Early Elementary | Elementary | YA/AdultHere is a list of children's books and other resources about hair. Feedback on this list and suggestions for additional titles are welcome.
Most of the books on these lists are linked for more information or purchase to Bookshop (an indie bookstore platform) and / or Powells.com (an independent, unionized bookstore). A small percentage from book sales through these links goes to Teaching for Change.
Titles with reviews on this site are noted with an asterisk (*).
Learn more from a workshop Teaching for Change offered at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC): Hair Representation in Children’s Literature.
Support The Crown Act, a law that prohibits race-based hair discrimination and corrects racial injustices by making hair discrimination illegal. Add your name here: Support The Crown Act.
Watch a short video of three individuals sharing their stories: Lush Presents: Naturally
Black hair is art. It’s deeply connected to our ancestors, to our culture, to our history.
Shades of Black: A Celebration of Our Children
By Sandra L. Pinkney, Myles C. Pinkney (Photographer)
Hair Oil Magic
By Anu Chouhan
I Am Not a Number*
By Jenny Kay Dupuis and Kathy Kacer
Isabella's Hair and How She Learned to Love It
By Marshalla Soriano Ramos and Michael Murphy (Illustrator)
Strong Black Girls: Reclaiming Schools in Their Own Image
Edited by Danielle Apugo, et al.
(See Chapter 5: "Curls, Coils, and Codes" by Cierra Kaler-Jones)
