Social Justice Books

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

Rickshaw Girl

Reviewed by Paige Pagan Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Naima is the best painter of traditional alpana patterns in her community in Bangladesh. When a painting competition comes up, Naima works hard to win the cash prize and contribute some money to her impoverished family. Naima’s father, a rickshaw driver, is getting older and […]

Ban This Book

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Reviewed Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author:  On November 3, 2019, Mike M. submitted this comment to AICL’s post about Lois Lenski’s Indian Captive: I’ve come to Dr. Reese’s review of Indian Captive because of its appearance in Alan Gratz’s 2017 novel Ban this Book. Gratz’s story is about a schoolgirl standing up against […]

Vicki and A Summer of Change! ¡Vicki y un verano de cambio!

Reviewed by Paige Pagan Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Vicki and a Summer of Change! ¡Vicki y un verano de cambio! is a bilingual picture book that teaches children a history often unacknowledged. While the 1960s in America marked a time of social movements around civil rights, the efforts and strides achieved by the […]

Hair Twins

Reviewed by Nimarta Narang Reviewed Source: Brown Girl Magazine Book Author:  Growing up, every Sunday morning started the same way for me. My siblings and I would get dressed for the Gurdwara and wander over to our parents’ room, where we would sit and wait for them to finish getting ready. My mom, in her salwar […]

Walk Two Moons

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Reviewed Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author:  Have you ever used Google Earth? It’s a fascinating tool that lets you look at a place (like your hometown) via satellite photographs. A few years ago, I started seeing “lit trips” online.  Using Google Earth, people put together a webpage that shows places […]

Island of the Blue Dolphins

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Reviewed Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author: Update on Sep 24, 2018: I (Debbie), shared this post on Twitter yesterday because I was critiquing a young adult novel in which the author cited Island of the Blue Dolphins as a significant book from her childhood. Dr. Eve Tuck read my tweet, this […]