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Growing up is particularly difficult for Evie Green as she has no past. She lost it when her father testified against fellow police officers in a racially motivated murder. Each family member must learn to deal with their new lives and identities alone.

This fact- and fun-filled look at female contributions to the American Revolution provides a serious but lighthearted introduction to a range of known and unknown women. Affable illustrations include thought and speech bubbles.

Today in the United States, there are more than five hundred federally recognized Indigenous nations comprising nearly three million people, descendants of the fifteen million Native people who once inhabited this land. Now, for the first time, acclaimed historian and activist Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz offers a history of the United States told from the perspective of Indigenous peoples and reveals how Native Americans, for centuries, actively resisted expansion of the US empire. Dunbar-Ortiz adroitly challenges the founding myth of the United States and shows how policy against the Indigenous peoples was colonialist and designed to seize the territories of the original inhabitants, displacing or eliminating them. Spanning more than four hundred years, this classic bottom-up peoples’ history radically re-frames US history and explodes the silences that have haunted our national narrative. 2015 Recipient of the American Book Award.

Joey Pigza really wants his six-week visit with his dad to count, to show him he’s not as wired as he used to be, to show his dad how much he loves him. But Carter Pigza’s not an easy guy to love. He’s eager to make it up to Joey for past wrongs and to show him how to be a winner, to take control of his life. With his coaching, Joey’s even learned how to pitch a baseball, and he’s good at it. The trouble is, Joey’s dad thinks taking control means giving up the things that “keep Joey safe”. And if he wants to please his dad, he’s going to have to play by his rules, even when the rules don’t make sense.

In this companion book to Palace of Mirrors, 15-year-old Ella finds that accepting Prince Charming’s proposal ensnares her in a suffocating tangle of palace rules and royal etiquette, so she plots to escape.

Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship — and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever. 

Justice knows how it can go down for African American young men, and it isn’t always fair. Still, he’s pretty sure living on the straight and narrow will keep him safe. Pining over his crush Ebony, writing rap lyrics, and looking forward to chess games in the park, Justice never imagines he could be labeled a criminal. Then his teacher’s phone and wallet are stolen, and Justice finds himself at the center of the investigation. Can Justice prove he’s innocent, or will he be wrongly convicted of a crime he never committed?

A portrait of the grim conditions of child laborers in the 19th century, as well as children’s role in organizing protests.

Life could be better for twelve-year-old Jacques. His mother just died, his father is jobless, and his grandmother’s bridal store is on the verge of closing. At least he can look forward to the soccer season — after all, he’s a shoo-in for captain. But the arrival of Somali refugees shakes up nearly everything in his French-American Maine town, even soccer. Jacques isn’t the only star anymore. School, church, sports … everything suddenly seems different. So Jacques is surprised to find himself becoming friends with Kiki, a smart, kind, and strong-minded Somali Muslim girl with a mysterious scar. Can kids as seemingly different as Jacques and Kiki be friends as their town learns to embrace its changing face?

Wallis’ book is full of political cartoons killed before publication. Each cartoon is accompanied by a brief narrative explaining why it was considered too controversial for publication.

Discover how 40 influential Latinas became the women we celebrate today! In this collection of short biographies from all over Latin America and across the United States, Juliet Menéndez explores the first small steps that set the Latinitas off on their journeys. With her text and hand-painted illustrations, Menéndez shines a spotlight on the power of childhood dreams. 

Even though they were born in different countries, Akilah and Victoria are true best friends. But Victoria has been acting strange ever since she returned from her summer in Nigeria, where she had a special coming-of-age ceremony. Why does proud Victoria, named for a queen, slouch at her desk and answer the teacher’s questions in a whisper? And why won’t she laugh with Akilah anymore?

Disguised as boys, Lena and her sister Dion flee their father’s abuse. They hitchhike to their mother’s hometown in Kentucky in hopes of finding a relative to care for them.

This nonfiction work looks at Title IX, the 1972 legislation mandating that schools receiving federal funds could not discriminate on the basis of gender, ensuring equal treatment and opportunity for girls in sports and education. Included are period photos, a time line, “then and now” commentary, extensive source notes, and suggested resources for further reading.

For African American women, the fight for the right to vote was only one battle. This Coretta Scott King Author Honor book tells the important, overlooked story of black women as a force in the suffrage movement — when fellow suffragists did not accept them as equal partners in the struggle and they had to maintain their dignity—and safety—in a society that tried to keep them in its bottom ranks. 

A girl walks home from school. She’s tall for her age. She’s wearing her winter coat. Her headphones are in. She’s hurrying. She never makes it home. In the aftermath, while law enforcement tries to justify the response, one fact remains: a police officer has shot and killed a thirteen-year-old girl. The community is thrown into upheaval, leading to unrest, a growing movement to protest the senseless taking of Black lives, and the arrival of white supremacist counter demonstrators.

Fifteen-year-old bender Kivali has had a rough time in a gender-rigid culture. Abandoned as a baby and raised by Sheila, an ardent nonconformist, Kivali has always been surrounded by uncertainty. Where did she come from? Is it true what Sheila says, that she was deposited on Earth by the mysterious saurians? What are you? people ask, and Kivali isn’t sure. Boy/girl? Human/lizard? Both/neither? Now she’s in CropCamp, with all of its schedules and regs, and the first real friends she’s ever had. Strange occurrences and complicated relationships raise questions Kivali has never before had to consider. But she has a gift—the power to enter a trancelike state to harness the “knowings” inside her. She has Lizard Radio. Will it be enough to save her? A coming-of-age story rich in friendships and the shattering emotions of first love, this deeply felt novel will resonate with teens just emerging as adults in a sometimes hostile world. 

Through a class poetry assignment, fifth-grader Lonnie reveals the house fire that killed his parents, his separation from his sister, his life in foster care, and his community’s struggle with poverty and racism.

More than just the story of the Pullman porters, this Coretta Scott King Award winner recounts the saga of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first major black labor union. Organized just after the Civil War, the union brought together many freed slaves who had been hired by George Pullman to pamper the passengers in his sleeping cars. Seasoned with poetry, song, black-and-white historical photographs, and the personal reminiscences of porters and their wives, the text is full and engaging.

Just like other kids, Zinkoff rides his bike, hopes for snow days, and wants to be like his dad when he grows up. But Zinkoff also raises his hand with all the wrong answers, trips over his own feet, and falls down with laughter over a word like “Jabip.” Other kids have their own word to describe him, but Zinkoff is too busy to hear it. He doesn’t know he’s not like everyone else. And one winter night, Zinkoff’s differences show that any name can someday become “hero.”

When Nala Robertson reluctantly agrees to attend an open mic night for her cousin-sister-friend Imani’s birthday, she finds herself falling in instant love with Tye Brown, the MC. He’s perfect, except…Tye is an activist and is spending the summer putting on events for the community when Nala would rather watch movies and try out the new seasonal flavors at the local creamery. In order to impress Tye, Nala tells a few tiny lies to have enough in common with him. As they spend more time together, sharing more of themselves, some of those lies get harder to keep up. In Love Is a Revolution, plus size girls are beautiful, the popular girl clique has strong convictions and substance, and the ultimate love story is not only about romance but about how to show radical love to the people in your life, including to yourself.

Nine-year old Lowji Sanjana and his family move from a high-rise apartment in India to a garden-style apartment in suburban Illinois. Though lonely before school begins, Lowji befriends the landlady and a menagerie of animals as he adjusts to his new home.

Lucy Otswego is a big girl who towers over just about everyone and everything in her small Alaskan town-except for her father’s reputation as a mean drunk. At fifteen, Lucy runs away from the cruel classmates who see her only as the Giant, the neighboring adults who pity her, and the abusive father whose fleeting attention is worse than his indifference. When the crew of a crabbing boat assumes she’s much older than she is and invites her to sign on for the season, she jumps at the chance to escape her teenage life.

Lupe Wong is going to be the first female pitcher in the Major Leagues. She’s also championed causes her whole young life. Some worthy…like expanding the options for race on school tests beyond just a few bubbles. And some not so much…like complaining to the BBC about the length between Doctor Who seasons. Lupe needs an A in all her classes in order to meet her favorite pitcher, Fu Li Hernandez, who’s Chinacan/Mexinese just like her. So when the horror that is square dancing rears its head in gym? Obviously she’s not gonna let that slide.