As the state of the world is changing day to day, one thing remains - knowledge and facts are necessary to even begin to understand the ideas of racism and the psychological, as well as physical, effects of it all. There have many book lists put out that focus on race, racism, protests, and challenges for many individuals in today's society. Librarians have been finding posts all over social media for booklists that help kids, teens, and adults understand the issues surrounding racism and we have compiled our list here:
Common Sense Media put out a
fantastic list of books on racism and social justice where folks can filter by age. The list is prefaced with this: "When your kids see demonstrations in the street or on the news as a response to racially charged incidents, you can help them understand what's going on by giving them some historical context. Sometimes such actions reflect a healthy democracy. Sometimes they lead to changing laws. Some movements are peaceful, others turn violent. These books tell stories of people's experiences of racism and of those who put their bodies on the line for the cause of equality under the law and social justice."
Epic! - Available through QPS (ask your child's teacher for their login),
Epic! is an American kids subscription-based reading and learning platform. It offers access to books and videos for children ages 12 and under. If you search "racism" or "social justice," you will find a number of books in an easier format for younger students. (The
National Geographic Kids book about Martin Luther King Jr. sparked some decent conversations between me and my 1st grader.)
Embracerace.org also has a
great list of 31 children's books. As stated in the article, "Research from Harvard University suggests that children as young as three years old, when exposed to racism and prejudice, tend to embrace and accept it, even though they might not understand the feelings. By age 5, white children are strongly biased towards whiteness. To counter this bias, experts recommend acknowledging and naming race and racism with children as early and as often as possible. Children’s books are one of the most effective and practical tools for initiating these critical conversations; and they can also be used to model what it means to resist and dismantle oppression."
While
Bookshop.org is mainly a site for folks to buy books, Brian Lair Books has put together
a large list within the site. There is no article but the books they have listed are fantastic for kids of many ages as well as adults.
1000 Black Girl Books Resource Guide is another great resource. From the site: "This resource guide was created in direct response to the multiple requests made by educators, parents and students. Like Marley Dias, so many of you have asked for books with black girls as the main characters. And because of you, we have received thousands of books. Here we are sharing with you the first 1000 titles."
Here's a blog that lists books that centers on Native stories:
American Indians in Children's Literature (AICL)
Here's
a list by a school librarian and published children's author. It contains books for all ages.
This
list of picture books featuring powerful Black characters was found on Facebook and is from a fellow librarian.
Some of our favorites are listed below:
Brown Girl Dreaming
Something Happened in Our Town - Read aloud on YouTube (picture book)
The 57 Bus
All American Boys
The Hate U Give
I'm Not Dying with You Tonight
As always, make sure you get your e-card (if you don't have it already) to gain free access to eBooks at at
Thomas Crane Public Library or
Boston Public Library!
