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African Americans

HEART AND SOUL: THE STORY OF AMERICA AND AFRICAN AMERICANS

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Nelson
Author's First Name: 
Kadir
Illustrator's First Name: 
Kadir
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Nelson
Publisher: 
Balzer + Bray
Publication Date: 
2011
2013 Nomination (not yet selected): 

Kadir Nelson has crafted another unique look at African American life in this bold telling of American history through their perspective. The voice of a female narrator weaves the story from slavery to freedom and all in between. In addition to the compelling illustrations, the choices that Nelson makes as to which incidents should be featured make this ambitious undertaking work more often then not. Ten to Fourteen.

An African American matriarch ties the story of her people to major incidents in American history, noting the omissions, the hardships and the few but powerful triumphs.   Dramatic full page illustrations feel like a family album filled with courage and dignity.

A NATION'S HOPE: THE STORY OF BOXING LEGEND JOE LOUIS

A Nation's Hope: The Story of Boxing Legend Joe Louis
Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
De La Pena
Author's First Name: 
Matt
Illustrator's First Name: 
Kadir
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Nelson
Publisher: 
Dial
Publication Date: 
2011
2013 Nomination (not yet selected): 

Dramatic oil paintings, reminiscent of George Bellows, portray an overview of the life of Joe Louis,particularly his historic match with German heavyweight champion Max Schmeling. Nelson's application of chiaroscuro, shifting perspectives, and the symbolic use of color has never been better. A strong contender. Seven to Ten. Wendy Lukehart

 Selected for the 2012 List.

THE GREAT MIGRATION: JOURNEY TO THE NORTH

Great Migration
Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Greenfield
Author's First Name: 
Eloise
Illustrator's First Name: 
Jan Spivey
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Gilchrist
Publisher: 
Amistad
Publication Date: 
2011
2013 Nomination (not yet selected): 

Thoughtful collages illustrating prose poems offer the emotions of those African Americans participating in the Great Migration between 1915 and 1930 and their reasons for taking the train trip north. Views include those of the young and the old traveling alone, families, parents waving goodbye to spouses, all united by their long journey to the unknown. Seven to Ten. Lynda Adamson

 

THEY CALLED THEMSELVES THE KKK: THE BIRTH OF AN AMERICAN TERRORIST GROUP [AUDIOBOOK]

They Called Themselves the KKK
Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Bartoletti
Author's First Name: 
Susan Campbell
Narrator's First Name: 
Dion
Narrator's Last Name: 
Graham
Publisher: 
Brilliance Audio
Publication Date: 
2010
Narrator Dion Graham's softly-cadenced voice is the perfect foil for the tumultuous events of post-Civil War Reconstruction. Carefully differentiating Bartoletti's narrative from the first-hand accounts of freed slaves, former owners, and Confederate generals, Graham paints a disturbingly human picture of the Southern culture that gave birth to the KKK and its white supremacy movement.

BLACK AND WHITE AIRMEN: THEIR TRUE HISTORY

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Fleischman
Author's First Name: 
John
Publisher: 
Houghton Mifflin
Publication Date: 
2007

Two men, one black and one white, grew up in the same neighborhood and had parallel military careers but never met until they were in their seventies. This true story illuminates both World War II and the nature of race in America.

MISS CRANDALL'S SCHOOL FOR YOUNG LADIES & LITTLE MISSES OF COLOR

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Alexander
Author's First Name: 
Elizabeth
Second Author's First Name: 
Marilyn
Second Author's Last Name: 
Nelson
Illustrator's First Name: 
Floyd
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Cooper
Publisher: 
Wordsong
Publication Date: 
2007

Twenty-four beautifully crafted sonnets evoke Miss Crandall's mid-nineteenth century school in Connecticut: the students' fervor, the local vigilantes, and the school's ultimate fiery end. Subdued illustrations complement this important and little-known story.

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Pinkney
Author's First Name: 
Jerry
Publisher: 
Little, Brown
Publication Date: 
2007

Both traditional and fresh, lively and literary, this retelling features a brown-skinned child who travels through the winter woods to visit her ailing grandmother. Gorgeously detailed illustrations on oversized double-paged spreads are full of touches that extend the familiar story.

HENRY'S FREEDOM BOX: A TRUE STORY FROM THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Levine
Author's First Name: 
Ellen
Illustrator's First Name: 
Kadir
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Nelson
Publisher: 
Scholastic
Publication Date: 
2007

Rich with the interplay of light and shadow, dramatic oil paintings enhance the true story of Henry “Box” Brown and his successful attempt to mail himself from slavery in the South to freedom in the North.

WIND FLYERS

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Johnson
Author's First Name: 
Angela
Illustrator's First Name: 
Loren
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Long
Publisher: 
Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 
2007

Vivid oil pastels paint a bright sky-filled world and tell the story of one boy’s uncle, a former Tuskeegee airman, who misses the days he spent soaring above the earth.

JABBERWOCKY: THE CLASSIC POEM FROM LEWIS CARROLL'S THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS, AND WHAT ALICE FOUND THERE

Author Information
Author's Last Name: 
Carroll
Author's First Name: 
Lewis
Illustrator's First Name: 
Christopher
Illustrator's Last Name: 
Myers
Publisher: 
Jump at the Sun
Publication Date: 
2007

This familiar poem is reset on a city basketball court where the Jabberwock is a gigantic player, and the ball goes "snicker-snack" as it drains the basket. Intense fiery colors, black silhouettes, and a bold typeface add excitement and drama.

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