麻豆传媒入口

In a vibrant, multicultural society, representing the richness of students鈥櫬爈ives in a class or school library takes a conscious effort. Including writers and fictional characters with a variety of backgrounds, beliefs, and life circumstances is a way to increase the chances that students will find, to use the , both windows and mirrors in the library鈥攂ooks that reflect their lives, and ones that give them insight into the lives and experiences of people who aren鈥檛 like them.

No book shelf is going to represent the fullness of this nation. From the descendants of people who arrived here more than 15,000 years ago to the newest immigrants, we鈥檙e simply too much. But the inclusive set of books below鈥攎any of which were recommended by multiple teachers鈥攕pan all grade and Lexile levels up to 1140L, and include award winners and best sellers, books that have stood the test of time and newer options. We hope they reflect human diversity in the broadest sense, addressing race and ethnicity, religion, sexual identity, socioeconomic status, and other special circumstances.

Grades pre-K to 2

Red: A Crayon鈥檚 Story
Red鈥攁 blue crayon in a red wrapper鈥攈as issues: He can鈥檛 color strawberries or fire engines properly, and can鈥檛 quite figure out just what he鈥檚 good at. Michael Hall鈥檚 illustrated book is a cute story with a serious message for kids: Believe in yourself and be true to who you are. It鈥檚 a valuable message for all kids who feel like they鈥檙e different from others鈥擫GBT kids and kids with learning differences, for example鈥攁nd for their peers.

Deena Misses Her Mom
Deena is a formerly well-behaved girl who has been lashing out in school ever since her mom was sent to jail. Deena鈥檚 story鈥攕ensitively illustrated by Leslie Jindalay Pyo鈥攚as written by high school students Jonae Haynesworth, Jesse Holmes, Layonnie Jones, and Kahliya Ruffin to reflect the lives of the children they were tutoring in Washington, DC. Parental imprisonment is a shockingly common occurrence in America: More than 5 million children in the U.S. have had at least one parent in jail.

We Are Family
Patricia Hegarty鈥檚 book about the bonds of family, illustrated by Ryan Wheatcroft, presents children with a variety of family situations鈥攖raditional nuclear families of different races, same-sex parents, grandparents raising a child, a single mother and child, multiracial families鈥攖o make the point that what they all have in common is love.

Last Stop on Market Street
Written by Matt de la Pe帽a and illustrated by Christian Robinson, this 2016 Newbery Medal winner shows kids the value of generosity and being satisfied with what you have. Young CJ asks his grandmother questions on a bus ride鈥攚hy don鈥檛 they have a car? why is one passenger blind? why do they get off in a dirty part of town?鈥攁s they travel from church to volunteer at a soup kitchen on Market Street. Her answers help CJ uncover the beauty in the world around him.

Grades 3 to 5

Paper Wishes
In this work of historical fiction by Lois Sepahban, 10-year-old Manami is forced to leave her home after the attack on Pearl Harbor鈥攈er Japanese American family is relocated from Bainbridge Island, near Seattle, to an internment camp in the California desert. When her dog is taken from her in the process, Manami stops talking. A good introduction to the tough subject of Japanese internment鈥攁nd the personal and social cost of intolerance.

Drita, My Homegirl
An unlikely friendship blossoms between Maxie, a popular fourth grader, and the new kid in class, Drita, whose family has fled the war in Kosovo. In bringing together a refugee with limited English and an African American New York City kid, former public school teacher Jenny Lombard explores immigration and multicultural friendship.

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
Vashti Harrison鈥檚 beautifully illustrated mini-biographies of 40 black female trailblazers are meant to be inspiring for all readers; Harrison says she wrote it for her younger self, wondering 鈥渨hat kind of dreams I might have had if I had known about all these women when I was growing up.鈥� Harrison鈥檚 subjects range from Sojourner Truth and Harriet Tubman to Mahalia Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Octavia Butler, and Dominique Dawes鈥攔ole models in politics, sports, the arts and sciences, and more.

Wonder
August Pullman鈥擜uggie鈥攈as had numerous surgeries to correct facial anomalies, but when he enters school in fifth grade after years of homeschooling, he still has a face that draws nicknames like Freak and Freddy Krueger. R.J. Palacio鈥檚 novel presents Auggie鈥檚 perspective as well as those of friends and family members. Palacio has called the novel 鈥渁 meditation on kindness.鈥�

Grades 6 to 8

The Rose That Grew From Concrete
This collection of poems was written by Tupac Shakur while still a teenager鈥攎aking it a source of inspiration for young writers, particularly boys, who appreciate the musician鈥檚 authenticity. The poems are reproduced from Shakur鈥檚 journals; many show small edits he made, giving a glimpse of his creative process.

The Arrival
A sepia-toned marvel, The Arrival conveys in images鈥攖here is no dialogue鈥攁 man鈥檚 journey from his troubled home country to a new one. Artist Shaun Tan places the reader in the immigrant鈥檚 shoes by using an invented alphabet on the signs in the strange new world he enters鈥攖he language is as impenetrable to the reader as it is to the protagonist.

The Skin I鈥檓 In
Tackling bullying and the adolescent drive to build an identity, Sharon Flake鈥檚 debut novel is the story of Maleeka Madison, an African American seventh grader who struggles with poverty and self-consciousness about her dark skin鈥攁nd fights the people who try to help her. The book won Flake the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent.

Under the Mesquite
Lupita, a Mexican American teen, struggles to take care of her younger siblings as her mother battles cancer in this free verse novel that makes effective use of interspersed Spanish. Guadalupe Garcia McCall鈥檚 debut was published by Lee & Low, which has been dedicated to publishing multicultural books since 1991. 

Ghost
A National Book Award finalist, Jason Reynolds鈥檚 Ghost is the story of an African American middle school runner with the talent to qualify for the Junior Olympics鈥攊f he can learn to control his temper. Money is tight and his father is in jail, and Ghost has been having a lot of what he calls 鈥渁ltercations.鈥� This is the first in a series of books about the members of a track team.

American Born Chinese
This graphic novel鈥攖he first to be nominated for a National Book Award鈥攖ells three stories: The legend of the Monkey King, a master of martial arts; the story of a Chinese American boy who wants to be just American; and a depiction of racial stereotypes of Chinese immigrants that features a character named Chin-kee. In weaving these stories together, Gene Luen Yang explores Chinese American identities, bigotry, and the process of assimilation.

George
George is a transgender fourth grader who wants to try out for the lead role in the school production of Charlotte鈥檚 Web so that her mother will see her as a girl. Alex Gino presents George鈥檚 struggles with both bullying and the painful reassurance that she will 鈥渢urn into a fine young man.鈥� George won a Stonewall Book Award鈥攁nd made the American Library Association鈥檚 10 Most Challenged Books list in 2016 and 2017.

Grades 9 to 12

The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian
In Sherman Alexie鈥檚 National Book Award winner, Arnold Spirit Jr. is a teenager growing up on the Spokane Reservation. The school he attends is poor鈥攚hen Junior opens his geometry book he finds his mother鈥檚 name among the previous owners. A budding cartoonist, Junior eventually transfers to a wealthy high school 20 miles from home where the only other Indian is the mascot.

Bless Me, Ultima
A classic of Latino literature, Rudolfo Anaya鈥檚 coming-of-age tale is an exploration of faith鈥擜ntonio, the young protagonist, makes his First Communion in the Catholic Church but also finds a spiritual guide in Ultima, an elderly curandera, or healer, who helps him explore indigenous traditions of New Mexico. 

The Hate U Give
Angie Thomas鈥檚 debut novel was a sensation when it was published in 2017, remaining on The New York Times best-seller list for 50 weeks. It centers on the killing of an unarmed black teen by a white police officer, a shooting witnessed by 16-year-old Starr, whose days are split between her black neighborhood and mostly white suburban school. The killing of her friend Khalil drives those two worlds farther apart than ever.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X
The life story of the man born Malcolm Little鈥攃oauthored by Alex Haley鈥攊s one of the most important memoirs of the 20th century. Based on interviews conducted over the two years before Malcolm鈥檚 1965 assassination, the book describes his upbringing and his conversion to Islam while in prison, as well as his philosophies of black power and black nationalism.

They Both Die at the End
In this novel by Adam Silvera鈥攐ne of Book Riot鈥檚 Best Queer Books of 2017鈥攁 company called Death-Cast calls two New York City teens just after midnight with the bad news: This is the day they鈥檙e going to die. After meeting through the app Last Friend, Rufus, a bisexual Cuban American, and Mateo, who is of Puerto Rican heritage, spend their End Day together, making their way through the city and becoming friends鈥攁nd then something more.

The House on Mango Street
Mexican American teen Esperanza Cordero longs to escape from a rundown section of Chicago. The short vignettes that make up Sandra Cisneros鈥檚 book cover a year of Esperanza鈥檚 life as she moves from childhood into her teen years鈥攁 key moment, full of promise but also a little scary, comes when a neighbor gives Esperanza and her friends some high-heeled shoes, marking a rite of passage into womanhood.

The Namesake
Jhumpa Lahiri鈥檚 debut novel鈥攖he story of children of a Bengali couple who immigrate to America鈥攃onveys in rich detail the experience of many immigrant families: The parents strive to be American even as they miss their home and mainly socialize with other Bengalis, and the American-born children chafe at the imposition of Bengali traditions that are foreign to them.