Mary Ellen Oslick, Tracey Hodges, Jeanne Gilliam Fain, Bethany Scullin, Lesli Morris, and Emily Reed This second column on the 2024 Notable Books for a Global Society features picture books and novels that are informative and intriguing. Committee members are delighted to share their reviews of the award winners. Members of the Children’s Literature and Reading Special Interest Group will find additional resources such as teaching suggestions and related books in the spring 2024 Dragon Lode article. ![]() Autumn Peltier, Water Warrior. Carole Lindstrom. Illus. by Bridget George. (2023). Roaring Brook. Anishinaabe/Métis author Carole Lindstrom’s poetic texts and Anishinaabe artist Bridget George’s stunning illustrations bring to life the story of water warrior and activist Autumn Peltier (b. 2004) and her great-aunt, Josephine Henrietta Mandamin (1942-2019), told from the perspective of water itself. Indigenous water protectors traditionally care for and ensure clean water for seven generations into the future. Following colonization, the water was not as clean as it used to be. That is until Josephine fought for water rights by walking the circumference of Lake Superior taking 35 days (the full story is detailed in the back matter). Josephine taught and inspired future water warriors. Her great-niece Autumn Peltier meets with leaders all over the world, including the United Nations, advocating for Indigenous and water rights as she looks seven generations into the future. Back matter includes additional information on Josephine Mandamin and Autumn Peltier and their environmental activism. (PreK Up) —LM ![]() Breaking to the Beat! Linda J. Acevedo. Illus. by Frank Morrison. (2023). Lee & Low. The cacophony of rhythm and sounds of 1970s Bronx is captured on the pages of Linda J. Acevedo’s debut picture book complemented by Frank Morrison’s expressive acrylic artwork. Readers follow Manolo from his Puerto Rican roots listening to the beats of the conga to battling for hip-hop pride on the streets. As his neighborhood crumbles around him due to negligent landlords and corrupt politicians, he practices his moves and finds his groove. “Foot work of the TOPROCK. / Drop of the SIX-STEP. / Pose of the BABY FREEZE” until he is known as KID FLEX. Combining all types of dance moves, Manolo and some friends form the dance crew Borinquén Breakers, eventually dancing for the whole world to see in the 1980s. In an afterword, Acevedo explains that Manolo is a composite of the breakers and dance crew members of the time period. The back matter includes a glossary of break-dancing terms, an author’s note, acknowledgments, and sources for learning more about breaking. (PreK Up) —LM ![]() Contenders: Two Native Baseball Players, One World Series. Traci Sorell. Illus. by Arigon Starr. (2023). Kokila. The true story of Charles Bender (1884-1954) and John Meyers (1880-1971), the first Indigenous professional baseball players to play against each other in a World Series, comes to life in Traci Sorell’s picture book. Enduring the racial slurs of newspapers and baseball fans throughout their careers, Charles (Ojibwe-German American) and John (Cahuilla-German American) were no strangers to adversity. As a child, Charles was sent to an Indian boarding school in Philadelphia that forced him to assimilate into white culture and religion, while John was raised on a reservation by a single mother in Southern California. Both grew up loving to play baseball and made it to the major league. Charles became a pitcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and John a catcher for the New York Giants. Contenders tells the story of Charles and John and their facing each other in the 1911 World Series, but it also tells the story of the continual degradation of Indigenous peoples especially in sports. Back matter includes an author’s note, a time line, sources of quotes, and resources readers can explore to learn more about the significance of the 1911 World Series and the impact Bender and Meyers had on baseball. (PreK Up) —LM ![]() Eagle Drums. Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson. (2023). Roaring Brook. Readers learn the origin of the Iñupiaq Messenger Feast, a Native Alaskan tradition, in this middle-grade magical realism novel. Young Piŋa is helping his family prepare for winter when he meets the eagle god, Savik, at the top of a mountain and is forced to follow him on an arduous journey to the home of the eagle gods. Once there, Savik and the Eagle Mother teach him to create drums, use songs to share stories, choreograph dances, work with others, and finally construct a qalgi (a place for community activities), all these lessons necessary for him to carry out Eagle Mother’s condition for letting him go back to his family. He has two winters to construct a new qalgi and invite strangers to a feast with song and dance. In an author’s note, Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson shares that this story has been passed down orally for generations and that she was inspired to write Eagle Drums after attending her first Messenger Feast. (Gr 3 Up) —MEO ![]() Finally Seen. Kelly Yang. (2023). Simon & Schuster. Lina Gao, a ten-year-old Chinese girl, feels like she is the “left behind girl.” She has been living in Beijing with her grandmother for the past five years while her parents immigrated to America to study and build a new life. Lina, who is teased by her classmates in China for being abandoned by her family, finally gets to join her family in Los Angeles. However, life in the U.S. is not what she expected. She struggles with speaking English, connecting with her parents and younger sister, and missing her grandmother. She learns that life in America is not as wonderful as she had been led to believe. Her family has faced hardships earning enough money to pay for rent and food, learning who they can trust, and enduring racism. This engaging story shares the experiences of many immigrant families and reconciles with the challenges faced by those left behind and those working to build a better life. Kelly Yang’s author’s note provides the relatable inspiration for this story. (Gr 3 Up) —TH ![]() Game of Freedom: Mestre Bimba and the Art of Capoeira. Duncan Tonatiuh. (2023). Abrams. Duncan Tonatiuh offers readers a powerful, carefully constructed biography of Manoel Dos Reis Machado (1899-1974), known as Mestre Bimba, who cared deeply about elevating the street game of capoeira in which many formerly enslaved Africans in Brazil participated. He invited everyone around capoeira, including upper-class Brazilian society members and government officials, to see its beauty and value beyond the local community. Capoeira precisely integrates acrobatics, martial arts, dance, and music. Mestre Bimba created a school with specific regulated rules in an effort to teach capoeira at a high level in order so participants could develop their craft and everyone would honor and respect the game. Strong back matter includes a glossary (with pronunciation guide), an extensive author’s note with different origin stories of capoeira and photographs, endnotes, and a bibliography. (Gr 3 Up) —JFG ![]() The Girl Who Heard the Music: How One Pianist and 85,000 Bottles and Cans Brought New Hope to an Island. Marni Fogelson & Mahani Teave. Illus. by Marta Álvarez Miguéns. (2023). Sourcebooks eXplore. Imagine living 1,000 miles away from any other place. That is where a girl named Mahani lived on an island called Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island. A talented musician, she grew up taking music lessons on the island's only piano. After many years, Mahani moved away to become a concert pianist. As Mahani toured the world, her island always remained close to her heart. She wanted to help the island that struggled with ocean trash. When she returned to Rapa Nui, she had a bigger dream of saving the island by creating a music school with recycled trash. While other children experienced music for themselves at the school, the building also supported solar panels and a food garden. The back matter includes information on the island's culture, their people, and how the citizens used recycling and conservation to improve their island. (PreK Up) —ER ![]() Good Different. Meg Eden Kuyatt. (2023). Scholastic. Written as a novel in verse, this extraordinary book tells the story of a neurodivergent girl who comes to understand and celebrate her differences. Readers will feel the pain and turmoil Selah goes through as she struggles to be one person in school and another person at home and feels she needs to wear a mask to hide her true self. One day she reaches a tipping point and hits another student. Her friends pull away, and the school threatens to expel her. Her world of rules and comfort begins to fade away. As Selah begins to figure out who she is, she comes to understand that different doesn’t mean damaged; it just means different. Using poetry to express her feelings, she finds that these poems connect her to fellow classmates in powerful ways and discovers the value of being open and vulnerable. (Gr 3 Up) —ER ![]() Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine. Hannah Moushabeck. Illus. by Reem Madooh. (2023). Chronicle. Hannah, along with her two sisters, loves to listen to her father’s nightly stories, especially the ones about visiting his grandparents in the Old City of Jerusalem. This autobiographical picture book highlights her father’s stories, showing life in Jerusalem, rich in Palestinian culture and experiences. The story balances fun moments like street vendors and family times with the heartbreaking reality of being unable to return to their homeland. Throughout the book, pigeons emerge as powerful symbols of peace and are a recurring theme connecting to Palestinian hopes. Inviting illustrations help convey a story about family, tradition, and identity, offering a perspective that is meaningful and relevant today. The book ends with a glossary, a note from the author, and family photos that ground Homeland in real experiences and make it a timely read. (PreK Up) —BS ![]() Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter. Aida Salazar. Illus. by Molly Mendoza. (2023). Scholastic. This is the true story of Jovita Valdovinos (1911-1996), who grew up wearing big skirts and dreaming of having the freedom to wear pants like her brothers in the 1910s in rural Mexico. She was a true heroine who didn't fit into her time period. When her Papá joined the revolutionary Criteros fighting for their rights against the Federation, Jovita wanted to be a soldier too. Jovita continually had to fight for her rights as a young woman and was often refused the right to participate in the civil rights fights. Jovita then decided to take matters into her own hands and she forced her skirts into her bloomers and used them as "pants." After several family members were killed by the government, she would not let the conventions of the times hold her back. She cut her long hair, wore overalls, and a straw hat and became a revolutionary known as Juan. Back matter includes an extensive “More About Jovita” section with captioned photographs, and author’s and illustrator’s notes. (PreK Up) —JGF ![]() Mèo and Bé. Doan Phuong Ngyuen. Illus. by Jesse White. (2023). Lee & Low. Set in Vietnam during the 1960s, Mèo and Bé is a heart-wrenching tale of hanging on to hope despite abandonment and betrayal. When the war comes to their city, Bé and her mother move into her father’s home as his illegitimate daughter and mistress. Big Mother, her stepmother, frequently takes out her jealousy and anger on Bé, especially after Bé’s mother is driven out of the house. Bé stops talking and works as a servant in her own home but finds solace in caring for an injured kitten that she names Mèo. Big Mother eventually sells Bé, who manages to escape a life of captivity with other imprisoned young girls and women during a violent uprising. Somehow Bé is able to hold on to her beloved Mèo and even makes a new friend, Ngân, who becomes a sister to her and helps her find her voice again. (Gr 6 Up) —MEO ![]() Stars of the Night: The Courageous Children of the Czech Kindertransport. (2023). Caren Stelson. Illus. by Selina Alko. (2023). Carolrhoda. “War.” The words escaped from our father’s lips. War. We knew the word, but what would war mean for us? We were soon to find out.” Imagine having to make the gut-wrenching decision to put your child on a train, not knowing if you will ever see them again. Imagine watching that train lurch forward with your child as you wave until the train disappears down the tracks. This seemingly impossible scene is what Jewish parents experienced in Czechoslovakia in 1938, before the start of World War II. This story, told from the perspective of a child fleeing their home as a refugee, shares the experience of the Kindertransport that Nickolas Winton helped organize and whose Winton’s heroic efforts saved 669 Czechoslovakian Jewish children from the Nazis. The back matter contains six pages dedicated to historical background information, a detailed timeline, author’s and illustrator’s notes, source notes, a selected bibliography, and recommended further reading. (Gr 3 Up) —BS ![]() Warrior Girl Unearthed. Angeline Boulley. (2023). Henry Holt. Heists, a team of self-proclaimed misfits, and a legal battle combine for a heart-pounding mystery set in the world readers came to love in The Firekeepers Daughter (2021). Perry Firekeeper-Birch, “niece” to Daunis, is looking forward to a summer of fishing and few responsibilities. After she wrecks Auntie Daunis’ jeep, her “Summer of Slack” changes to a summer of responsibility. To repay her Auntie, she takes an internship at the local tribal museum working for Cooper Turtle, a polarizing advocate for funereal artifacts. Perry learns of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) which seeks to return stolen artifacts, many of which are displayed in universities or museums, to their native tribes. Interweaving laws and well-researched history, Angeline Boulley takes Perry and readers on an adventure to reclaim her Anishinaabe heritage and become an advocate in this fast-paced mystery that will keep readers hooked until the very end. (Gr 9-12) —TH Mary Ellen Oslick, Chair of the 2024 NBGS Committee, is an associate professor at Stetson University, DeLand, FL. Tracey Hodges is the owner of The Empowering Advocate, LLC, in Austin, TX. Jeanne Gilliam Fain is a professor at Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. Bethany Scullin is an associate professor at the University of West Georgia, Carroltton, GA. Lesli Morris is a teacher specialist at Canyons School District in West Jordan, UT. Emily Reed is a Literacy Specialist at Northern York County School District in Dillsburg, PA.
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AuthorsThese reviews are submitted by members of the International Literacy Association's Children's Literature and Reading Special Interest Group (CL/R SIG). Archives
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