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Showing 1 - 20 of 186 items
Alma presses play
By Tina Cane. 2021
A lyrical novel-in-verse that takes us through the journey of coming of age in New York during the 80s. Alma's…
life is a series of halfways: She's half-Chinese, half-Jewish; her parents spend half the time fighting, and the other half silent; and she's halfway through becoming a woman. But as long as she can listen to her Walkman, hang out with her friends on the stoops of the Village, and ride her bike around the streets of New York, it feels like everything will be all right. Then comes the year when everything changes, and her life is overtaken by constant endings: friends move away, romances bloom and wither, her parents divorce and—just like that—her life as she knew it is over. In this world of confusing beginnings, middles, and endings, is Alma ready to press play on the soundtrack of her life?  
African town
By Charles Waters. 2022
Chronicling the story of the last Africans brought illegally to America in 1860, African Town is a powerful and stunning…
novel-in-verse. In 1860, long after the United States outlawed the importation of enslaved laborers, 110 men, women and children from Benin and Nigeria were captured and brought to Mobile, Alabama aboard a ship called Clotilda . Their journey includes the savage Middle Passage and being hidden in the swamplands along the Alabama River before being secretly parceled out to various plantations, where they made desperate attempts to maintain both their culture and also fit into the place of captivity to which they'd been delivered. At the end of the Civil War, the survivors created a community for themselves they called African Town, which still exists to this day. Told in 14 distinct voices, including that of the ship that brought them to the American shores and the founder of African Town, this powerfully affecting historical novel-in-verse recreates a pivotal moment in US and world history, the impacts of which we still feel today.
All the broken pieces: a novel in verse
By Ann E. Burg. 2009
Matt Pin was nine when he was airlifted out of Vietnam in 1975 and adopted by an American couple. Two…
years later Matt is still haunted by a terrible secret from his war-torn past, one that his new parents and Vietnam veterans help him confront. For grades 5-8. 2009
Oh, brother!
By Nikki Grimes, Mike Benny. 2008
Xavier is unhappy when his Mami remarries and he suddenly has a new stepbrother, Chris. Xavier doesn't want to share…
his space--or his mother. For grades K-3 and older readers. 2008
Change sings: A children's anthem
By Amanda Gorman. 2021
A lyrical audiobook from presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman and #1 New York Times bestselling illustrator Loren Long "I can…
hear change humming In its loudest, proudest song. I don't fear change coming, And so I sing along." In this stirring, much-anticipated audiobook by presidential inaugural poet and activist Amanda Gorman, anything is possible when our voices join together. As a young girl leads a cast of characters on a musical journey, they learn that they have the power to make changes—big or small—in the world, in their communities, and in most importantly, in themselves. With lyrical text, Change Sings is a triumphant call to action for everyone to use their abilities to make a difference
The weight of water
By Sarah Crossan. 2018
Novel in verse. Twelve-year-old Kasienka and her mother have immigrated to Coventry, England, from Poland to search for her father.…
Believing everyone to be unfriendly, Kasienka finds friendship with a boy she meets at the swimming pool, her only refuge. For grades 6-9. 2012
The moon within
By Aida Salazar. 2019
A novel in verse. Eleven-year-old Celi struggles with puberty and is horrified to discover her mother plans to hold a…
traditional moon ceremony to celebrate her menarche. But her best friend Magda contemplates an even more profound change in her life. For grades 4-7. 2019
Round is a tortilla: a book of shapes (A Latino Book of Concepts Ser.)
By John Parra, Roseanne Greenfield Thong. 2013
Delilah's daughters: A Novel
By Angela Benson. 2014
Delilah Monroe and her husband Rocky always dreamed of their three daughters making it big as a musical trio. After…
Rocky's death, Delilah's determination is even stronger. But the daughters find that the price of fame might be more than they're willing to give. 2014
My man Blue: poems
By Nikki Grimes, Jerome Lagarrigue Lagarrigue. 2002
A collection of poems tells the story of a young, impressionable boy moving to a city neighborhood with his mother.…
He meets his mother's tough-looking friend Blue, and as the older man watches out for the boy a bond develops. For grades 2-4 and older readers. 1999
The language inside
By Holly Thompson. 2013
Novel told in verse. Fifteen-year-old American Emma doesn't want to leave tsunami-torn Japan, where she was raised, to go to…
Massachusetts for her mother's breast cancer treatment. But Emma finds new friendships and love in the states. For senior high and older readers. 2013
Inside out & back again
By Thanhha Lai, Thanhhà Lai. 2011
Ten-year-old H ̉writes poems to chronicle the life-changing year of 1975, when H,̉ her mother, and her brothers leave Vietnam…
and resettle in Alabama. For grades 4-7. National Book Award. 2011
You can fly: the Tuskegee Airmen
By Carole Boston Weatherford, Jeffery Boston Weatherford. 2016
History in verse that celebrates the Tuskegee Airmen. Recounts the challenges faced by the African American pilots in WWII, who…
triumphed in the skies and blew past the color barriers as fighter squadrons. For grades 5-8. 2016
Nothing burns as bright as you
By Ashley Woodfolk. 2022
From acclaimed author Ashley Woodfolk, Nothing Burns as Bright as You is an impassioned story about queer love, grief, and…
the complexity of female friendship that will keep your heart racing, and breaking, until the very last page. Two girls. One wild and reckless day. Years of tumultuous history unspooling like a thin, fraying string in the hours after they set a fire. They were best friends. Until they became more. Their affections grew. Until the blurry lines became dangerous. Over the course of a single day, the depth of their past, the confusion of their present, and the unpredictability of their future is revealed. And the girls will learn that hearts, like flames, aren't so easily tamed. It starts with a fire. How will it end?
Under the mesquite (Texas Lone Star Reading List, 2013-2014)
By Guadalupe Garcia McCall. 2011
Written in verse. Throughout her high school years, as her mother battles cancer, Lupita takes on more responsibility for her…
house and seven younger siblings, while finding refuge in acting and writing poetry. Includes glossary of Spanish terms. For junior and senior high
Freedom in Congo Square
By Carole Boston Weatherford, R. Gregory Christie. 2016
The story in rhyme of Congo Square--the one place that slaves could congregate in New Orleans on Sundays to celebrate…
their heritage by dancing and sharing music together. For grades K-3
Halloween night
By Brandon Dorman, Marjorie Dennis Murray, Marjorie D. Murray. 2008
Loosely based on "The Night Before Christmas," this rhyming story tells of a group of animals, monsters, and witches who…
prepare such a frightening Halloween party that their expected trick-or-treaters all run away. For grades 2-4
The good braider: a novel
By Terry Farish. 2012
A young refugee from war-ravaged Sudan tries to navigate the strange territory of her new home in Portland, Maine. This…
young adult novel is told in free verse. For junior and senior high
We belong
By Cookie Hiponia Everman. 2021
An extraordinarily beautiful novel-in-verse, this important debut weaves a dramatic immigrant story together with Philippine mythology to create something wholly…
new. Stella and Luna know that their mama, Elsie, came from the Philippines when she was a child, but they don't know much else. So one night they ask her to tell them her story. As they get ready for bed, their mama spins two tales: that of her youth as a strong-willed middle child and refugee; and that of the young life of Mayari, the mythical daughter of a god. Both are tales of sisterhood and motherhood, and of the difficult experience of trying to fit into a new culture, and having to fight for a home and acceptance. Glorious and layered, this is a portrait of family and strength for the ages
If i tell you the truth
By Jasmin Kaur. 2021
Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo and Rupi Kaur, this heartrending story told in prose and poetry weaves together the…
stories of a mother and daughter's lives. In this stunning sophomore novel, acclaimed writer Jasmin Kaur explores trauma, fear, courage, community, and the healing power of love in its many forms. Kiran flees her home in Punjab for a fresh start in Canada after a sexual assault leaves her pregnant. But overstaying her visa and living undocumented brings its own perils for both her and her daughter, Sahaara. Sahaara would do anything to protect her mother. When she learns the truth about Kiran's past, she feels compelled to seek justice—even if it means challenging a powerful and dangerous man. if i tell you the truth that i've dug from the hardened depths of this shrapnel-filled dirt with these aching, bloody hands would you believe me? would you still love me?