Book Talk Resources
Black History Month
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2021 Coretta Scott King Award Winners
Author Winner
Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson
Jacqueline Woodson’s stirring novel-in-verse which explores how a family moves forward when their glory days have passed and the effects of professional sports on the Black body.
Illustrator Winner
“R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul”
Illustrated by Frank Morrison (Author: Carole Weatherford)
An early indoctrination into hip-hop culture that can be seen through Morrison’s work, which has been dubbed a mash-up of urban mannerism, graffiti and abstract contemporary, and reflects deeply on the lost of human stories from past eras.
John Steptoe Award for New Talent (Author)
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Tracy Deonn’s YA contemporary fantasy Legendborn offers the dark allure of City of Bones with a modern-day twist on a classic legend and a lot of Southern Black Girl Magic.
Elementary Level Books
Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment
Reading level: PreK - 3
Genre: Picture book
Topics: hopes and dreams, possibility, family
Summary: little parker curry visits the national portrait gallery in Washington, D.C. with her family and something truly inspiring happens when she looks up at a special piece of art.
The Undefeated
Reading level: Ages 6-9
Genre: Non-Fiction
Topic: Poetry, history
Summary: this poem is a love letter to black life in the US highlighting accomplishments of the past, while bringing stark attention to the endurance and spirit of those surviving and thriving in the present.
Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters
Reading level: Ages 4 - 8
Genre: Fairy Tale, Folk Tale, Fable
Topics: kindness, honesty, generosity, love
Summary: two beautiful sisters with very different personalities encounter and handle obstacles differently, one using kindness and generosity, and the other, selfishness as they travel to meet the king.
Brave. Black. First. 50+ African American Women Who Changed the World
Reading level: 4th-8th grade (and up)
Genre: Illustrated Nonfiction
Topic: Trailblazing Black Women
Summary: Each two-page spread has a full-page illustrated portrait and a few paragraphs about a Black woman who fearlessly gave of themselves to change the world for the next generation.
Amari and the Night Brothers
Reading level: 4th-8th grade (and up)
Genre: Fantasy & Magic
Topic: #BlackGirlMagic, visible and invisible differences, privilege and prejudice, Mystery, and identity
Summary: Amari, whose brother is missing, confronts prejudice as she explores her magic, which is so powerful it’s illegal. A truly original “regular kid discovers she is magical” story.
The Story of Ruby Bridges
Reading Level: Grades K-3
Read-Aloud
Genre: Biography (Nonfiction)
Summary: For months six-year-old Ruby Bridges must confront the hostility of white parents when she becomes the first African American girl to integrate Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans in 1960. Even adult readers will find strength in the courage and positive attitude of this six year old.
Middle School Level Books
The Boy in the Black Suit
Reading Level: 7-10
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Topic: Grief, family relationships, Brooklyn
Summary: Soon after his mother's death, Matt takes a job at a funeral home in his tough Brooklyn neighborhood and, while attending and assisting with funerals, begins to accept her death and his responsibilities as a man.
What Lane?
Reading level: 4th - 8th Grade
Genre: Fiction
Topics: Racism, Friendship, Racially Mixed, BLM Movement
Summary: Biracial 6th-Grader Stephen questions the limitations society puts on him after he notices the way strangers treat him when he hangs out with his white friends and learns about the Black Lives Matter movement.
I am the Rage
Reading level: 7th Grade-Adult
Genre: Poetry
Topic: Racism, Social Justice, BLM Movement, and Identity
Summary: I Am the Rage is a poetry collection that explores racial injustice from the raw, unfiltered viewpoint of a Black woman in America. Dr. McGowan’s poetry puts readers in the uncomfortable position of feeling, reflecting, and facing what it means to be a Black American. This entire collection was created during 2020, many shortly after the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, to name but a few.
The Hate U Give
Author: Angie Thomas
Reading level: Ages 13+
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Topic: Racism, Social Justice, Police Shootings, Identity
Summary: Starr moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her best friend Khalil by a police officer. Soon, his death is a national headline. Protests begin. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night?
Concrete Rose
Author: Angie Thomas
Reading level: Ages 13+
Genre: YA, realistic fiction
Topics: racism, gang violence, police brutality
Summary: 17 year old maverick is trying to get by in life with the struggles of school, being in a gang (The King lords), trying to support his mom, and then finding out he is going to become a father. trying to support himself and his new child, he decides to leave the king lords but it is not as easy as he thought it would be.
Dreams from My Father
Author: Barack Obama
Reading level: Grades 7-12
Genre: Autobiography
Topics: racism, race relations, sociology
Summary: The son of a black African father and a white American mother searches for a workable meaning to his life as a black American. It begins in New York, where Barack Obama learns that his father—a figure he knows more as a myth than as a man—has been killed in a car accident. This sudden death inspires an emotional odyssey—from Kansas, to Hawaii, and then to Kenya, where he confronts the bitter truth of his father’s life, and at last reconciles his divided inheritance.
High School Level Books
Parable of the Sower
Reading level: High School
Genre: Science Fiction
Topic: Family Relationships, Race, AfroFuturism
Summary: Set in the 2020s where society has largely collapsed due to climate change, growing wealth inequality, and corporate greed. Parable of the Sower centers on a young woman named Lauren Oya Olamina who possesses what Butler dubbed hyperempathy or "sharing" – the ability to feel pain and other sensations she witnesses.When You Look Like Us
Reading level: High School
Genre: Realistic Fiction/Mystery
Topic: family relationships, Race, Missing Person
Summary: Jay Murphy’s sister Nic has gone missing, and in his search to find her, he realizes he might be his sister’s only hope.Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Reading level: Middle or High School
Genre: Autobiography
Topic: freedom, slavery, abolitionist
Summary: This is a classic true story of a slave that escaped and became one of the most prominent orators and American abolitionist of the 19th century.Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America
Reading level: High School
Genre: Fiction, Short Story Anthology
Topic: family relationships, Race, Love, Joy, Intersectionality
Summary: This short story anthology brings together YA authors to tell a variety of stories with Black protagonists.
Perfect Peace
Reading Level: High School/Adult
Summary: When the seventh child of the Peace family, named Perfect, turns eight, her mother Emma Jean, tells her, “You was born a boy. I made you a girl, but that ain’t what was supposed to be….” The story begins in the 1940s and follows the children through adulthood. The Peace family is forced to question everything they thought they knew about gender, sexuality, unconditional love, and fulfillment.
Monday’s Not Coming
Reading Level: 10-12
Genre: Thriller, Friendship, Urban Fiction
Topic: Missing Children, Urban families
Summary: Claudia and Monday have been friends since childhood. When Claudia returns from summer vacation, Monday isn’t at school, and she’s not returning calls. No one seems to know where she is. Claudia knows something is wrong, but what reason would anyone have to lie about Monday’s whereabouts?
Cutting for Stone
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Topic: Family relationships, Physicians, Ethiopia, BronxSummary: Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between an Indian nun and a British surgeon at a mission hospital in Addis Ababa. Orphaned by their mother's death in childbirth and their father's disappearance, they are bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine. Marion flees his homeland fresh out of medical school when he and his brother fall in love with the same woman. He goes to work in an underfunded New York hospital until his past catches up with him, nearly destroying him, and he must trust his life to his father and brother.
Reading Lists
ADL Reading Lists
- ADL’s collection address issues of identity, bias and bullying.
- Their featured books come with discussion guides for teachers and parents.
- More information is available on their website.
Social Justice Books
- Lists of multicultural and social justice books for children, young adults, and educators.
- Visit the website for more information.
A Seat at the Table Books
Elk Grove’s family-owned bookstore celebrates all identities.
All books we discussed, including ones not listed, are available in the top list on our website.
- We offer local delivery and hold pop-ups.
- Physical store coming later this year!
Website: https://aseatatthetablebooks.org/
EGUSD Virtual Events
Educational Equity Coalition
The Office of Educational Equity (OEE) coordinates and manages equity-based work in the Elk Grove Unified School District. The OEE focuses on promoting equitable practices and decisions to increase the academic proficiency of students and close the persistent opportunity, access and achievement gaps.
Visit the Educational Equity Resource Page to learn more about our organization. Make sure to join the Equity Coalition!
Email: EdEquity@egusd.net
Website: https://blogs.egusd.net/educational-equity/
Location: Elk Grove, CA, USA
Phone: (916) 831-2041