Social Justice Books

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

Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race

Reviewed by Makai Kellogg Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race is the book we’ve been waiting for! The team (Megan Madison, Jessica Ralli, and Isabel Roxas) did an incredible thing: they explained race and racism to young children. Not only did they do it in a few […]

The Voting Booth

Reviewed by Deborah Menkart Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: This novel for ages 12+ lives up to its dedication to Fannie Lou Hamer.  Two storylines sweep readers along — one about contemporary challenges of voting on election day and the other a budding love story. High school student protagonist Marva Sheridan has been […]

Kiyoshi’s Walk

Reviewed by Pat Corekin Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: “Where do poems come from?” young Kiyoshi asks his grandfather, Eto, and so begins a wonderful journey of poetic discovery. Eto takes Kiyoshi for a walk through their city. The smallest events — a cat knocking over oranges at the corner store, birds soaring […]

Violet the Snowgirl: A Story of Loss and Healing

Reviewed by: Pat Corekin Review source: Teaching for Change Book author: Two children, Jerzie and Josiah, spend a day building a snowgirl with their grandmother. As they construct their snowgirl, their imaginations create a number of adventure stories — Violet the Snowgirl is a pilot, an alien, a third grade teacher, a librarian, a veterinarian, […]

Each Kindness

Reviewed by Deborah Menkart Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Warning: This picture book for young children does not have a happy ending. And therein is the power and beauty of the story. When a group of children ostracize a new child who is poor, they do not realize how hurtful they are being […]

Swimmy

Reviewed by Deborah Menkart Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: Swimmy is the sole survivor of an encounter between a school of small fish and a tuna. When he meets a new group of small fish hiding among the rocks, he is determined to hatch a plan so they can safely explore their world. […]