Social Justice Books

Critically reviewed selection of multicultural and social justice books for children, young adults, and educators.

Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty

Reviewed by Lyn Miller Lachman Review Source: The Pirate Tree Book Author: We think of war as happening to children in other places. In doing so, we fail to think about young people in the United States whose everyday lives mirror the lives of young people in the world’s combat zones. For children who experience […]

Wonderstruck

Review by Anne Clare Le Zotte Review Source: Disabilities in Kid Lit Book Author: A boy named Ben longs for the father he has never known. A girl named Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a scrapbook. When Ben discovers a puzzling clue in his mother’s room, and Rose reads an […]

Drum Dream Girl

Review by Sujei Lugo Review Source: Latinx in Kid Lit Book Author: Girls cannot be drummers. Long ago on an island filled with music and rhythm, no one questioned that rule — until the drum dream girl. She longed to play tall congas and small bongós and silvery, moon-bright timbales. She had to practice in secret. […]

Growing Up Pedro

Review by Lila Quintero Weaver Review Source: Latinx in Kid Lit Book Author: Before Pedro Martinez pitched the Red Sox to a World Series championship, before he was named to the All-Star team eight times, before he won the Cy Young Award three times, he was a kid from a place called Manoguayabo in the Dominican […]

Max Loves Muñecas

Review by Ashley Hope Pérez Review Source: Latinx in Kid Lit Book Author: Max wants to visit a beautiful boutique that sells handmade dolls, but he worries that other children will tease him. When he finally finds the courage to enter the store, Max meets Señor Pepe who has been making dolls since he was a […]

Last Stop on Market Street

Book Review by Pat Enciso Review Source: De Colores Book Author: Last Stop on Market Street is a stunning contribution to the legacy and future of book art and storytelling for children; no wonder, then, that it has won a Newbery Award, Caldecott Honor, and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor. With distinctive, poetic text by Matt […]