Social Justice Books

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

Indian No More

Reviewed by Ashleigh, age 13 Review Source: Indigo’s Bookshelf: Voices of Native Youth Book Author: Indian No More, by Charlene Willing McManis with Traci Sorell, is one of the best books I’ve ever read. Thank you to Tu Books and Stacy L. Whitman for sending @ofglades the uncorrected proof to review. At first, I was sorry […]

¡Our Celebración!

Reviewed by Kirkus Review Review Source: Kirkus Review Book Author: Rhyming couplets in English and Spanish offer a language lesson to readers who join multicultural friends at a vibrant neighborhood celebration with music, fireworks, and a fabulous parade. The day begins with sunshine as the text invites readers to follow a happy, interracial group that […]

My Papi Has a Motorcycle

Reviewed by The Horn Book Review Source: The Horn Book Book Author: Quintero’s picture-book text acts as an evocative love letter to her apá and to the interconnected web of Mexican immigrant working-class people who built her hometown of Corona, California. When Papi gets home from work, young Daisy jumps into his arms for a […]

Forest World

Reviewed by Padma Venkatraman Review Source: The Pirate Tree Book Author: In Forest World, Young People’s Poet Laureate, Margarita Engle, once again demonstrates her mastery over the verse novel form, wielding it to speak eloquently of the need to protect our environment. Told through the eyes of its young protagonists, Edver and Luza, however, this underlying […]

Yo Soy Muslim: A Father’s Letter to His Daughter

Reviewed by Beverly Slapin Review Source: De Colores Book Author: In this letter to his young daughter, Afro-Mexica Muslim father, poet and spoken-word artist Gonzales gently and lovingly introduces her to the many facets of her world. Speaking directly to Muslim children and indirectly to all children everywhere, he addresses the beauty of Islam and […]

Margarito’s Forest / El Bosque de don Margarito

Teaching Ideas Reviewed by Lila Quintero Weaver Review Source: Latinx in Kid Lit Book Author: PUBLISHER’S DESCRIPTION: Margarito’s Forest, a bilingual book in English and Spanish with excerpts in K’iche’, is based on the life of Don Margarito Esteban Álvarez Velázquez as told by his daughter, Doña Maria Guadalupe. It is a story of Maya culture and […]