Black Excellence: Preteen Reads for Black History MonthLike this list

45 items

• From the Desk of Zoe Washington

  Marks, Janae

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  (BOOK 1) Zoe Washington isn’t sure what to write. What does a girl say to the father she’s never met, hadn’t heard from until his letter arrived on her twelfth birthday, and who’s been in prison for a terrible crime? A crime he says he never…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky

  Mbalia, Kwame

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  (BOOK 1) Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky Mbalia, Kwame (212 ratings) Book, 2019 eBook Available Downloadable Audiobook All copies in use Seventh-grader Tristan Strong feels anything but strong ever since he failed to save his best friend…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• This Promise of Change

  One Girl's Story in the Fight for School Equality

  Boyce, Jo Ann Allen

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  (NONFICTION) In 1956, one year before federal troops escorted the Little Rock 9 into Central High School, fourteen year old Jo Ann Allen was one of twelve African-American students who broke the color barrier and integrated Clinton High School in…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• President of the Whole Fifth Grade

  Winston, Sherri

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  (BOOK 1) Start counting your votes...and your friends. When Brianna Justice's hero, the famous celebrity Chef Miss Delicious, speaks at her school and traces her own success back to being president of her fifth-grade class, Brianna determines she…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Ikenga

  Okorafor, Nnedi

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  Nnamdi's father was a good chief of police, perhaps the best Kalaria had ever had. He was determined to root out the criminals that had invaded the town. But then he was murdered, and most people believed the Chief of Chiefs, most powerful of the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Mapmaker

  Ramée, Lisa Moore

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  Walt's magical ability to bring maps to life puts him, his twin sister Van, and new friend Dylan in danger when an enchanted heirloom strands them in the fantastical world of Djaruba and they discover a malevolent rival to the kingdom, a fellow…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Season of Styx Malone

  Magoon, Kekla

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  Meet Caleb and Bobby Gene, two brothers embarking on a madcap, heartwarming, one-thing-leads-to-another adventure in which friendships are forged, loyalties are tested...and miracles just might happen. Caleb Franklin and his big brother Bobby Gene…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Last Last-day-of-summer

  Giles, Lamar. 1979-

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  When adventurous cousins Otto and Sheed Alston accidentally extend the last day of summer by freezing time, they find the secrets between the unmoving seconds are not as much fun as they expected.

• Dragons in a Bag

  Elliott, Zetta,

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  (BOOK 1) When Jaxon is sent to spend the day with a mean old lady his mother calls Ma, he finds out she's not his grandmother - but she is a witch! She needs his help delivering baby dragons to a magical world where they'll be safe. There are two…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Curlfriends. [Book 1], New in Town

  Miller, Sharee (Illustrator)

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  (GRAPHIC NOVEL) Charlie has a foolproof plan for the first day at her new middle school. Even though she's used to starting over as the new kid—thanks to her military family's constant moving—making friends has never been easy for her. But this…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Be Real, Macy Weaver

  Wilson, Lakita

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  Eleven-year-old Macy Weaver knows relationships are complicated. Fresh off her latest friendship breakup, she's spent most of her summer break on her own. So when Macy's mother decides to go back to college three states away, Macy jumps on the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Manifestor Prophecy

  Thomas, Angie

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  It's not easy being a Remarkable in the Unremarkable world. Some things are cool--like getting a pet hellhound for your twelfth birthday. Others, not so much--like not being trusted to learn magic because you might use it to take revenge on an…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Swim Team

  Christmas, Johnnie

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  (GRAPHIC NOVEL) Bree can't wait for her first day at her new middle school, Enith Brigitha, home to the Mighty Manatees--until she's stuck with the only elective that fits her schedule, the dreaded Swim 101. The thought of swimming makes Bree more…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Take Back the Block

  Giles, Chrystal D.

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  Wes Henderson has the best style in sixth grade. That—and hanging out with his crew (his best friends since little-kid days) and playing video games—is what he wants to be thinking about at the start of the school year, not the protests his parents…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Bud, Not Buddy

  Curtis, Christopher Paul

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  (12yrs+) It’s 1936, in Flint, Michigan. Times may be hard, and ten-year-old Bud may be a motherless boy on the run, but Bud’s got a few things going for him: 1) He has his own suitcase full of special things. 2) He’s the author of Bud Caldwell’s…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Jumbies

  Baptiste, Tracey

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  Corinne La Mer isn't afraid of anything. Not scorpions, not the boys who tease her, and certainly not jumbies. They're just tricksters parents make up to frighten their children. Then one night Corinne chases an agouti all the way into the forbidden…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• It's the End of the World and I'm in My Bathing Suit

  Reynolds, Justin A.

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  Twelve-year-old Eddie Gordon Holloway has concocted his most genius plan ever to avoid chores... especially the dreaded L-A-UN-D-R-Y. If he can wear all the clothes he owns, he'll only have to do the laundry once during his school break. On the day…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Soft Place to Land

  Marks, Janae,

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  Joy Taylor has always believed home is the house she lived in her entire life. But then her dad lost his job, and suddenly, home becomes a tiny apartment with thin walls, shared bedrooms, and a place for tense arguments between Mom and Dad. Hardest…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• We Are Family

  James, LeBron

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  Jayden Carr has been training all summer to be ready for Hoop Group - the free afterschool basketball program where his hero, NBA superstar Kendrick King, got his start. But when his beloved coach tells him there’s not going to be a Hoop Group this…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Comb of Wishes

  Stringfellow, Lisa, 1970-

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  Ever since her mother’s death, Kela feels every bit as broken as the shards of glass, known as “mermaid’s tears,” that sparkle on the Caribbean beaches of St. Rita. So when Kela and her friend Lissy stumble across an ancient-looking comb in a coral…Read moreRead more of this annotation