Social Justice Books

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

The Parker Inheritance

Reviewed by Edith Campbell Review Source: Cotton Quilts Book Author: Candace Miller, a young African American girl, and her mother move into the home that once belonged to her grandmother while their own home is being renovated. Her parents have divorce and they need to prepare the house for sale. This temporary residence is in […]

I Am Alfonso Jones

Reviewed by Fayette Colon Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: I Am Alfonso Jones provides young readers with a narrative that not only addresses the complexity and history of police brutality but also discusses climate change, gun control, the criminalization of Black males, the Black Lives Matter movement, youth activism, Afro Latinidad, and so much more. […]

The Secret Legacy

Reviewed by Beverly Slapin Review Source: De Colores: The Raza Experience in Books for Children Book Author: In The Secret Legacy, Seven-year-old Ixkem’s grandfather is 100 years old, and he is ready to pass on his legacy and knowledge. Of all the people in the village, Grandfather chooses his youngest granddaughter to be the new caretaker of […]

The Honey Jar

Reviewed by Beverly Slapin Review Source: De Colores: The Raza Experience in Books for Children Book Author: In The Honey Jar, Menchú imparts some of the cultural knowledge she learned as a child: How Grandfather Sun and Grandmother Moon created the stars, and Mother Earth and Father Sky, whom they carefully instructed in the creation of sea, […]

The Girl from Chimel

Reviewed by Beverly Slapin Review Source: De Colores: The Raza Experience in Books for Children Book Author: It is in the hearts of the people of Chimel, then and now, that the old stories reside. Traditionally, told stories such as the ones in Menchú’s trilogy teach children how the world works. For young Rigoberta and […]

Refugee

Reviewed by Lyn Miller Lachmann Review Source: Pirate Tree Book Author: The news today is filled with the plight of refugees from Syria and elsewhere trying to find new homes while it seems that the rest of the world — including the United States — is trying to keep them out. Alan Gratz’s novel for […]