Black Heritage

Scout Finch, the young daughter of a local attorney in the Deep South during the 1930s, tells of her father's defense of an African-American man charged with the rape of a white girl.

As Will, fifteen, sets out to avenge his brother Shawn's fatal shooting, seven ghosts who knew Shawn board the elevator and reveal truths Will needs to know.

After being sold to a cruel couple in New York City, a slave named Isabel spies for the rebels during the Revolutionary War.

Fourteen-year-old twin basketball stars Josh and Jordan wrestle with highs and lows on and off the court as their father ignores his declining health.

"The author shares her childhood memories and reveals the first sparks that ignited her writing career in free-verse poems about growing up in the North and South"--Provided by publisher.

"Ghost, a naturally talented runner and troublemaker, is recruited for an elite middle school track team. He must stay on track, literally and figuratively, to reach his full potential"--Provided by publisher.

Ten-year-old Bud, a motherless boy living in Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression, escapes a bad foster home and sets out in search of the man he believes to be his father--the renowned bandleader, H.E. Calloway of Grand Rapids.

Presents in graphic novel format the life of Georgia congressman John Lewis, focusing on his youth in rural Alabama, his meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., and the birth of the Nashville Student Movement.

A biography of the woman who became the first licensed African American pilot.

Paul-Edward, the son of a part-Indian, part-African slave mother and a White plantation owner father, finds himself caught between the two worlds of his parents as he pursues his dream of owning land in the aftermath of the Civil War.

"After seventh-grader Jerome is shot by a white police officer, he observes the aftermath of his death and meets the ghosts of other fallen black boys including historical figure Emmett Till"--Provided by publisher.

Author Walter Dean Myers describes his childhood in Harlem in the 1940s and 1950s, discussing his loving stepmother, his problems in school, his reasons for leaving home, and his beginnings as a writer.

Presents an historical fiction written in first-person format that follows Emma, the slave of Pierce Butler, through a series of events in her life as her master hosts the largest slave auction in American history in Savannah, Georgia in 1859 in order to pay off his mounting gambling debts.

Presents an illustrated account of Rosa Parks' refusal to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955, and the subsequent bus boycott by the black community.

"When six students are chosen to participate in a weekly talk with no adults allowed, they discover that when they're together, it's safe to share the hopes and fears they have to hide from the rest of the world"--Provided by publisher.

The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African-American family living in Flint, Michigan, are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963.

In the New York City borough of Queens in 1996, three girls bond over their shared love of Tupac Shakur's music, as together they try to make sense of the unpredictable world in which they live.

Eleven-year-old Elijah Freeman, the first free-born child in Buxton, Canada--a haven for slaves fleeing the American South in 1859--uses his wits and skills to try to bring to justice the lying preacher who has stolen money that was to be used to buy a family's freedom.

Through letters to his little sister, who is living in a different foster home, sixth-grader Lonnie, also known as "Locomotion," keeps a record of their lives while they are apart, describing his own foster family, including his foster brother who returns home after losing a leg in the Iraq War.

Soon after his mother's death, Matt takes a job at a funeral home in his tough Brooklyn neighborhood and, while attending and assisting with funerals, begins to accept her death and his responsibilities as a man.

Presents a true account of the murder of fourteen-year-old, Emmett Till, in Mississippi, in 1955.

A portrait of the performer and civil rights advocate Josephine Baker.

Discusses the 1963 Birmingham Children's March in Birmingham, Alabama.

A mother passes on the tradition of making quilts, or "Show ways", that serve as secret maps for freedom seeking slaves.

"The story of a teenage girl who's literally allergic to the outside world. When a new family moves in next door, she begins a complicated romance that challenges everything she's ever known. The narrative unfolds via vignettes, diary entries, texts, charts, lists, illustrations, and more"--Provided by publisher.

"Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are off to Alabama to visit their grandmother, Big Ma, and her mother, Ma Charles. Across the way lives Ma Charles's half sister, Miss Trotter. The two half sisters haven't spoken in years. As Delphine hears about her family history, she uncovers the surprising truth that's been keeping the sisters apart. But when tragedy strikes, Delphine discovers that the bonds of family run deeper than she ever knew possible"--Publisher's web site.

In 1953, Leah Hopper dreams of leaving the poverty and segregation of her home in Sulphur, Louisiana, and when Aunt Olivia sends train tickets to Los Angeles as part of her tenth birthday present, Leah gets a first taste of freedom.

A thirteen-year-old African American boy chronicles what happens to his family when his father, who temporarily left, returns home and they all must deal with their feelings of anger, hope, abandonment, and fear.

After meeting at their private school in New York, fifteen-year-old Jeremiah, who is black and whose parents are separated, and Ellie, who is white and whose mother has twice abandoned her, fall in love and then try to cope with peoples' reactions.

Retells the legend of the African-American railroad builder who raced against a steam drill to cut through a mountain.

Two girls, one white and one African-American, gradually get to know each other as they sit on the fence that divides their town.

A young girl dreams of flying above her Harlem home, claiming all she sees for herself and her family. Based on the author's quilt painting of the same name.

Describes the fifty black sailors who refused to work in unsafe and unfair conditions after an explosion in Port Chicago killed 320 servicemen, and how the incident influenced civil rights.

In 1926, nine-year-old Darby Carmichael stirs up trouble in Marlboro County, South Carolina, when she writes a story for the local newspaper promoting racial equality.

Chronicles the life and struggles of Prudence Crandall who, in the 1830s closed her all-white boarding school for girls in Canterbury, Connecticut, and began admitting African-American students; and describes the intense opposition from the townspeople.

Tells the story of America's first black paratroopers during World War II.

A frightened American soldier faces combat in the lush forests of Vietnam.

Historian Scott Nelson introduces children to the life of the real John Henry, drawing on songs, poems, and stories to describe the man behind the legendary African-American hero.

Tells the story of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson, a woman who had to overcome the obstacles of gender and race to pursue her dream of playing baseball, and who finally got her chance when she and other African-American women were invited to play in the Negro Leagues after male players were allowed on major league teams.

The daughter of a slave forms a gospel singing group and goes on tour to raise money to save Fisk University.

Troubled fourteen-year-old Gayle is sent down South to live with her uncle and aunt, where her life begins to change as she experiences the healing power of the family.

Ruby Bridges recounts the story of her involvement, as a six-year-old, in the integration of her school in New Orleans in 1960.

"Caleb Franklin and his younger brother, Bobby Gene, spend an extraordinary summer their new, older neighbor, Styx Malone, a foster boy from the city"--Provided by publisher.

When DJ ParSec, a rising star on the music scene, is found dead on her turntables, her best friend, Kya, and chief groupie, Fuse, must put behind their differences in order to get to the bottom of who killed her and why. And ParSec's fans have taken to social media with a rabid determination to get answers. Failure to solve the crime could mean more murder.

Young Harriet Tubman, whose childhood name was Minty, dreams of escaping slavery on the Brodas plantation in the late 1820s.

After fifteen-year-old Jeremiah is mistakenly shot by police, the people who love him struggle to cope with their loss as they recall his life and death, unaware that 'Miah is watching over them.

During the Depression, a rural African-American family deeply attached to the forest on their land tries to save it from being cut down by an unscrupulous white man.

Pairs twenty works of art by African-American artists with twenty poems by twenty African-American poets.

Preferring science and reading to the sports his father wants him to play, Garvey comforts himself with food and endures bullying before joining the school chorus, where he learns how to accept himself and bond with his father.

A collection of poems about a thirteen-year-old boy whose father abandoned him and his family.

Continues the adventures of Sarny, the slave girl Nightjohn taught to read, through the aftermath of the Civil War during which time she taught other Blacks and lived a full life until age ninety-four.

Twelve-year-old Sarny's brutal life as a slave becomes even more dangerous when a newly arrived slave offers to teach her how to read.

"A biography of African American musician Melba Doretta Liston, a virtuoso musician who played the trombone and composed and arranged music for many of the great jazz musicians of the twentieth century. Includes afterword, discography, and sources"--Provided by publisher.

"Piano-prodigy Isabella, eleven, whose black father and white mother struggle to share custody, never feels whole, especially as racial tensions affect her school, her parents both become engaged, and she and her stepbrother are stopped by police"--Provided by publisher.

Four children witness a confrontation between an elderly black man and a white storekeeper in rural Mississippi in the 1930s.

Autumn, who struggles with a learning disability and exceeds at wrestling, and Adonis, who is confined to a wheelchair and loves books, learn how their weaknesses can become assets.

Describes the life, dancing, and choreography of Alvin Ailey, who created his own modern dance company to explore the black experience.

"The story of the landmark 1944 surgical procedure that repaired the heart of a child with blue baby syndrome--lack of blood oxygen caused by a congenital defect. The team that developed the procedure included a cardiologist and a surgeon, but most of the actual work was done by Vivien Thomas, an African American lab assistant who was frequently mistaken for a janitor"--Provided by publisher.

A novel based on the events in the life of a young slave girl from Maryland who endures all kinds of mistreatment and cruelty, including being separated from her family, but who eventually escapes to freedom in Canada.

Provides an account of the racially-motivated bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, on September 15, 1963, which resulted in the deaths of four children, and discusses how the tragedy spurred the passage of the landmark 1964 civil rights legislation.

Introduces the efforts of student volunteers who traveled to Mississippi in 1964 to encourage African Americans to exercise their right to vote, and discusses the violent resistance they faced from supporters of segregation.

During a heavy rainstorm in 1930s rural Mississippi, a ten-year-old white boy sees a bus driver order all the black passengers off a crowded bus to make room for late-arriving white passengers and then set off across the raging Rosa Lee River.

Recounts the journey of Black slaves to freedom via the underground railroad, an extended group of people who helped fugitive slaves in many ways.

A member of the Little Rock Nine shares her memories of growing up in the South under Jim Crow.

Clayton is forbidden by his mother from playing the blues after his grandfather dies and runs away to the subways to join a band.

When Ruth and her parents take a motor trip from Chicago to Alabama to visit her grandma, they rely on a pamphlet called "The Negro Motorist Green Book" to find places that will serve them. Includes facts about "The Green Book."

Eulinda is a young house slave on a plantation in Kentucky when the Civil War comes to an end and her family splits up and she is all alone.

Twelve-year-old Marlee develops a strong friendship with Liz, the new girl in school, but when Liz suddenly stops attending school and Marlee hears a rumor that her friend is actually an African American girl passing herself off as white, the two young girls must decide whether their friendship is worth taking on integration and the dangers it could bring to their families.

Provides an account of the march for African American voting rights led by Dr. Martin Luther King in January 1965.

Fourteen-year-old orphan Amir, living in Syracuse, exchanges letters with his friend Doris, still living in their old Bronx neighborhood, in which they share their lives and give each other advice on friendship, family, foster care, and making decisions.

"A picture book biography of John Roy Lynch, one of the first African-Americans elected into the United States Congress."--Provided by publisher.

A twelve-year-old boy and his dog become trapped in New Orleans during the horrors of Hurricane Katrina.

Twelve-year-old Cole's behavior causes his mother to drive him from Detroit to Philadelphia to live with a father he has never known, but who soon has Cole involved with a group of African-American "cowboys" who rescue horses and use them to steer youths away from drugs and gangs.

"A narrative history of the Motown music label covering the historical context, personalities, and ongoing legacy of the "sound of young America.""--Provided by publisher.

Fifth-grader Cleo Edison Oliver is full of money-making ideas, and her fifth-grade Passion Project is no different--but things get more complicated when she has to keep her business running, be a good listener when her best friend needs her, and deal with the bully teasing her about being adopted at the same time.

Presents the journal of a sixteen-year-old girl whose family operates a stop on the Underground Railroad.

After the death of her mother in an automobile accident, seventh-grader Serena, who has gotten the lead in her middle school play, is left to handle the day-to-day challenges of caring for herself and her younger brother when their father cannot pull himself out of his depression.

A boy learns that the truth is often stretched on the Bayou Clapateaux, and gets the chance to tell his own version of a bayou tale when he goes fishing.

Seventh-graders Jin, Alexandra, and Elvin come from very different backgrounds and circumstances, but they all live in Harlem, and when Elvin's grandfather is attacked they band together to find out who is responsible--and the search leads them to an enigmatic artist whose missing masterpieces are worth a fortune, and into conflict with an ambitious politician who wants to turn Harlem into an historic amusement park.

A young girl growing up in Harlem in the 1950s, whose mother cleans and stitches costumes for a ballet company, dreams of becoming a prima ballerina one day, and is thrilled to see a performance of Janet Collins, the first "colored" prima ballerina.

The day nine-year-old Grace is called to work in the kitchen in the Big House, everyone warns her to to keep her head down and her thoughts to herself, but the more she sees of the oppressive Master and his hateful wife, the more she questions things until one day her thoughts escape--and to avoid being separated she and her family flee into the Dismal Swamp, to join the other escaped slaves who live there.

Orange Is the New Black meets Walter Dean Myer's Monster in this gritty, twisty, and haunting debut by Tiffany D. Jackson about a girl convicted of murder seeking the truth while surviving life in a group home.

Eight-year-old EllRay Jakes's attempts to defend himself against the class bully always end up getting him in trouble, but he promises to do his best when his dad offers to take him to Disneyland if he can be good for an entire week--which may be a few days too long.

Michael's love for his great-great-aunt who lives with them leads him to intercede with his mother, who wants to toss out all her old things.

Examines the link between the 1968 Memphis sanitation strike and the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., discussing how the strike, the media, politics, the civil rights movement, and the labor protests all laid the foundations for what many consider to be King's greatest speech, given just days before he was killed, and how that speech and King's death influenced the end of the strike.

"A picture book look at many of the men and women who revolutionized life for African Americans throughout history"--Provided by publisher.

Twelve-year-old Patsy keeps a diary of the exciting but confusing time following the end of the Civil War and the granting of freedom to former slaves.

Eight-year-old Steve Satlow is thrilled when Jackie Robinson moves into his Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn in 1948, although many of his neighbors are not, and when Steve actually meets his hero he is even more excited--and worried that a misunderstanding over a Christmas tree could damage his new friendship.

"Under a radiant moon and surrounded by all the noises of the city at night, a little boy prays for those in need, for wars to end, for the sick to be healed, and for all the members of his family"--Provided by publisher.

Recounts the events surrounding the 1957 photograph taken by Will Counts that captured one of nine African-American students trying to enter an Arkansas high school while being taunted by an angry white mob and discusses how the photo brought the civil rights movement to the forefront of the nation's attention.

With Harriet Tubman as her guide, Cassie retraces the steps escaping slaves took on the Underground Railroad in order to reunite with her younger brother.

Caught "bending the truth" again, young David Mortimore Baxter decides to follow a strict diet of honesty which lands him in even more trouble.

Thirteen-year-old Maleeka, uncomfortable because her skin is extremely dark, meets a new teacher with a birthmark on her face and makes some discoveries about how to love who she is and what she looks like.

Childhood memoirs of three black women--grandmother, mother, and daughter-who grew up between the 1880's and the 1950's.

When her best friend's family is evicted from their apartment, a nine-year-old black girl decides to do something about the situation.

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers African American literature. [electronic resource]

Darrell Mercer, a new student at Bluford High, decides it is time to take a stand after he tires of being harassed and threatened by bully Tyray Hobbs.

Marnyke gets dumped before prom, but she plans on getting back into dating with an undergrad from Spellman.

Briefly describes the life and political career of Barack Obama, discussing his childhood, family, education, wife, work as a senator, and presidential campaign.

A biography of forty-fourth U.S. President Barack Obama, covering his upbringing, education, work as a community organizer in Chicago, connection to Civil Rights, and rise to the presidency after a long campaign, and includes a timeline and glossary.

"Explores the life of San Antonio Spurs power forward Tim Duncan, including his childhood and college career, his rise to stardom in the NBA, and his championship seasons with the Spurs"--Provided by publisher.

An overview of the civil rights movement, chronicling its history, describing significant events and demonstrations, and discussing the lives and accomplishments of Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, and other leaders of the era. Includes a time line, glossary, and other resources.

This book looks at the Civil Rights Movement in the United States as a four-century struggle that began with as early as the Revolutionary War and continued with slave rebellions in the years leading up to the Civil War. [eBook]

Presents a brief history of African-Americans and of slavery in seventeenth and eighteenth century America.

Presents a selection of the African American poet's work which celebrates childhood, work, solitude, aging, courage, and the experience of freedom.

An illustrated collection of twenty-six poems by noted African-American poet Langston Hughes, and contains a detailed introduction and biography, as well as brief notes accompanying each poem.

A fictionalized biography of the eighteenth-century African woman who, as a child, was brought to New England to be a slave, and after publishing her first poem when a teenager, gained renown throughout the colonies as an important black American poet.

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers African Americans in sports. [electronic resource]

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers African American blues history and criticism. [electronic resource]

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers African American jazz history and criticism.[electronic resource]

Teenager Biddy Owens' 1948 journal about working for the Birmingham Black Barons includes the games and the players, racism the team faces from New Orleans to Chicago, and his family's resistance to his becoming a professional baseball player. Includes a historical note about the evolution of the Negro Leagues.

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers African American women civil rights workers. [electronic resource]

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers the trials of nine innocent blacks, who were rounded up, tried, and convicted on little more than the word of two white women. [electronic resource]

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers James Forman, the executive secretary from 1961 to 1966 of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) a group that vowed to use nonviolent measures to help southern blacks. [electronic resource]

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers the African-American civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama to protect their voting rights. [electronic resource]

This book highlights one athlete's inspiring commitment to success, showing how strength of character goes a long when toward making a difference. [eBook]

This book, complete with "Star Stats" and a timeline of achievements, celebrates Kevin Durant's charitable activities and basketball success. [eBook]

This book covers the story of the Williams sisters, an inspirational tale of two driven young women who overcame racism, classism, and sexism in their fight to excel in the world of sports. Readers will discover how Venus and Serena's astounding success journey is tied to their charitable efforts with organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House and the Haiti Earthquake Disaster Relief Fund. [eBook]

Hakeem Randall, already upset by his father's illness, and his family's move to Detroit, finds his anger reaching a boiling point when he is forced to share a bedroom with his moody and secretive cousin Savon, a childhood friend who soon becomes an enemy.

Provides an account of major events in the civil rights movement, describing key individuals such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and W. E. B. DuBois, and discussing the impact of the civil rights movement on the history and development of the United States.

Places important topics in context so that readers will understand the connection between black history and the sweep of America's story. This volume covers important moments in African American history. [electronic resource]

As the child of two musicians, twelve-year-old James has no interest in music until he discovers a portal to seventeenth-century London in his uncle's basement, and finds himself in a situation where his beautiful voice and the fact that he is biracial might serve him well.

Eighth-grader Theo Rollins' growth spurt has Coach Mandrake trying to transform him into a basketball star, but training time is hurting the science club's chances of winning the "Aca-lympics," and being accused of stealing could mean Theo is off both teams.

Presents a collection of poems by African-American poets, including Lucille Clifton, Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Elizabeth Alexander.

Traces the life, career and accomplishments of Maggie L. Walker, the first female bank president in the United States who strived to help poor African Americans. Features primary source images and quotations, photographs, sidebars, and a list of resources for further study.

After escaping from a plantation in North Carolina, Addy and her mother arrive in Philadelphia, where Addy goes to school and learns a lesson in true friendship.

A nine-year-old slave keeps a diary of his journey to freedom along the Underground Railroad in 1857.

Vicky Fallon feels her life spinning out of control when her father loses her job, her troubled little brother is kicked out of school, her grades start to fall, and her parents start to fight, and as she struggles to hold everything together, Vicky fears she is about to lose everything.