Social Justice Books

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

No Voice Too Small: Fourteen Young Americans Making History

Review Source: Rethinking Schools Book Author: Now it is our time. Our new generation will not give up this sacred struggle. It is for our lives, for all of our relations. These ending lines from the poem “Jasilyn Charger: Water Protector” by Joseph Bruchac in No Voice Too Small offer a glimpse into the rich simplicity of […]

Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre

Review Source: Rethinking Schools Book Author: Written as a “Once upon a time . . .” story in a picture book format about the thriving Black community of Greenwood, Unspeakable centers on the history before the 1921 massacre. Children learn about the Black businesses, libraries, schools (“where some say Black children got a better education than whites”), […]

William Still and His Freedom Stories: The Father of the Underground Railroad

Review Source: Rethinking Schools Book author: Until author and illustrator Don Tate learned about William Still from a dictionary of Black Americans, the only name he knew of a Black conductor on the Underground Railroad was Harriet Tubman. Determined to make sure future generations are not limited to the single hero, he wrote about William […]

Nile Crossing

  Reviewed by Ronald J. Leprohon Review Source: Africa Access Book Author: Here is a charming and delightful book, which takes us on a journey through a young boy’s day as he leaves his ancient Egyptian rural home for a teeming city and a school where he will learn to become a scribe. Written in […]

What’s the Most Beautiful Thing You Know about Horses?

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Review Source: America Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author: Several weeks ago I wrote about Richard Van Camp’s novel, The Lesser Blessed, which I recommend for YA readers. Today I want to call your attention to his picture book, What’s the Most Beautiful Thing You Know About Horses? It joins Jingle Dancer and The Good Luck Cat as […]

Milo Imagines the World

Reviewed by Nell Beram Review Source: Shelf-Awareness Book Author: Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson’s Milo Imagines the World, like their justifiably celebrated Last Stop on Market Street, centers on a child’s regular ride on public transportation to a destination initially unknown to readers. But while Market Street‘s CJ asks his grandmother why they’re going where they’re […]