African American Protagonists in Children's Books

After letting his band down by missing rehearsal, Shorty has some serious questions about what it means to be a leader so he hits the New Orleans streets to find some answers.

Despite inequality of access to education, relentless discrimination, and a starkly segregated society, African American artists and writers have made landmark contributions to American art and literature. Works like A Raisin in the Son, Beloved, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Invisible Man, and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings powerfully express the African American experience, expose the injustices of American society, and reveal the hopes, dreams,...

Illustrations and simple, rhyming text introduce a school where diversity is celebrated and songs, stories, and talents are shared. The #1 New York Times bestselling picture book, celebrating diversity and inclusivity. No matter how you start your day, what you wear when you play, or if you come from far away, all are welcome here. Follow a group of children through a day in their school, where everyone is welcome. A school where children in patkas,...

Attucks! is the true story of the all-black high school basketball team that broke the color barrier in segregated 1950s Indiana, masterfully told by National Book Award winner Phil Hoose. By winning the state high school basketball championship in 1955, ten teens from an Indianapolis school meant to be the centerpiece of racially segregated education in the state shattered the myth of their inferiority. Their brilliant coach had fashioned an unbeatable...

Jazz vocalist Billie Holliday looks back on her early years in this fictional memoir written in verse.

Activist, motivational speaker, and daughter of Malcolm X Ilyasah Shabazz celebrates her mother's idealism and strength of character in a touching new YA audiobook. Betty Before X is the story of Dr. Betty Shabazz before she became a figurehead for the Civil Rights Movement. In Detroit, 1945, eleven-year-old Betty's house doesn't quite feel like home. She believes her mother loves her, but she can't shake the feeling that her mother doesn't want her....

Explores the childhood and early career of the noted jazz trumpeter who gained fame performing at the first Newport Jazz Festival in 1955.

Presents the life and career of the African American entomologist, describing how he overcame racial discrimination in the pursuit of his education and how his pioneering work in the study of insect behavior won him international recognition.