Achievers, Believers and Explorers

“We cannot let this history die, nor can we let it fade away. As it has filled me with pride and given me understanding of one group of outstanding soldiers, so it should be passed on to all Americans to appreciate and honor” (from the introduction by coauthor and unit historian Bill Miles)

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The inspirational true story of Ruby Bridges.

Please, God, try to forgive those people. Because even if they say those bad things, They dont know what theyre doing. This is the true story of an extraordinary 6-year-old who helped shape history when she became the first African-American sent to first grade in an…

Celebrate Remarkable Moments in Black History with this Uplifting Story

Inspire Black boys to imagine all the great things they can do while celebrating remarkable moments from Black history!

Dear boy, Black boy, I believe in you so.

Let’s start your story—ready, set, go.

From athlete and activist Colin Kaepernick to…

Kathryn Lasky (A) and Nneka Bennett (ILT)

List Price: $5.99  (Paperback – Biography / Entrepreneur / Cosmetics – 2000)

A biography of Sarah Breedlove Walker who, though born in poverty, pioneered her genius ideas in hair and beauty care products for black women, and became a great financial success. (48…

James Buckley Jr. (A) Who HQ (A) and Jake Murray (ILT)

List Price: $5.99 (Paperback – Black Leader/ Business / Education  – 2020)

Learn how a slave became one of the leading influential African American intellectuals of the late 19th century.

African American educator, author, speaker, and advisor to presidents of the…

Margot Lee Shettterly (A) 

List Price: $9.99 (Paperback – Biography / Science – Aerospace Engineer – 2015) 

This inspiring biography tells the story of Katherine Johnson, an African American mathematician. An inspiring figure in the history of STEM, she eventually worked on the mission to send a man to the moon.  Her story…

Laurie Calkhoven (A) and Monique Dong (ILT)

List Price: $4.64  (Paperback – Biography / Astronaut – 2016)

Blast off into space and get to know Mae Jemison—the first African-American woman to ever go to space—with this fascinating, nonfiction Level 3 Ready-to-Read, part of a new series of biographies about people “you should meet.”

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Vanda Micheaux Nelson (A) and R. Gregory Christie (ILT)

List Price: $18.99 (Hardcover – African History / Harlem Bookstore – 2016)

“In the 1930s, Lewis’s dad, Lewis Michaux Sr., had an itch he needed to scratch a book itch. How to scratch it? He started a bookstore in Harlem and named it the…

Barack Obama (A)

List Price: $45.00 (Hardcover – Biography -President Barack Obama -2020)

A riveting, deeply personal account of history in the making—from the president who inspired us to believe in the power of democracy
 
In the stirring, highly anticipated first volume of his presidential memoirs, Barack Obama tells the story of his improbable…

Herb Boyd (A) and Shey Wolvek Pfister (ILT)

List Price: $14.95. (Paperback – Graphic Novel / African History – 2007)

African History For Beginners explores the rich history of this continent of contrasts. Discover the glory of the Pharaohs and Towers of Zimbabwe, the cosmology of the Yoruba, the courage of the Masai…

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (A) and Ray Obstfeld (A) and A.G. Ford (ILT)

List Price: $8.99 (Paperback – African American History / Scientists – 2013)

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, basketball legend and the NBA’s all time leading scorer, champions a lineup of little-known African-American inventors in this lively, kid-friendly book.

Did you know that James West invented…

Emily Easton (A) and Ziyue Chen (ILT)

List Price: $7.99 (Paperback – Protesters/ Activists – 2021)

With a foreword from a Parkland shooting survivor, this lushly illustrated picture book introduces young readers to America’s most influential protesters–from Harriet Tubman and Martin Luther King Jr. to contemporary groundbreakers like transgender teen Jazz Jennings. Perfect for those…

Janice N. Harrington (A) and Theodore Taylor lll

List Price: $18.50 (Hardcover – First Black Entomologist – 2019)

Can spiders learn? How do ants find their way home? Can bugs see color? All of these questions buzzed endlessly in Charles Henry Turner’s mind. As the first Black entomologist, he was fascinated by plants and…

Andrea Pinkney (A) and Stephen Alcorn (ILT)

List Price: $9.99 (Paperback – Biographies / Women Leaders / Activists – 2013)

Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus and sparked a boycott that changed America. Harriet Tubman helped more than three hundred slaves escape the South on…

Lesa Cline- Ransome (A) and James E. Ransome (ILT) 

List Price: $8.99 (Hardcover – Biography – African American Leader / Pioneer – 2019) 

Who was Harriet Tubman before she was Harriet?

Description: We know her today as Harriet Tubman, but in her lifetime she was called by many names. As General Tubman she…

Vashti Harrison (A and ILT)

List Price: $17.99 (Hardcover – Leaders and Achievers – 2019)

New York Times bestselling author-illustrator Vashti Harrison shines a bold, joyous light on black men through history.

Kathleen Krull (A) and David Diaz (ILT)

List Price: $8.95 (Paperback – Sports / Track Athlete / Handicap / Determination – 2000)

Description: Wilma Rudolph was born in Tennessee in 1940 and contracted polio just before her fifth birthday. She was not expected to walk…

Toyomi Igus (A) and Michelle Wood (ILT)

List Price: $16.99 (Hardcover –  African American Culture and  Music – 2010) 

“We free now, baby,” mama whispers as we bounce and sway with the wagon’s twists and turns over roads of clay through the land that oppressed us to a new world, a…

Kelly Starling Lyons (A) and Laura Freeman (ILT)

List Price $20.95 (Hardcover – Builder / Designer / Architect – 2021)

The Story of Architect Philip Freelon

You’ve seen the building. Now meet the man whose life went into it.

Philip Freelon’s grandfather was an acclaimed painter of the Harlem…

This collectible book by distinguished public historian Velma Maia Thomas offers an intimate look at black history in America with exclusive accounts, photographs, and interactive and removable artifacts.

Presented in three parts—Lest We Forget, Freedom’s Children, and We Shall Not Be Moved—the history comes to life…

Tonya Bolden (A) and Ansel Pitcairin (ILT)

List Price: $13.99 (Paperback – African American History / Heroes -2005)

This is a stunningly beautiful book consisting of portraits-in pictures and words-of twenty outstanding African-Americans. The individuals range from historical to contemporary figures, such as the dancer Judith Jamison, and represent diverse…

Peter Golenbock (A) and Paul Lee (A) and (ILT)

List Price: $7.99 (Paperback – Biography / Sports / Baseball – 2005)

This is a true story about one of baseballs most heroic superstars who is best known for beating Babe Ruth’s record. Later he was admitted into Baseballs elite…

**AS SEEN ON CBS MORNINGS FOR WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH**

Learn about the incredible story of Katherine Johnson! The trailblazer whose calculations changed the future of space exploration.

This empowering series of books offers inspiring messages to children of all ages, in a range of formats. The board books are told in simple sentences, perfect for…

Nico Medina (A) Who HQ and Gregory Copeland (ILT)

List Price: $6.99 (Paperback – Biography / Legendary Singer – 2018)

There is only one QUEEN OF SOUL!  Discover why Aretha Franklin garners so much R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

Aretha Franklin is a musical and cultural icon who created an amazing legacy spanning six decades! Born in…

Davis Sampson (A) Rameck Hunt (A) and George Jenkins (A)

List Price: $16.00 (Paperback – Biography / Mentoring – 2005)

The dramatic, inspiring story of three inner-city youths – Samson Davis, George Jenkins, and Rameck Hunt – whose strong friendship gave them the strength to continue…

Gail Herman (A), Nancy Harrison (ILT) and John O’Brien (ILT)

List Price: $6.99 (Paperback – Biography – Sports / Baseball – 2010)

As a kid, Jackie Robinson loved sports. And why not? He was a natural at football, basketball, and, of course, baseball. But beyond athletic skill, it was his strength of character…

Sarah Fabiny (A) Who HQ (A) and Ted Hammond (ILT)

 List Price: $6.99 (Paperback – Journalist / Activist- Exposed Lynching -2020) 

The story of how a girl born into slavery became an early leader in the civil rights movement and the most famous black female journalist in nineteenth-century America.

Born into slavery in 1862, Ida…

Phil Bildner (A) and John Holyfield (ILT)

List Price: $17.99 (Hardcover – African American History/Aviation – 2010)

The extraordinary story of James Banning, the first African-American pilot to fly across country

During the Great Depression, the ace black pilot James Banning decided to fly from coast to coast to serve as an…

Megan Reid (A) and Laura Freeman (ILT) 

List Price: $18.99 (Hardcover – Tennis Champion / First African American – 2020)

A spirited picture book biography about Althea Gibson, the first black Wimbledon, French, and U.S. Open tennis champion, from debut author Megan Reid and Coretta Scott King Honor–winning illustrator Laura Freeman. Althea Gibson:…

Arlisha Norwood (A)

List Price: $14.99 (Paperback – Black Leaders In History  – 2020)

Meet extraordinary black heroes throughout history―biographies for kids ages 8 to 12

You’re invited to meet ancient Egyptian rulers, brilliant scientists, legendary musicians, and civil rights activists―all in the same book! Black Heroes introduces you to 51 black…

Helaine Becker (A) and Tiemdow Phumiruk (ILT)

List Price: $19.99 (Hardcover – Mathematician / NASA Genius – 2019)

The bold story of Katherine Johnson, an African-American mathematician who worked for NASA during the space race and was depicted in the film Hidden Figures.

You’ve likely heard of the historic Apollo 13 moon landing. But do you know…

Jim Gigliotti (A), Stephen Marchesi (ILT), Nancy Harrison (ILT)

List Price: $6.99 (Paperback – Biography / Scientist – 2015)

Born in 1860s Missouri, nobody expected George Washington Carver to succeed. Slaves were not allowed to be educated. After the Civil War, Carver enrolled in classes and proved to be a star student. He…

Doreen Rappaport (A) Shane Evans (ILT)

List Price: $9.99 (Paperback – History / Slave Resistance – 2005)

Ever since the first boatload of human cargo sailed to the New World, African Americans have waged a courageous struggle for dignity and freedom from slavery. Using true accounts, author Doreen Rappaport puts readers…

Faith Ringgold (A and ILT)

List Price: $19.99 (Hardcover – Biography / Activist / Civil Rights / Bus Boycott- 1999)

This Rosa Parks biography begins with an African American girl named Marcie. She is waiting for the bus to school when a strange bus pulls up; for some reason, she…

Louise Borden (A), Mary Kay Kroeger (A) and Teresa Flavin (ILT)

List Price: $8.99 (Paperback – First Black Aviator – 2004)

When Bessie Coleman was a child, she wanted to be in school — not in the cotton fields of Texas, helping her family earn money. She wanted to be somebody significant in…

James Buckley Jr. (A), Who HQ (A) and Andrew Thomson (ILT)

Price: $6.50 (Paperback – Biography / Champion Tennis Players / Sisters – 2018) 

The dynamic story of the Williams sisters, both top-ranked professional tennis players.

Venus and Serena Williams are two of the most successful professional American tennis players of all…

Discover the inspiring true story of extraordinary professional cyclist Major Taylor in this nonfiction picture book from Coretta Scott King Award winners Lesa Cline-Ransome and James E. Ransome.

In 1891, Marshall Taylor could ride his bike forward, backward, even perched on the handlebars. When his stunts landed him a job at the famous…

Kofi A. Annan (A), Dudley J. Thompson (A) and Barrington A. Watson (ILT)

List Price: $15.00 (Paperback – Biographies / Pan Africanists – 2005)

This book celebrates the lives of seventeen Black leaders who have made outstanding contributions to the liberation, unity and solidarity of Africa and African peoples throughout…

Marne Ventura (A)

List Price: $8.99 (Paperback – Biography / Science – Astro Physicist and Space Advocate – 2014)                                               

“Have you ever stared into the night sky, full of stars…

Dr. Mae Jemison (A)

A Collection of Moments in Dr. Mae’s Life

List Price: $23.95 (Hardcover – First Black Astronaut- 2021)

“The writing sings” says Publisher’s Weekly in this “inspiring autobiography.” Dr. Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman in space, is truly a modern hero with a remarkable, inspirational story to tell.

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Laura Driscoll (A) and Jill Weber (ILT)

List Price: $7.99 (Paperback – Biography / Scientist – 2003)

Annie Marcus is just nuts about peanut butter! When Annie finds out that George Washington Carver was responsible for the popularity of peanuts, she picks him for her scientist report. Annie learns all…

Jason Alexander (A) and Ibrahm X. Kendi (A) 

A timely, crucial, and empowering exploration of racism–and antiracism–in America

This is NOT a history book.
This…

Jayne Pettit (A)

List Price: $7.99 (Paperback – Biography / Poet Activist – 1998)

Journey of the Heart is a biography about the life of Maya Angleou. In the book, the author, traces the now a prominent African American woman life from…

Angela Johnson (A) and Loren Long (ILT)

List Price: $18.99 (Hardcover – Flying / Tuskegee Airmen – 2007)

All he ever wanted to do was fly. Three-time Coretta Scott King Award-winning author Angela Johnson and New York Times bestselling illustrator Loren Long invite readers to ponder a…

Walter Dean Myers (A), Leonard Jenkins (ILT)

List Price: $8.99 (Paperback – Biography / Leader / Revolutionary – 2003)

“I believe in recognizing every human being
as a human being, neither white, black, brown, nor red.”

This was just one of the messages that Malcolm X brought to people of…

Kadir Nelson (A and ILT)

List Price: $10.99 (Paperback – African American History / Colonial Days to Civil Rights Movement – 2011)

Kadir Nelson’s Heart and Soul—the winner of numerous awards, including the 2012 Coretta Scott King Author Award and Illustrator Honor, and the recipient of five starred reviews—now features eight pages of discussion…

Scott Reynolds Nelson (A) and Marc Aronson (A)

List Price: $18.95 (Hardcover – History / John Henry / Folk Hero – 2007)

Who was the real John Henry? The story of this legendary African-American figure has come down to us in so many songs, stories, and plays, that the facts are often lost.…

Incredible stories of Black men who changed the course of science—for kids ages 8 to 12

All throughout history, Black men have made important contributions to scientific discovery. This collection of biographies for kids explores 15 of these intelligent men and the extraordinary scientific accomplishments they achieved—even when they faced huge challenges. You’ll…

Laurie Calkhoven (A) and Elizabet Vukovic (ILT)

List Price: $5.98 (Paperback – Biography / Sports / Track and Field – 2017)

Sprint around the track and get to know Jesse Owens in this fascinating, nonfiction Level 3 Ready-to-Read, part of a new series of biographies about people “you should meet.”

Meet Jesse Owens,…