a Bathrobe

Picture Book
By Maddie Frost
Recommended: Grades K to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "Bear learns to face his fears with a little help from his friends and his comforting bathrobe that acts as a security blanket." -- Provided by publisher
--From Publisher's Description

Just Like Millie

Picture Book
By Lauren Castillo
Recommended: Grades K to 3
Pages: 32
Summary: "A shy young girl finds exploring her new city and making friends overwhelming until a rescue dog helps her uncover the bravery that was always in her." --From Publisher's Description

The Wrong Book

Picture Book
By Drew Daywalt
Recommended: Grades PreK to 2
Pages: 32
Summary: "The narrator is WRONG about everything in this book, including that bicycles say cock-a-doodle-doo and firefighters shout Ding Dong before putting out a fire!" --From Publisher's Description

Fail-A-Bration

Picture Book
By Brad Montague
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "You are cordially invited to take pride in all of your efforts and the fact that you tried!" --From Publisher's Description

The Last Stand

Picture Book
By Antwan Eady
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "A little boy is excited to work alongside his Papa at their stand in the farmer's market, but when Papa cannot make it to the stand, his community gathers around him, with dishes made of his own produce." --From Publisher's Description

Bookie and Cookie

Picture Book
By Blanca Gómez
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "When their usual routine is disrupted, Bookie and Cookie, best friends who live on opposite pages, learn to bridge their differences and explore new experiences together." --From Publisher's Description

Lost Words

Picture Book
By Leila Boukarim
Recommended: Ages 5 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Based on the author's family history, a young Armenian boy is forced to leave his home and trek across the desert until he finds refuge in Lebanon--and only years later does he find the words to tell his own children the story." --From Publisher's Description

ARTificial Intelligence

Picture Book
By David Biedrzycki
Recommended: Grades K to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "Robot works in a warehouse, but he keeps making mistakes. While out in the big city he discovers what he was missing: art!" --From Publisher's Description

How to Sing a Song

Picture Book
By Kwame Alexander
Recommended: Grades PreK to 2
Pages: 32
Summary: "Playful text and inventive artwork encourage readers to celebrate the magic of discovering their very own song--and singing it." --From Publisher's Description

The Walk

Picture Book
By Winsome Bingham
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "As a little girl accompanies her grandma on a walk to the polling station, members of their community join and the grandmother explains the importance of their journey." --From Publisher's Description

Being Home

Picture Book
By Traci Sorell
Recommended: Grades K to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "On a day filled with anticipation, a young Cherokee girl bids farewell to her familiar city life as her family moves to their ancestral land." --From Publisher's Description

American Desi

Picture Book
By Jyoti R. Gopal
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "An American child of Southeast Asian descent revels in dances, clothing, games, foods and other characteristics of both cultures, while blending them into what makes her unique." --From Publisher's Description

Bros

Picture Book
By Carole Boston Weatherford
Recommended: Grades PreK-1
Pages: 32
Summary: "From sunrise to sunset, a group of young Black boys joyously spend the day together as they live their best lives freely in their community." --From Publisher's Description

The Real Story

Picture Book
By Sergio Ruzzier
Recommended: Ages 3 to 6
Pages: 32
Summary: "When Cat asks Mouse how the cookie jar broke and where the cookies went, Mouse tells Cat implausible story after implausible story." --From Publisher's Description

The Blue Bowl

Picture Book
By Flo Leung
Recommended: Ages 4 to 7
Pages: 32
Summary: "A young boy and his family discover a way to merge their Chinese and North American backgrounds by combining traditional foods from both cultures." --From Publisher's Description

The Unboxing of a Black Girl

Poetry
By Angela Shanté
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 148
Summary: "Written as a collection of vignettes and poetry, The Unboxing of a Black Girl is a creative nonfiction reflection on Black girlhood. As Shanté navigates New York City through memory, she balances poetry with vignettes that explore the innocence and joy of childhood eroded by adultification." --From Publisher's Description

We, the Curious Ones

Poetry
By Marion Dane Bauer
Recommended: Grades 1 to 4
Pages: 32
Summary: "Since the beginning, humans have created stories about the universe. From early mythology to modern-day science is a long journey... What will we believe tomorrow?" --From Publisher's Description

Animal Albums from A to Z

Poetry
By Cece Bell
Recommended: Grades K-3
Pages: 32
Summary: "This quirky ABC book draws on albums, memorabilia, and lyrics dating between 1944-1984 and adds wry, witty text, silly and sumptuous sound play, and bright, zany art to tickle young funny bones." --From Publisher's Description

Almost Underwear

Nonfiction
By Jonathan Roth
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Here is the amazing true story of how a single piece of cloth--originally destined to become underwear--was used in the design of the Wright brothers' Flyer, traveled to the Moon with Apollo 11, and is currently wandering Mars on Ingenuity." --From Publisher's Description

The Mine Wars

Nonfiction
By Steve Watkins
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 224
Summary: "The true story of the West Virginia coal miners who, in May of 1920, took a stand against low wages, unsafe conditions, and brutal treatment, and ignited the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest labor uprising in American history." --From Publisher's Description

Everything I Learned about Racism I Learned in School

Nonfiction
By Tiffany Jewell
Recommended: Ages 13 and Up
Pages: 258
Summary: "This overarching nonfiction narrative follows the author from early elementary school through her time at college, unpacking the history of systemic racism in the American educational system along the way, as other writers share a wide variety of stories based on their own school experiences." --From Publisher's Description

How to Apologize

Nonfiction
By David LaRochelle
Recommended: Grades PreK to 2
Pages: 32
Summary: "This humorous guidebook is full of practical tips about when, why, and how to say you're sorry." --From Publisher's Description

Words Are My Superpower

Nonfiction
By Harold Green III
Recommended: Ages 8 to 13
Pages: 100
Summary: "Some of the greatest 'villains' in our lives include anxiety, fear, disappointment, and failure. But if we look to language as a way to empower ourselves--thanks to affirmations, mantras, compliments, and more--we can defeat anything that stands in our way while lifting up those around us." --From Publisher's Description

Sir Cumference Speaks Volumes

Nonfiction
By Cindy Neuschwander
Recommended: Ages 7 to 10
Pages: 32
Summary: "Medieval math favorites Sir Cumference and Lady Di of Ameter learn a method to calculate the volume of grain needed to feed everyone at the castle during a blizzard." --From Publisher's Description

Life after Whale

Nonfiction
By Lynn Brunelle
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Follow a blue whale's enormous body to the bottom of the ocean, where it sets the stage for a bustling new ecosystem to flourish." --From Publisher's Description

The Young Green Witch's Guide to Plant Magic

Nonfiction
By Robin Rose Bennett
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 136
Summary: "In this book, readers will learn about nine plants that inspire wellness and self-care, as well as follow herbal recipes, start a green witch journal, practice magical rituals, and more. An essential guide for any kid who wants to connect with natural magic!" --From Publisher's Description

Loch Ness Uncovered

Nonfiction
By Rebecca Siegel
Recommended: Grades 7 to 9
Pages: 192
Summary: "In 1934, a man walking by a lake in the Scottish highlands snapped a photo and started a monster-hunting craze. Now considered a hoax, the Loch Ness Monster is presented here as a cautionary tale on the dangers of misinformation." --From Publisher's Description

Houses with a Story

Nonfiction
By Seiji Yoshida
Recommended: Ages 12 to 17
Pages: 123
Summary: "Over thirty imaginative houses and the people who make them home offer unexpected worlds to wander through and explore; readers discover the contents in each." --From Publisher's Description

All of Me Is Nature

Nonfiction
By Ashley Renee Jefferson
Recommended: Ages 2 to 7
Pages: 30
Summary: "Kids of all colors, genders, and ability levels explore nature with their fingers, toes, noses, ears, and taste buds." --From Publisher's Description

In It to Win It: Sports and the Climate Crisis

Nonfiction
By Erin Silver
Recommended: Grades 4 to 7
Pages: 89
Summary: "This illustrated book examines how sports are affecting the planet, what climate change means for athletes and sporting events, and what young people can do to make sports sustainable for the future." --From Publisher's Description

What's Inside a Caterpillar Cocoon?

Nonfiction
By Rachel Ignotofsky
Recommended: Ages 4 to 7
Pages: 32
Summary: "Butterflies soar in the sunlight. Moths flutter under the moon and stars. Find out more about these mysterious and majestic insects and their similarities and differences." --From Publisher's Description

Wildfire: The Culture, Science, and Future of Fire

Nonfiction
By Ferin Davis Anderson
Recommended: Ages 13 to 18
Pages: 144
Summary: "Examines how Indigenous people, farmers, and forestry departments have used fire to manage resources, and how climate change is impacting the future of fire." --From Publisher's Description

Kaboom! A Volcano Erupts

Nonfiction
By Jessica Kulekjian
Recommended: Grades K to 3
Pages: 32
Summary: "A step-by-step story of a volcanic eruption - told from the volcano's point of view!" --From Publisher's Description

Shift Happens

Nonfiction
By J. Albert Mann
Recommended: Grades 8 and Up
Pages: 409
Summary: "This eye-opening and engaging history of the worker actions that brought us weekends, pay equality, desegregation, an end to child labor and more documents how the labor movement has shaped America and how it intersects with the major issues facing modern teens." --From Publisher's Description

Wings, Waves and Webs

Nonfiction
By Robin Mitchell Cranfield
Recommended: Grades PK to 2
Pages: 30
Summary: "From the dots on a ladybug to the spiral on a snail, patterns in nature can be found anywhere." --From Publisher's Description

Drawn to Change the World

Nonfiction
By Emma Reynolds
Recommended: Grades 3 to 7
Pages: 170
Summary: "We need everyone to help with the biggest challenge the human race has ever faced. This book shines a spotlight on sixteen incredible youth activists and artists from around the world who are fighting to protect the planet and all life on Earth." --From Publisher's Description

Team Unihorn and Woolly #1: Attack of the Krill

Early Graphic Novel
By Alexis Frederick-Frost
Recommended: Ages 6 to 10
Pages: 91
Summary: "Raina the rhino, Nigel the narwhal, Shu the horseshoe crab, and Woolly the mammoth are all exposed to a Super Blood Full Moon Eclipse that gives them each strange powers." --From Publisher's Description

The Deep Dark

Graphic Novel
By Molly Knox Ostertag
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 470
Summary: "High school senior Magdalena Herrera already has adult responsibilities and a deadly secret hidden in the dark of the basement, one that drains her of energy and leaves her bleeding. Then her childhood friend Nessa returns, bringing vivid memories of the past, an intoxicating glimpse of the future, and a secret of her own." --From Publisher's Description

Punk Rock Karaoke

Graphic Novel
By Bianca Xunise
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 248
Summary: "Ariel has dreams of leaving her southside Chicago neighborhood and making it big as a punk rocker with her best friends and bandmates, but the realities of young adulthood make that challenging." --From Publisher's Description

Winnie-The-Pooh

Graphic Novel
By Travis Dandro
Recommended: Ages 7 and Up
Pages: 245
Summary: "The beloved children's classic, now as a graphic novel." --From Publisher's Description

Duck and Moose: Duck Moves In!

Early Graphic Novel
By Kirk Reedstrom
Recommended: Ages 6 to 8
Pages: 64
Summary: "Moose loves peace and quiet, relaxing, and living alone. Duck loves parties, karaoke, and living on Moose's head. Will Moose succeed in sending Duck away?" --From Publisher's Description

Uprooted

Graphic Novel
By Ruth Chan
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 285
Summary: "Ruth is moving to Hong Kong. And she is not happy about it. She's going to miss Toronto, the only home she's ever known. But gradually, she puts down roots, knowing she can always find home wherever she is." --From Publisher's Description

Boy vs. Shark

Graphic Novel
By Paul Gilligan
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 234
Summary: "In the summer of 1975, anyone who hasn't seen 'Jaws' is a wimp. Needless to say, it leaves 10-year-old Paul a cowering mess, and underlines the growing gap between him and his best friend David." --From Publisher's Description

Save Our Forest!

Grapic Novel
By Nora Dåsnes
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 229
Summary: "The PTA wants to raze the students' beloved forest, removing the space integral to Bao and other students' lives and the environment they call home. When the adults are too apathetic, too cynical, or too preoccupied to see the importance of the forest, Bao and the others will have to take matters into their own hands." --From Publisher's Description

Ash's Cabin

Graphic Novel
By Jen Wang
Recommended: Ages 14 to 18
Pages: 320
Summary: "Ash feels isolated, disconnected from a world that ignores the climate crisis and is obsessed with fame, while only their late Grandpa Edwin ever seemed to understand them. Ash wonders if their Grandpa's secret cabin, hidden in the California wilderness, could offer a fresh start, but they must confront whether they can truly survive and be happy alone." --From Publisher's Description

Pardalita

Graphic Novel Hybrid
By Joana Estrela
Recommended: Grades 9 to 12
Pages: 100
Summary: "16-year-old Raquel lives in a small town in Portugal, the kind of place where everyone knows everyone else's business. Her parents are divorced and she's just been suspended. She has two best friends, but wants something more. Then she meets Pardalita." --From Publisher's Description

Shadow Island

Graphic Novel
By Nancy Deas
Recommended: Grades 2 to 5
Pages: 187
Summary: "With nowhere left to live after losing his parents, Ollie unhappily finds himself at his grandpa's house in Sueño Bay. His getaway plans are altered abruptly when he and three classmates discover something they shouldn't have in a trailer in the woods." --From Publisher's Description

Bunnybirds

Graphic Novel
By Natalie Linn
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 188
Summary: "In Princess Aster's world, Bunnybirds live in contented isolation, keeping themselves detached from the world in order to practice magic and receive prophetic visions. But when her father disappears, her goal is definite: she's going to rescue him, no matter what." --From Publisher's Description

An Outbreak of Witchcraft

Graphic Novel
By Deborah Noyes
Recommended: Ages 12 and Up
Pages: 225
Summary: "From 1692 to 1693, fear reigned in the small village of Salem, Massachusetts. Widespread panic led to one of the longest cases of hysteria in America, in which more than twenty innocent lives were lost. Here, the haunting details behind the Salem Witch Trials are visually imagined." --From Publisher's Description

SCRAM

Graphic Novel
By Rory Lucey
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 199
Summary: "Rockhurst is your average suburban town. It has everything you'd expect: happy families, fun shops...and magical creatures! In the hopes of learning more about the local cryptids, three friends, Jenny, Emiko, and Brian, start the Society of Creatures Real and Magical, or S.C.R.A.M." --From Publisher's Description

Puzzled

Graphic Memoir
By Pan Cooke
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 224
Summary: "Pan Cooke is ten years old when anxious thoughts begin to take over his brain. He has no way of knowing that this anxiety puzzle and the stressful attempts to solve it are evidence of a condition called Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. This is his story of living with and eventually learning about OCD." --From Publisher's Description

Shut up, This Is Serious

Fiction
By Carolina Ixta
Recommended: Grades 9 to 12
Pages: 349
Summary: "Belén wants the normal stuff, but nothing is normal in East Oakland. Her father left her family, she's at risk of not graduating, and her best friend is pregnant. What future is there for girls like her?" --From Publisher's Description

Find Her

Fiction
By Ginger Reno
Recommended: Grades 7 to 9
Pages: 212
Summary: "12-year-old Wren fights to find her missing Cherokee mother, one of hundreds of Native Americans considered missing or murdered in Oklahoma. Meanwhile, she must also navigate a chilling town mystery, a new friendship, and a family in need of healing."
--From Publisher's Description

Sylvia Doe and the 100-Year Flood

Fiction
By Robert Beatty
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 310
Summary: "13-year-old Sylvia Doe keeps running away from foster homes to return to the orphanage in mountains of North Carolina and her beloved horses. Then a 100-year flood, a strange boy, and a cave that is a portal to other times and places, brings her back where she truly belongs." --From Publisher's Description

Stella and Marigold

Transitional Chapter Book
By Annie Barrows
Recommended: Ages 6 to 9
Pages: 98
Summary: "Two sisters, Stella and Marigold, do all the regular things—like going to school, playing, getting sick sometimes, and visiting the zoo—but even the most regular things have a secret side." --From Publisher's Description

And Then, Boom!

Fiction
By Lisa Fipps
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 244
Summary: "Joe is used to living on unsteady ground. His mom can't be depended on, and now he is suddenly left to fend for himself. He doesn't tell anyone he's on his own, but time is running out. Just when it seems all is lost, his life turns in a direction that he never could have predicted." --From Publisher's Description

Olivetti

Fiction
By Allie Millington
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 249
Summary: "Witty typewriter Olivetti and twelve-year-old introvert Ernest embark on a mission to find Ernest's missing mother that takes them across San Francisco. As Olivetti spills out the past, Ernest is forced to face what he and his family have been running from." --From Publisher's Description

Yours from the Tower

Fiction
By Sally Nicholls
Recommended: Grades 9 and Up
Pages: 297
Summary: "In 1896 England, three best friends who are leading very different lives after boarding school share their dreams, hopes, frustrations, and romances through a series of letters as they search for happiness and love at the dawn of the Edwardian era." --From Publisher's Description

Jax Freeman and the Phantom Shriek

Fiction
By Kwame Mbalia
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 466
Summary: "When 12-year-old African American Jackson Freeman is forced to move to Chicago he finds himself suddenly in a world of talking glasses and clocks, magical inheritance, and daredevil train porters in a fight against a terrifying evil." --From Publisher's Description

Tree. Table. Book.

Fiction
By Lois Lowry
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 194
Summary: "11-year-old Sophia endeavors to prevent her increasingly forgetful 88-year-old neighbor and best friend Sophie from entering assisted living, and in the process uncovers unexpected stories of war, loss, and hope." --From Publisher's Description

A Strange Thing Happened in Cherry Hall

Fiction
By Jasmine Warga
Recommended:
Pages: 211Ages 8 to 12
Summary: "When Rami sees a floating girl in the museum, he realizes she looks just like the girl in the painting that has gone missing. Will Rami, with the help of his classmate, Veda, be able to solve the mystery? --From Publisher's Description

Red Bird Danced

Fiction
By Dawn Quigley
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 167
Summary: "Ariel has always danced ballet because of her Auntie Bineshiinh and loves the way dance makes her feet hover above the ground like a bird. But ever since Auntie went missing, Ariel's dancing doesn't feel like flying." --From Publisher's Description

Splinter and Ash

Fiction
By Marieke Nijkamp
Recommended: Grades 4 to 6
Pages: 343
Summary: "Ash (Princess Adelisa) is the youngest child of the queen, recently returned to the city. Splinter is the youngest child of one of Haven's most prominent families. A chance encounter throws Ash and Splinter into each other's orbits and changes the course of the kingdom's history." --From Publisher's Description

Impossible Creatures

Fiction
By Katherine Rundell
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 358
Summary: "Christopher discovers the Archipelago, a world where mythological creatures were secreted away by magic long ago. But those creatures are now dying, and it is up to Christopher and Mal, a girl from the Archipelago, to save both of their worlds." --From Publisher's Description

Across So Many Seas

Fiction
By Ruth Behar
Recommended: Ages 10 and Up
Pages: 258
Summary: "Over 500 years and many seas separate four girls from different generations of a Jewish family. They are united by a love of music and poetry, a desire to belong and to matter, a passion for learning, and their longing for a home where all are welcome." --From Publisher's Description

Ariel Crashes a Train

Fiction
By Olivia A. Cole
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 449
Summary: "Ariel grapples with her fear of her own mind and violent fantasies, driven by her desire to meet her parents' expectations and societal norms, until a summer job at a carnival leads her to new friends who help her discover her struggle with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and find acceptance and support for her true self." --From Publisher's Description

The Flicker

Fiction
By H. E. Edgmon
Recommended: Grades 7 to 9
Pages: 281
Summary: "With their parents dead and supplies running low after a solar flare scorched the Earth, stepsisters Millie and Rose leave home with their infant half brother and dog Corncob in search of Millie's grandma, a Seminole elder." --From Publisher's Description

When the World Tips Over

Fiction
By Jandy Nelson
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 519
Summary: "Told in alternating voices, the Fall siblings each encounter the mysterious Cassidy at integral points in their lives, helping them untangle their relationships and uncover the truth about their father's disappearance." --From Publisher's Description

Our Shouts Echo

Fiction
By Jade Adia
Recommended: Grades 7 and Up
Pages: 404
Summary: "16-year-old Niarah's perspective on life changes when she joins a hiking/camping club and befriends Mac Torres and his wanderlust-driven friends, but as summer draws to a close and her new friends leave, existential dread challenges her new outlook." --From Publisher's Description

My Salty Mary

Fiction
By Cynthia Hand; Brodi Ashton; Jodi Meadows
Recommended: Ages 13 and Up
Pages: 422
Summary: "Mary, a heartbroken mermaid turned pirate, dreams of becoming captain after being pulled from the sea. Determined to prove herself, she'll fight against anyone, including Blackbeard’s son and her best friend, to claim her place in the pirate world." --From Publisher's Description

Max in the House of Spies

Fiction
By Adam Gidwitz
Recommended: Grades 4 to 8
Pages: 320
Summary: "To find his way back home to his family in Germany during World War II, 11-year-old Max Bretzfeld, with a kobold named Berg on one shoulder and a dybbuk named Stein on the other, sets out to do the impossible--become a British spy." --From Publisher's Description

Running in Flip-Flops from the End of the World

Fiction
By Justin A. Reynolds
Recommended: Grades 4 to 8
Pages: 294
Summary: "12-year-old Eddie and his friends are forced to stay home while everyone else in town goes to the Beach Bash. Then, they all mysteriously disappear! Can Eddie get his gang to the beach and figure out what happened to their families?" --From Publisher's Description

New Books for Educators and Future Educators

2025 Award Winning Books

The First State of Being

Winner of the 2025 John Newbery Medal
By Erin Entrada Kelly
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 253
Summary: "It's August 1999. For 12-year-old Michael Rosario, life in Delaware is as ordinary as ever. But then a disoriented teenage boy named Ridge appears out of nowhere, claiming to be the world’s first time traveler." --From Publisher's Description

Black Girl You Are Atlas

Winner of the 2025 Walter Award for Teens 
By Renée Watson; Ekua Holmes (Illustrator)
Recommended: Grades 7 to 9
Pages: 81
Summary: Using a variety of poetic forms, from haiku to free verse, Watson shares recollections of her childhood in Portland, tender odes to the Black women in her life, and urgent calls for Black girls to step into their power." --From Publisher's Description

Life After Whale

Winner of the 2025 Robert F. Sibert Award
By Lynn Brunelle
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Follow a blue whale's enormous body to the bottom of the ocean, where it sets the stage for a bustling new ecosystem to flourish." --From Publisher's Description

2024 Award Winning Books

The Eyes and the Impossible

Winner of the 2024 John Newbery Medal
By Dave Eggers
Recommended: Grades 4 to 8
Pages: 249
Summary: "Free dog Johannes' job is to observe everything that happens in his urban park and report back to the park's three bison elders, but changes are afoot." --From Publisher's Description

Big

Winner of the 2024 Caldecott Medal
Written and Illustrated by Vashti Harrison
Recommended: Grade K to 3
Pages: 32
Summary: "Praised for acting like a big girl when she is small, 'big' becomes a word of criticism as she grows." --From Publisher's Description

Nigeria Jones

Winner of the 2024 Coretta Scott King Author Award
By Ibi Zoboi
Recommended: Grades 8 and Up
Pages: 369
Summary: "Nigeria has been raised by her father as part of the Movement. But when her mother disappears, she finds herself stepping into a role she doesn't want." --From Publisher's Description

An American Story

Winner of the 2024 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award
By Kwame Alexander; Dare Coulter (Illustrator)
Recommended: Grades K to 3
Pages: 32
Summary: "This is the story of American slavery, a story that needs to be told and understood by all of us." --From Publisher's Description

Henry, Like Always

Winner of the 2024 Schneider Family Book Award for Young Children
By Jenn Bailey; Mika Song (Illustrator)
Recommended: Ages 6 to 9
Pages: 40
Summary: "Henry, a first grader on the autism spectrum, attempts to navigate friendships and sudden changes in classroom routines." --From Publisher's Description

The Fire, the Water, and Maudie McGinn

Winner of the 2024 Schneider Family Book Award for Middle Grades
By Sally J. Pla
Recommended: Grades 4 to 8
Pages: 324
Summary: "Follows 13-year-old neurodivergent Maudie during an eventful summer in California with her father, where she struggles with whether to share a terrible secret about life with her mom and stepdad." --From Publisher's Description

Forever Is Now

Winner of the 2024 Schneider Family Book Award for Teens
By Mariama J. Lockington
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 398
Summary: "When 16-year-old Sadie, a queer Black girl, develops agoraphobia the summer before her junior year, she relies on her best friend, family, and therapist to overcome her fears." --From Publisher's Description

Mexikid

Winner of the 2024 Pura Belpre Awards for Author and Illustrator
By Pedro Martín
Recommended: Ages 10-14
Pages: 309
Summary: "Pedro Martin's grown up in the U.S. hearing stories about his legendary abuelito. Then, during a family road trip to Mexico, he learns more about his own Mexican identity in this moving and hilarious graphic memoir." --From Publisher's Description

Saints of the Household

Winner of the 2024 Pura Belpré Award and the 2024 Walter Dean Myers Award for Young Adults
By Ari Tison
Recommended: Grades 10 to 12
Pages: 312
Summary: "When brothers Max and Jay help a classmate in trouble, they struggle with the consequences of their actions and turn to their Bribri roots to find their way forward." --From Publisher's Description

The Mona Lisa Vanishes

Winner of the 2024 Robert F. Sibert Award
By Nicholas Day
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 276
Summary: "On a hot August day in Paris in 1911, the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre museum. This book traces the secret at the heart of the most famous painting in the world." --From Publisher's Description

Fox Has a Problem

Winner of the 2024 Theodore "Seuss" Geisel Award
By Corey R. Tabor
Recommended: Grades K to 1
Pages: 32
Summary: "Fox has a not-so-new problem, and all the other animals must come together with the ultimate fix." --From Publisher's Description

Rez Ball

Winner of the 2024 William C. Morris Award and the 2024 American Indian Youth Literature Award for Young Adults
By Byron Graves
Recommended: Ages 13 and Up
Pages: 357
Summary: "Tre sees making the Red Lake Reservation high school basketball team as the first step toward his dream of playing in the NBA, no matter how much the odds are stacked against him." --From Publisher's Description

Accountable: The True Story of a Racist Social Media Account and the Teenagers Whose Lives It Changed

Winner of the 2024 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction
By Dashka Slater
Recommended: Ages 12 to 18
Pages: 480
Summary: "A high school student started a private Instagram account that used racist and sexist memes to make his friends laugh. In the end, no one was laughing." --From Publisher's Description

Ruby Lost and Found

Winner of the 2024 Asian/Pacific American Award for Children's Literature
By Christina Li
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 288
Summary: "13-year-old Ruby retraces her late Ye-Ye's scavenger hunt maps of San Francisco in an attempt to find a way out of her grief." --From Publisher's Description

The Blood Years

Winner of the 2024 Sydney Taylor Book Award for Young Adults
By Elana K. Arnold
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 390
Summary: "Being a Jew is dangerous for Astra. When war breaks out in her town in Romania, she must decide whether holding on to her life might mean letting go of everything else that has ever mattered." --From Publisher's Description

Remember Us

Winner of the 2024 Walter Dean Myers Award for Younger Readers
By Jacqueline Woodson
Recommended: Grades 5 and Up
Pages: 178
Summary: "While Sage prefers to spend her time shooting hoops with the guys, she's also still trying to figure out her place inside the circle of girls she's known since childhood." --From Publisher's Description

A Letter for Bob

Winner of the 2024 American Indian Youth Literature Award, Picture Book
By Kim Rogers
Recommended: Ages 4 to 8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Ever since the day Mom and Dad brought their car home from the dealership, Bob has been a part of Katie's family." --From Publisher's Description

We Still Belong

Winner of the 2024 American Indian Youth Literature Award, Middle Grade
By Christine Day
Recommended: Ages 8 to 12
Pages: 239
Summary: "Wesley's hopeful plans for Indigenous Peoples' Day (and asking her crush to the dance) go all wrong until she finds herself surrounded by the love of her Indigenous family and community." --From Publisher's Description

2023 Award Winning Books

Freewater

Winner of the 2023 John Newbery Medal
Winner of the 2023 Coretta Scott King Author Award
By Amina Luqman-Dawson
Recommended: Ages 8-12
Pages: 403
Summary: "After fleeing the plantation where they were enslaved, siblings Ada and Homer discover the secret community of Freewater, and work with freeborn Sanzi to protect their new home from the encroaching dangers of the outside world." --From Publisher's Description

Hot Dog

Winner of the 2023 Caldecott Medal
By Doug Salati
Recommended: Ages 4-8
Pages: 32
Summary: "This hot dog has had enough of summer in the city! When he plops down in the middle of a crosswalk, his owner endeavors to get him the breath of fresh air he needs." --From Publisher's Description

Standing in the Need of Prayer

Winner of the 2023 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award
By Carole Boston Weatherford; Frank Morrison (Illustrator)
Recommended: Grades 1-4
Pages: 32
Summary: "The popular spiritual has been reworked to chronicle the milestones, struggles, tragedies, and triumphs of African American people and their history. The text and illustrations of this inspirational book are informative reminders of yesterday, hopeful images for today, and aspirational dreams of tomorrow." --From Publisher's Description

All My Rage

Winner of the 2023 Printz Award
By Sabaa Tahir
Recommended: Ages 14 and Up
Pages: 374
Summary: "Sal scrambles to run the family business as his mother's health fails. Noor, meanwhile, walks a harrowing tightrope between working at her uncle's liquor store and the fact that she's applying to college so she can escape him. He and Noor must ask themselves what friendship is worth." --From Publisher's Description

Listen: How Evelyn Glennie, a Deaf Girl, Changed Percussion

Winner of the 2023 Schneider Family Book Award for Young Children
By Shannon Stocker; Devon Holzwarth (Illustrator), 2022
Recommended: Ages 4-8
Pages: 40
Summary: "A nonfiction picture book biography celebrating Evelyn Glennie, a deaf woman, who became the first full-time solo percussionist in the world." --From Publisher's Description

Wildoak

Winner of the 2023 Schneider Family Book Award for Middle Grades
By C. C. Harrington, 2022
Recommended: Ages 8-12
Pages: 324
Summary: "Twelve-year-old Maggie's stutter causes her much heartache and only her menagerie of pets, with whom she can speak with fluidly, provide her comfort. But when she finds Rumpus, an abandoned snow leopard, in a forest in Cornwall, their chance encounter will change their lives forever." -Provided by Publisher

The Words We Keep

Winner of the 2023 Schneider Family Book Award for Young Adults
By Erin Stewart
Recommended: Ages 12 and Up
Pages: 387
Summary: "When sixteen-year-old Lily Larkin's older sister, Alice, begins to struggle with her mental health, Lily attempts to keep everything together and perfect, despite her own growing anxiety." 12 and Up
--From Publisher's Description

Just a Girl

Winner of the 2023 Mildred L. Batchelder Award
By Lia Levi
Recommended: Ages 8-12
Pages: 135
Summary: "Six-year-old Lia loves to build sandcastles at the beach, and her biggest problem is her shyness and quiet, birdlike voice. Then prime minister Mussolini joins forces with Hitler in World War II, and everything changes.  Will she ever be 'just a girl' again?" --From Publisher's Description

Where Wonder Grows

Winner of the 2023 Pura Belpré Illustrator Award
By Xelena González; Adriana M. Garcia (Illustrator)
Recommended: Ages 5-10
Pages: 32
Summary: "Three girls follow their grandmother into her garden, where they examine her collection of rocks, crystals, shells, and meteorites and learn about the marvels they reveal. Gathered together, Grandma and the girls let their surroundings spark their imaginations." --From Publisher's Description

Frizzy

Winner of the 2023 Pura Belpré Author Award
By Claribel A. Ortega; Rose Bousamra (Illustrator)
Recommended: Grades 4-8
Pages: 212
Summary: "Marlene doesn't understand why her curls are not considered pretty by those around her. With a few hiccups, a dash of embarrassment, and the much-needed help of her best friend Camila and cool Tía Ruby, she slowly starts to appreciate and proudly wear her curly hair." --From Publisher's Description

Burn down, Rise Up

Winner of the 2023 Pura Belpre Award for Young Adults
By Vincent Tirado
Recommended: Grades 10-12
Pages: 338
Summary: "When an urban legend rumored to trap people inside subway tunnels seems to be behind mysterious disappearances in the Bronx, sixteen-year-old Raquel and her friends team up to save their city--and confront a dark episode from history in the process." --From Publisher's Description

Seen and Unseen: What Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adams's Photographs Reveal About the Japanese American Incarceration

Winner of the 2023 Sibert Award
By Elizabeth Partridge; Lauren Tamaki (Illustrator)
Recommended: Ages 8-12
Pages: 123
Summary: "Three legendary photographers document life at Manzanar, an incarceration camp in the California desert, through words and images." --From Publisher's Description

Love, Violet

Winner of the 2023 Stonewall Book Award for Children
By Charlotte Sullivan Wild; Charlene Chua (Illustrator)
Recommended: Ages 6-8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Of all the kids in Violet's class, only one leaves her speechless: Mira. But every time Violet tries to tell Mira how she feels, Violet goes shy. As Valentine's Day approaches, Violet is determined to tell Mira just how special she is." --From Publisher's Description

When the Angels Left the Old Country

Winner of the 2023 Stonewall Book Award for Young Adults
Winner of the 2023 Sydney Taylor Book Award for Young Adults
By Sacha Lamb
Recommended: Grades 7-12
Pages: 400
Summary: "Uriel the angel and Little Ash the demon are the only two supernatural creatures in their shtetl. When one of the young people from the village goes missing, Uriel and Little Ash set off to find her. But there are obstacles ahead of them as difficult as what they've left behind." --From Publisher's Description

I Did It!

Winner of the 2023 Theodor Seuss Geisel Award
By Michael Emberley
Recommended: Ages 4-8
Pages: 32
Summary: "A little creature tries again and again to learn to ride a bicycle, and all their friends help with supportive words of encouragement." --From Publisher's Description

The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen

Winner of the 2023 William C. Morris Award
By Isaac Blum, 2022
Recommended: Grades 8 and Up
Pages: 218
Summary: "Hoodie Rosen's entire Orthodox Jewish community has just picked up and moved to a quiet, mostly non-Jewish town, but life isn't that bad. That is, until he meets and falls for the daughter of the obstinate mayor trying to keep Hoodie's community out of the town. Hoodie finds himself caught between his first love and the only world he's ever known." --Provided by Publisher

Victory. Stand! Raising My Fist for Justice

Winner of the 2023 YALSA Nonfiction Award
By Tommie Smith and Derrick Barnes
Recommended: Grades 8 and Up
Pages: 200
Summary: "On the podium at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, gold medalist Tommie Smith raised a black-gloved fist to protest racial injustice inflicted upon African Americans. Smith looks back on his childhood growing up in rural Texas through to his stellar athletic career, culminating in his historic victory." --From Publisher's Description

From the Tops of the Trees

Winner of the 2023 Asian/Pacific American Picture Book Award
By Kao Kalia Yang; Rachel Wada (Illustrator)
Recommended: Ages 5-9
Pages: 32
Summary: "The true story of a young girl who has never known life outside a Hmong refugee camp and a father determined to help her dream beyond the fences that confine them." --From Publisher's Description

Maizy Chen's Last Chance

Winner of the 2023 Asian/Pacific American Award for Middle Grades
By Lisa Yee, 2022
Recommended: Ages 8-12
Pages: 276
Summary: "11-year-old Maizy Chen visits her estranged grandparents, who own and run a Chinese restaurant in Last Chance, Minnesota, for the first time. As her stay unexpectedly lengthens, she makes new discoveries about her family's history. And when a beloved family treasure goes missing, Maizy decides it's time to find the answers." --From Publisher's Description

Himawari House

Winner of the 2023 Asian/Pacific American Award for Young Adults
By Harmony Becker
Recommended: Ages 14-18
Pages: 374
Summary: "Nao returns to Tokyo to reconnect with her Japanese heritage. At the Himawari sharehouse, she meets two other girls who came to Japan to freely forge their own paths. The trio become fast friends, but will they be able to hold one another up as life tests them with the challenges of being fish out of water?" --From Publisher's Description

The Tower of Life: How Yaffa Eliach Rebuilt Her Town in Stories and Photographs

Winner of the 2023 Sydney Taylor Picture Book Award
By Chana Stiefel; Susan Gal (Illustrator)
Recommended: Ages 6-8
Pages: 32
Summary: "Yaffa is a spirited young girl who grows up in a once vibrant town in Poland. She survives World War II, becomes America's foremost Holocaust expert, and creates an exhibit for the National Holocaust Museum using her grandmother's photos." --From Publisher's Description

Aviva vs the Dybbuk

Winner of the 2023 Sydney Taylor Award for Middle Grades
By Mari Lowe
Recommended: Grades 3-7
Pages: 171
Summary: "A long ago 'accident.' An isolated girl named Aviva. A community that wants to help, but doesn't know how. And a ghostly dybbuk, that no one but Aviva can see. That is the setting for this suspenseful novel of a girl who seems to have lost everything." --From Publisher's Description

Man Made Monsters

Winner of the 2023 Walter Dean Meyers Award for Teens
By Andrea Rogers, 2022
Recommended: Grades 8 and Up
Pages: 315
Summary: "Follows one extended Cherokee family across the centuries, from the tribe’s homelands in Georgia in the 1830s to World War I, the Vietnam War, our own present, and well into the future, as they encounter predators of all kinds in each time period." --From Publisher's Description

Choosing Brave: How Mamie Till-Mobley and Emmett Till Sparked the Civil Rights Movement

Winner of the 2023 Walter Dean Meyers Award for Young Children
By Angela Joy; Janelle Washington (Illustrator)
Recommended: Grades 2-5
Pages: 32
Summary: "The story of the mother of Emmett Till, and how she channeled grief over her son's death into a call to action for the civil rights movement." --From Publisher's Description

Librarian

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Leigh Barnes
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Contact:
Belk Library and Information Commons
(828) 262-7578