February is Black History Month! To kick off this month of celebration and learning, Gaynor Librarian Ms. De Lancy provided some book recommendations for each division.
Recommended for EC & Pink.
Skin Like Mine, by LaTashia M. Perry
From the Publisher:
From the Creators of Hair Like Mine, Skin Like Mine is fun and easy to read for beginners as well as advanced readers. An entertaining yet creative way to address and celebrate diversity among young children. Guaranteed to make you smile and also a bit hungry.
Recommended for Pink, Red, and Orange.
Your Name is a Song, by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow
From the Publisher:
Frustrated by a day full of teachers and classmates mispronouncing her beautiful name, a little girl tells her mother she never wants to come back to school. In response, the girl’s mother teaches her about the musicality of African, Asian, Black-American, Latinx, and Middle Eastern names on their lyrical walk home through the city. Empowered by this newfound understanding, the young girl is ready to return the next day to share her knowledge with her class. Your Name is a Song is a celebration to remind all of us about the beauty, history, and magic behind names.
Recommended for Yellow & Silver.
Schomburg – The Man Who Built a Library, Carole Boston Weatherford
From Follett:
Includes bibliographical references. “Amid the scholars, poets, authors, and artists of the Harlem Renaissance stood an Afro-Puerto Rican named Arturo Schomburg. This law clerk’s life’s passion was to collect books, letters, music, and art from Africa and the African diaspora and bring to light the achievements of people of African descent through the ages. When Schomburg’s collection became so big it began to overflow his house (and his wife threatened to mutiny), he turned to the New York Public Library, where he created and curated a collection that was the cornerstone of a new Negro Division. A century later, his groundbreaking collection, known as the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, has become a beacon to scholars all over the world.” –Amazon.
Recommended for Green & Blue.
What Color is My World, by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
From Follett:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 86-87), filmography (page 87), and index. While twins Ella and Herbie help the handyman Mr. Midal work on their new home, he tells them about such inventors as Granville Woods, Dr. Henry T. Sampson, and James West, giving them a new view of their heritage as African-Americans.