Column: A list of children鈥檚 books to celebrate Black history every month, not just in February
February 3, 2021
Originally published in the
Some fantastic new children鈥檚 books have been released in time for Black History Month, including 鈥淗ave I Ever Told You Black Lives Matter,鈥� written by Shani Mahiri King and illustrated by Bobby C. Martin Jr. 鈥� a personal favorite, and not just because my colleague Clarence Page is one of more than 100 Black innovators profiled in its pages (along with Maya Angelou, Chadwick Boseman, Langston Hughes, Misty Copeland, and John Lewis).
鈥淚鈥檝e wondered for a long time why Black voices are mostly missing from young people鈥檚 literature, especially outside the context of slavery and the civil rights movement,鈥� King writes in the introduction. 鈥淭his absence sends the false and disempowering message that Black history and Black achievements are not central to the American narrative. Nothing could be further from the truth.鈥�
That brings us to 成人快播, a national literacy nonprofit, which just released听a month-by-month book list听for recognizing and celebrating Black history year-round, not just in February.
鈥淏lack history is American history,鈥� 成人快播 CEO Adeola Whitney told me Tuesday. 鈥淲e should celebrate Black history and Black heritage every month.鈥�
For the list, Whitney鈥檚 organization looked for books that center around Black characters, real or fictional, and whose authors and/or illustrators are also Black.
鈥淚t鈥檚 ultimately about children seeing themselves in a story,鈥� Whitney said, 鈥渁nd also knowing that behind the story is a person like them.鈥�
The list:
January
鈥淢oses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrated by Kadir Nelson. A Caldecott Honor book and a Coretta Scott King Award winner, this picture book introduces children to Harriet Tubman, the abolitionist and Underground Railroad pioneer who led hundreds of slaves to freedom.
February
鈥淐arter Reads the Newspaper,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by Don Tate. 鈥淲e think about Carter G. Woodson as the father of Black History Month,鈥� Whitney told me. 鈥淭his book allows children to be able to relate to Carter as a child, rather than as an adult.鈥�
March
鈥�Martin鈥檚 Big Words,鈥澨�written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Bryan Collier. A biography of the civil rights leader with his own quotes and speeches woven throughout, plus a timeline of important dates in King鈥檚 life and a list of resources to learn more about his legacy.
April
鈥淟et the Children March,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍听by Monica Clark-Robinson and illustrated by Frank Morrison. The Chicago Public Library chose this selection as a best book of 2018. It tells the story of an African American girl growing up in Birmingham, Alabama, in the 鈥�60s who decides, along with her brother, to march with Martin Luther King Jr. for equal rights.
May
鈥淚da B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Walter Dean Myers and illustrated by Bonnie Christensen. A sobering look at the life of journalist, suffragette, and anti-lynching crusader Ida B. Wells, featuring many of her own words and writing.
June
鈥淩on鈥檚 Big Mission,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Rose Blue and Corinne J. Naden and illustrated by Don Tate. Based on a real incident from astronaut Ron McNair鈥檚 childhood, this book tells the story of 9-year-old Ron, who dreams of becoming a pilot and breaks his public library鈥檚 rule prohibiting Black people from having library cards so he can check out books about aviation.
July
鈥淭he Story of Ruby Bridges,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Robert Coles and illustrated by George Ford. A look at Ruby Bridges鈥� life and family before, during, and after a judge ordered her to attend first grade at an all-white school in 1960 Louisiana.
August
鈥淔rederick Douglass: The Last Days of Slavery,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍听by William Miller and illustrated by Cedric Lucas. 鈥淎 beautifully written story that looks into the early life of abolitionist Frederick Douglass,鈥� according to the 成人快播 description. 鈥淭he reader understands his life as a slave, his passion for reading to escape his circumstances, and the path that led him to be a hero to many.鈥�
September
鈥淔reedom on the Menu: The Greensboro Sit-ins,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrated by Jerome Lagarrigue. A look at the seminal lunch counter sit-in at a Woolworth鈥檚 in Greensboro, North Carolina, in 1960, told through the eyes of an 8-year-old girl named Connie who witnesses it with her family.
October
鈥淥f Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters,鈥澨�written by Barack Obama and illustrated by Loren Long. One of my all-time favorite children鈥檚 books, it鈥檚 a lyrical note to the former president鈥檚 daughters, in which he highlights the accomplishments and contributions of Jackie Robinson, Billie Holiday, Sitting Bull, Cesar Chavez, Maya Lin, and others who shaped America.
November
鈥淚 Got the Rhythm,鈥�听飞谤颈迟迟别苍 by Connie Schofield-Morrison and illustrated by Frank Morrison. This story of a girl and her mom taking a simple walk to the park and being overtaken by the music around them 鈥� in everything from butterfly wings to ice cream trucks 鈥� is one of Whitney鈥檚 favorites on the list. 鈥淚t celebrates the beauty of art in the Black community and specifically in the diaspora,鈥� she said.
December
鈥淪weet Clara and the Freedom Quilt,鈥�听written by Deborah Hopkinson and illustrated by James Ransome. A fictional tale of Clara, born as a slave and known for sewing beautiful quilts. When Clara learns about the Underground Railroad, she designs a quilt that will double as a map on her mission to escape slavery and find her mother.
Whitney, who grew up surrounded by words (her father worked as a newspaper editor in Columbus, Ohio) recalls being told to grab a book whenever she鈥檇 profess boredom as a kid. She repeated the same advice to her own sons. With this list, she hopes children who sometimes feel left out of the stories and pictures that fill bookshelves in stores and schools will recognize themselves on the pages of the books they pick up.
鈥淯ltimately,鈥� she said, 鈥渨e want children to feel like they belong.鈥�
