Social Justice Books

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

Awâsis and the World Famous Bannock

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Review Source: American Indian’s in Children’s Literature Book Author: I settled in to do some reading last night. I reached for Dallas Hunt’s Awâsis and the World Famous Bannock. Amanda Strong’s illustrations drew me in as I turned the pages, following Awâsis as she sets out to take her grandma’s world-famous bannock to a relative. […]

Benny Doesn’t Like to Be Hugged

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Review Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author: A few days ago, I added a new feature to AICL. I called it “Reviewed on Twitter.” It is for books that I talk about on Twitter, in a series of numbered or threaded tweets. Earlier today (October 3, 2017), I did […]

A Girl Called Echo

Reviewed by Jean Mendoza Review Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature  Book Author: Apple, Echo, and the Importance of “More Than One Book” Two Native high school girls, two unique stories about not fitting in, and about trying to make sense of Indigenous heritage/ancestry when something has disrupted their place in a Native community…. Most regular […]

Dactyl Hill Squad

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Review Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author: Some time back, I learned that Daniel José Older was working on a series that would blend history and fantasy. The first book in the series—Dactyl Hill Squad—is out and I gotta say, I enjoyed it! Older, by the way, is not […]

Mission to Space

Reviewed by Debbie Reese Review Source: American Indians in Children’s Literature Book Author: Regular readers of American Indians in Children’s Literature know that I emphasize several points when reviewing children’s or young adult books, especially: Is the book by a Native author or illustrator? Does the book, in some way, include something to tell readers […]

Zoe and the Fawn

Reviewed by Jean Mendoza Review Source: American Indian’s in Children’s Literature Book Author: Little Zoe and her dad are feeding their horses when Zoe is captivated by a fawn lying under an aspen tree nearby. Dad takes a picture. Zoe wonders where the fawn’s mother is, and Dad suggests they look for her. They walk through […]