Reviewed by Paige Pagan Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Star and Sebi pair up with their father to make empanadas for mami on her birthday, just as their grandmother used to do every year before she passed away. Fortunately, grandma Monona left a recipe, but unfortunately, it doesn’t disclose what her secret ingredient was. […]
Empty and Me: A Tale of Friendship and Loss
Reviewed by Brad Manker Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Empty and Me is a bilingual (Arabic/English) children’s book that personifies grief in an interesting way. Azam Mahdavi’s sensitive text, paired with the evocative illustrations by Maryam Tahmasebi, combine to create a powerful and healing experience for young readers. Empty and Me is a valuable […]
When a Brown Girl Flees
Reviewed by Paige Pagan Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: When a Brown Girl Flees is a thought provoking, contemporary young adult novel where author Aamna Qureshi seamlessly invests readers in her protagonist’s journey of healing from all-consuming grief to rediscovery and self-love. Eighteen-year-old Zahra Paracha makes the biggest decision of her life after graduation […]
All My Rage
Reviewed by Paige Pagan Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: A powerful contemporary young adult novel, All My Rage is rife with anger and grief on the ongoing price of the American dream for immigrant families. This narrative is an homage to the predecessors who painstakingly worked to carve out a smoother pathway for their […]
Ten Beautiful Things
Reviewed by Catherine Taunton Review Source: Reading Is Resistance Book Author: None of this was easy. Maybe it would never be easy. But she belonged with Gram now. She belonged here now. This place wasn’t empty and neither was she. In Ten Beautiful Things by Molly Beth Griffin, the main character, Lily, goes through a […]
A Letter for Bob
Reviewed by Debbie Reese Review Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author: Several years ago, I was invited to a first grade classroom to talk with the children about Native Americans. One child met me at the school door and was intent on scanning the parking lot. Then he said, “Where’s your horse?” I […]