Book Recommendations
For those who wish to research a topic further, please contact the Croton Free Library at (914) 271-6612.
JUNE IS LBGTQ MONTH AND JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION
Adult
In this masterful chronicle of Juneteenth’s importance in American history and life today, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and Texas native Annette Gordon-Reed explores the origins and legacies of this holiday. Descendant of slaves, she interweaves history, dramatic family narrative, and searing episodes of memory beginning with the earliest presence of black people in Texas in the 1500s, well before enslaved Africans arrived in Jamestown, to the day in Galveston when General Gordon Granger announced the end of slavery. Gordon-Reed’s insightful and inspiring essays reexamine the saga of “frontier” peopled by Native Americans, Anglos, Tejanos, and Blacks. This work is a comprehensive and highly readable account of a holiday some consider as important as America’s Independence Day. Legally made a Federal Holiday in 2021, this book should be read by everyone interested in America.
This excellent compilation by the New York Public Library was issued on the 50th anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall uprising by the gay community in response to a police raid on the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village, a neighborhood of New York City. This anthology chronicles the tumultuous fight for LGBTQ rights in the 1960s and the activists who spearheaded it. The Forward of this work, finalist for the Randy Shilts Award for Gay Non-Fiction, is by Edmund White.
Teens/Young Adults
After creating a drag-show audition tape that culminates in an unkind nomination for prom queen, an overweight and openly gay teen partners with a girl who has been nominated for prom king to embrace their true selves.
2. Darius the Great Is Not Okay (Adib Khorram) (available in print, CD audiobook, ebook, e-audiaobook)
Clinically depressed Darius Kellner, a high school sophomore, travels to Iran to meet his grandparents, but it is their next-door neighbor, Sohrab, who changes his life. (And don't miss the sequel, Darius the Great Deserves Better.)
This work of nonfiction traces "the hidden history of slavery, four presidents, and five black lives" and includes a compelling section on Juneteenth.
MAY IS ASIAN AMERICAN-PACIFIC HERITAGE MONTH, JEWISH HERITAGE MONTH, AND OLDER AMERICANS MONTH
These recommendations are created in conjunction with the Croton Free Library
Adult
1. Girl in Translation (Jean Kwok) (available in print, CD audiobook, large print, e-book, and e-audiobook) In this internationally-acclaimed novel translated into 25 languages, Kwok draws on her experience as a child immigrant to the US to tell the story of Kim Chang, an immigrant child from Hong Kong who comes to America with her refined, violinist mother. From the outset, Kim and her mother face heartbreak.Her mother's wealthy Chinese-American sister and brother-in-law who sponsored their coming dumps them in an abandoned building with no heat in the middle of winter. The two are forced into labor in their relatives' sweatshop. Her nurturing mother finds life overwhelming, and it falls to Kim to ensure their future. Hiding their extreme poverty,she leads a double life: exceptional student by day and sweatshop worker by evening and weekend. There's also the touching love story of Kim and Matt. Kwok's writing is so beautiful and powerful and her characters so real the emotional impact is staggering and the reader comes away breathless.
2. Abba Eban: My People--The history of the Jews (Abba Eban) (available in print) In 1968 Abba Eban, former Israel Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and UN Ambassador, wrote this work on the almost four-millennium history of the Jewish people. He begins in antiquity with the forging of this people as they establish themselves in their own land. As a statesman and scholar, he understands Jewish history to be one of being rooted in this homeland, uprooted, dispersed all over the world, and returning, and the spiritual life of the Jewish people to be deeply rooted in the land of Israel. Eban stresses this spiritual connection and the dignity, ethical foundations, flexibility, work ethic, diplomatic skill, and world-wide connections between and with Jewish communities and with their religious authorities that allowed Jews, despite such devastation, for example, as abject poverty, the expulsions, the Inquisition, pogroms, and the Holocaust, to move from place to place and re-establish themselves again and again over millennia. Highly readable and with photographs, this is the perfect well-rounded introduction to Jewish history, especially for those beginning on this journey.
3. Older Americans Information Resource 2020/21 (Grey House Publishing) (available in print) This all-encompassing resource for older Americans is a repeat-winner of the National Mature Media Award and recognized as "the best in advertising, marketing, and educational materials for older adults." It includes nearly 10,000 listings, two glossaries, and three indexes. Twelve major chapters include: Organizations' Awards, Continuing Education, Disability Aids, Health Conditions, Living Facilities, Legal Resources, Libraries, and Print Resources. Each entry contains names, addresses, phone numbers, fax numbers, websites, key personnel, and brief descriptions. The chapter on Health Conditions contains specific conditions including: Aids, Depression, Hypertension, Stroke, and Visual Impairment. Each of these sections includes associations, publications, and research centers.
Teens/Young Adults
1. Warcross (Marie Lu) (available in print, CD audiobook, e-book, e-audiobook) Lu is a YA powerhouse and she has written many intricate, adventurous, plot-driven books for teens, Warcross--a Sci-Fi page turner--follows Asian-American coder Emika Chen, who hacks her way into a video game with serious consequences for the real world.
2. Love, Hate, and Other Filters (Samira Ahmed) (available in print) Maya Aziz, seventeen, is caught between her India-born parents' world of college and marrying a suitable Muslim boy and her dream world of film school and dating her classmate Phil, when a terrorist attack changes her life forever.
3. Today Tonight Tomorrow (Rachel Lynn Solomon) (available in print and e-book) A Jewish protagonist and a Jewish love interest star in this YA romcom, which follows two competitive high school students playing a chess game on the last day of their senior year.
Children
1. Zen Shorts (John Muth, author and illustrator) (available in print book English, print book, and CD kit) In this Coldecott-Honor-winning book, Muth incorporates short Buddhist tales, "Zen Shorts," into a story about three contemporary children. One rainy afternoon, a giant panda appears in the backyard of three siblings. Stillwater, the panda, introduces himself and during the next few days, the children separately visit him. Stillwater shares an afternoon of relaxing fun with each child; he also shares Zen stories which give the children new views about the world and about each other. This is also a story about siblings connecting with one another. With graceful art and simple stories that are filled with love and enlightenment, John Muth presents three ancient Zen tales that are sure to strike a chord in everyone they touch.
2. Wabi Sabi (Mark Reibstein, illustrated by Ed Young) (available in print book English, CD audiobook) Wabi Sabi, a little cat in Kyoto, Japan, had never thought much about her name until friends visiting from another land asked her owner what it meant. At last the master says, "That's hard to explain." And That is all she says. Wabi Sabi sets out on a journey to uncover the meaning of her name which is both like the Japanese word, which celebrates the beauty in what is simple, imperfect, and modest. This beautifully-constructed book is laid out so that you flip pages bottom-to-top instead of left-to-right, which in itself, is oddly lovely. It was the New York Times Best Illustrated Children's book for 2008 and an Asian Pacific-American Librarians Association (APALA) Picture Book winner that same year.
3. Hidden: A Child's Story of the Holocaust (Loic Dauviller, Illustrated by Marc Lizano, Gren Salsedo Inker) (available in print book English) In this gentle, poetic graphic novel, Dounia, a grandmother, tells her granddaughter the story even her son has never heard; how, as a young Jewish girl in Paris, she was hidden away from the Nazis by a series of neighbors who risked their lives to keep her alive when her parents had been taken to concentration camps. Hidden ends on a tender note, with Dounia and her mother rediscovering each other as World War II ends...and a young girl in present-day France becoming closer to her grandmother, who can finally, after all these years, tell her story. Hidden is written in a comic-style format for young readers.
4. Someone for Mr. Sussman (Patricia Polacco, Author/Illustrator) (available in print book English) Jerome's Bubbie is a matchmaker and the greatest in the whole neighborhood. She even found a match for the Firesteins' son, and that was a miracle! In fact, she's found a match for everyone. Except for Mr. Sussman, and herself, that is. But Mr. Sussman is impossible! Too picky! Jerome cautions Bubbie after each appointment. But Bubbie is determined to make this match no matter what lengths she must go to. And in a satisfying and sweet conclusion, this comedy of errors proves Bubbie's motto: No pot is so crooked that there isn't a lid to fit it!
Additional Recommendations
Adult
1. Minor Feelings--An Asian-American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong (available in print e-book, and e-audiobook)
2. The Gifts of the Jews--How a Tribe of Desert Nomads Changed the Way Everyone Thinks and Feels by Thomas Cahill (available in print, large print, and CD audiobook)
**Some summaries are taken from the Westchester Library System catalog.
April is Diversity in Action and Deafness Awareness Month
Adult
1. The Conversation: How Seeking and Speaking the Truth About Racism Can Radically Transform Individuals and Organizations (Robert Livingston) (available in print and ebook)
Harvard social psychologist Dr. Robert Livingston, one of America’s leading experts in the science of underlying bias and racism, draws on research and his own practical applications when working with individuals, corporations, and organizations to present the insights and methods he’s developed to get people talking about anti-Black bias, anti-Black racism, and effecting lasting change. The key is first to connect with people in ordinary conversation, and then, he has found, he must continue with ”What is racism?” and “Does it exist?” before he can address why everyone should be concerned and how it can be eradicated. Research substantiates his experience: a large segment of White Americans now believes Whites suffer the brunt of discrimination. This book shows how to create honest, fact-based conversations to change biased perceptions, increase empathy and action, and uproot anti-Black racism.
2. Deaf sentence (David Lodge) (available in print)
Booker Prize finalist David Lodge has written a moving novel about one man’s travails in late middle age and his efforts to come to terms with the severe hearing loss that has left him functionally deaf (as is Lodge). A retired professor, Desmond Bates seeks direction while his wife thrives with her new business. He’s worn down by responsibility for his querulous 89-year-old father. He becomes involved with an unstable female graduate student. The miscommunication and non-communication that his deafness engenders is the cause of marital friction, social embarrassment, poor judgement, alienation of others, and isolation. “Who was that blonde you were [talking] to?” “What?” “You were in deep conversation with a young blonde.” “I didn’t see Ron. Was he there?” This book isn’t for everyone. It’s for those who suffer with this affliction and at the same time find humor in this dialogue. And it’s for others to learn from.
Teens/Young Adults
1. Unbroken: 13 Stories Starring Disabled Teens (ed. Marieke Nijkamp) (available in print and ebook)
An anthology of stories in various genres, each featuring disabled characters and written by disabled creators. The collection includes stories of interstellar war, a journey to Persia, a dating debacle. The teenaged characters reflect diverse colors, genders, and orientations-- without obscuring the realities of their disabilities.
Fifteen-year-old Macy, officially labeled "disturbed" by her school, records her impressions of her rough neighborhood and home life as she tries to rescue her brother from Child Protective Services, win back her overachieving best friend after a fight, and figure out whether to tell her incarcerated father about her mother's cheating.
The author recounts in graphic novel format her experiences with hearing loss at a young age, including using a bulky hearing aid, learning how to lip read, and determining her "superpower."
Children
1. The Stars Beneath our Feet (David Barclay Moore) (available in print, large print, ebook, e-audiobook, and CD audiobook)
Lolly Rachpaul and his mom aren’t celebrating Christmas this year. Lolly’s brother has just passed away from a gang-related shooting a few months prior. Lolly’s mother’s friend then brings Lolly a gift that will change everything, an enormous bag of LEGOs. Lolly follows the kit’s instructions exactly. There is a lot of pressure for Lolly to find his path and join a “crew”. However, when Lolly and his friend are beaten up and robbed, joining a “crew” seems like the safest choice. But, building a fantastical LEGO city at the community center provides Lolly with an escape--and an unexpected bridge back into the world.
2. Dad and Me in the Morning (Patricia Lakin, Robert G. Steele illustrator) (print in English)
Early one morning a young boy wakes up to the light of his alarm clock. He then puts on his hearing aids and clothes and goes for a walk with his father. Together they brave the cold, as they walk in the early morning down the dark path to the beach. Lakin’s understated story reminds readers that sometimes the best way to communicate doesn’t involve words, and complemented with the beauty of Steele’s watercolor illustrations.
3. Cheshire Moon ( Nancy Butts) (print in English)
Miranda is deaf, and her best friend Timothy has disappeared at sea. Without Timothy, communication for Miranda is difficult, embarrassing and sometimes impossible. Miranda meets Boone, a neighbor who helps her aunt with household chores. As her relationship with Boone moves forward, Miranda struggles with her loyalty to Timothy. She and Boone discover they are having the same dreams about a mysterious island, and presence. Miranda is now forced to choose between the ideal world Timothy represented and the confusion and pain of the hearing world, opening herself up to the risky awkward relationship it has to offer.
Additional Recommendations
Adult
1. I’ll Scream Later (Marlee Matlin) (print)
**Some summaries taken from our Westchester Library System catalog.
March is Women's History Month and Irish-American Heritage Month
Adult
1. Conversations With RBG: Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Life, Love, Liberty, and Law (Jeffrey Rosen) (available in print, large print, and CD audiobook)
In this collection of interviews, legal journalist and National Constitution Center President Jeffrey Rosen draws from over 20 years of conversations with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. From the outset, he makes her come alive by portraying their long-time relationship. Ginsburg discusses many cases revealing her legal thinking and decisions and emphasizing her overarching view of the law: not premises and processes removed from human life but a system relating to and accommodating real people. For an understanding of the thinking and personal life of this Supreme Court Justice champion of individual rights, who passed away in 2020, this compilation is a must.
2. The Great Shame and the Triumph of the Irish in the English-Speaking World (Thomas Keneally) (available in print)
Thomas Keneally is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novel Schindler’s List, the story of righteous gentile Oskar Schlindler who rescued 1,200 Jews from certain death in Hitler’s Europe. This research and telling motivated him to explore his own Irish-Australian ancestry of which he had scant knowledge. Keneally chronicles the history of the Irish people depicting Ireland in times of prosperity and poverty. He also focuses on the forced migration and harsh life in Australia where “undesirables,” dissenters, and criminals were sent and imprisoned. He details the migration to the United States driven by the Potato Famine which left millions starving and destitute and relates the discrimination these immigrants faced for years and their success. Kenneally makes this epic compelling through documented stories of many individuals, some his own ancestors’. This is an important source for understanding the tragedies and triumphs of the Irish people.
Teens/Young Adults
1. Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World (Pénélope Bagieu) (available in print)
A cool biography compendium in graphic novel format, telling the stories of strong historical women -- from Nellie Bly to Mae Jemison and Josephine Baker to Naziq al-Abid -- in words and pictures.
2. You Too? 25 Voices Share Their #MeToo Stories (ed. by Janet Gurtler) (available in print)
A collection of first-person essays from an impressive array of YA authors, including Beth Revis, Mackenzi Lee, Ellen Hopkins, Saundra Mitchell, Jennifer Brown, Cheryl Rainfield, and more.
3. Outrun the Moon (Stacey Lee) (available in print and CD audiobook)
Historical fiction with a young woman protagonist -- also great for Women’s History Month! In this book, Mercy Wong struggles to bring her community back together after the San Francisco earthquake of 1906. (Also check out The Downstairs Girl, another great historical novel by Stacey Lee, set in 1890s Atlanta.)
4. Bog Child (Siobhan Dowd) (available in print)
In this historical novel set during the “Troubles” in Ireland, which started in the 1960s and lasted about three decades, a teenager has to navigate his relationship to the conflict, his family, and his own place in the world.
Additional Recommendations
1) Broad Strokes: 15 Women Who Made Art and Made History (in that order) (available in print) by Bridget Quinn
2) Irish-American Family Album (available in print) by Dorothy Hoobler
**Some summaries taken from our Westchester Library System catalog.
February is African-American History Month.
Adults
1. Stony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy, and the Rise of Jim Crow (Henry Louis Gates, Jr.) (available in print, ebook, and e-audiobook)
Harvard Professor Gates, historian, literary critic, and Peabody Award-winning documentary maker, has rendered a brilliant social and intellectual history of eras in America that are crucial for an understanding of today’s political and social developments in the US. Reconstruction is generally known as the era when black Americans were freed from slavery. Gates emphasizes the little-known--how short-lived it was and, remarkably, the very many accomplishments they made then. For example, “...2,ooo black men served in every level of government…” His main focus is on the little-known but devastating so-called Redemption only a decade later when the South “redeemed” itself, “when the gains of Reconstruction were systematically erased and the country witnessed the rise of a white supremacist ideology…” including Jim Crow “that...went rogue, an ideology that would long outlast the circumstances of its origins.” Accessible to the academic and general reader alike, this is a very powerful, important work.
2. Another Brooklyn (Jacqueline Woodson) (available in print, large print, CD audiobook, ebook, and e-audiobook)
This second adult novel by Jacqueline Woodson, American Young People’s Poet Laureate and National Book Award-winner, is a coming-of-age story based on her childhood in Bushwick Brooklyn. One of the most authentic fictional depictions of girlhood friendship, it is the story of four different, very close friends as they navigate life from childhood through young adulthood. August from Tennessee must transition from Southern rural life to Northern urban life after her mother’s breakdown and becomes her brother’s surrogate mother as her father leaves them alone for work everyday. Sylvia from Martinique must contend with her upper-class parents’ expectations of her to excel and their hatred of the other girls. Gigi from South Carolina, an aspiring actor who becomes a success, must deal with the girls’ envy, which ends in tragedy. Angie, a Brooklyn native, lives in poverty with a horrible secret. Critic Jon Lewis-Katz says: “Their lives are filled with... issues that have shaped the black experience….” Unlike other critics, Lewis-Katz contends: “...[it] is much less centered on race than on friendship, kinship, and sexuality.” With stunning prose, this novel will deeply resonate with every woman who has ever had or wanted to have a circle of close female friends.
3. Becoming (Michelle Obama) (available in print (English), print (Spanish), print (German), print (Chinese), print (Japanese), large print, CD audiobook, ebook, e-audiobook)
This autobiography by the former United States First Lady, the first African American to serve in that role, is a warm, riveting memoir. Growing up in tough, multiethnic Southside Chicago, she describes her close-knit, working-class family and how her nurturing parents with their love, high moral values emphasizing education and accountability, and their involvement in all aspects of her and her brother’s lives, gave her the wherewithal and confidence to excel. Obama recounts her education at Princeton, Harvard Law School, and her career as a lawyer at the firm where she met future President of the United States Barack Obama. She describes their romantic relationship, marriage, and his early political career in the Illinois State Senate, then takes the reader through his presidency and her own Public Health campaign, Let’s Move, which led to the creation of the Task Force on Childhood Obesity. Obama reveals how she dealt with the balancing act of being the first African American First Lady, raising her daughters in the White House, and her marital commitments. She has written this book for posterity and to be an inspiration, especially for African American youth.
Teens/Young Adults
A mashup of a zombie novel and Civil War-era historical fiction that offers a brand-new twist on African-American history. Who could resist?
2. Colorblind: A Story of Racism (Johnathan Harris) (available in print)
In this autobiographical graphic novel, Harris -- himself a young adult -- describes his experience with police brutality at age 8 and the way his family taught him about great African Americans such as Jackie Robinson, Nelson Mandela, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
3. We Are Not Yet Equal: Understanding Our Racial Divide (Carol Anderson with Tonya Bolden) (available in print and ebook)
A critical look at five vital events in the history of racial injustice. Perfect for research or as a study guide.
Switching between a modern-day murder mystery and a historical narrative on the Tulsa race riots of 1921, this novel uses two exciting stories to shed light on Black history in America.
5. Children of Blood and Bone (Tomi Adeyemi) (available in print (English), print (Spanish), large print, CD audiobook, ebook, and e-audiobook)
A breakout fantasy hit, inspired by the American author’s roots in West Africa, about a new generation of magical teenagers fighting to return magic to all the people of their homeland instead of just the monarchy. Adeyemi’s sequel, Children of Virtue and Vengeance, is even more heart-stoppingly intense.
Children
1. Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad (Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson ) (available in print, kit, and DVD)
For grades pre-K-3. A stirring, dramatic story of a slave who mails himself to freedom, by Jane Addams Peace, Award-winning author and Coretta Scott King Award-winning artist. Henry Brown doesn't know how old he is. Nobody keeps records of slaves' birthdays. All the time he dreams about freedom, but that dream seems farther away than ever when he is torn from his family and put to work in a warehouse. Henry grows up and marries, but he is again devastated when his family is sold at the slave market. Then one day, as he lifts a crate at the warehouse, he knows exactly what he must do: He will mail himself to the North. After an arduous journey in the crate, Henry finally has a birthday -- his first day of freedom.
2. Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters (Barack Obama) (available in print (English), print [Spanish], ebook, and e-audiobook)
For grades pre-K-3. In this poignant letter to his daughters, Barack Obama has written a moving tribute to thirteen groundbreaking Americans and the ideals that have shaped our nation. From the artistry of Georgia O'Keeffe, to the courage of Jackie Robinson, to the patriotism of George Washington, Obama sees the traits of these heroes within his own children, and within all of America’s children. Breathtaking, evocative illustrations by award-winning artist Loren Long at once capture the personalities and achievements of these great Americans and the innocence and promise of childhood. This beautiful book celebrates the characteristics that unite all Americans, from our nation’s founders to generations to come. It is about the potential within each of us to pursue our dreams and forge our own paths. It is a treasure to cherish with your family forever.
3. Testing the Ice: A True Story about Jackie Robinson (Sharon Robinson, illustrated by Kadir Nelson) (available in print)
For grades 4-7. Sharon Robinson, the daughter of baseball legend Jackie Robinson, has crafted a heartwarming, true story about growing up with her father. When Jackie Robinson retires from baseball and moves his family to Connecticut, the beautiful lake on their property is the center of everyone's fun. The neighborhood children join the Robinson kids for swimming and boating. But oddly, Jackie never goes near the water. In a dramatic episode that first winter, the children beg to go ice skating on the lake. Jackie says they can go--but only after he tests the ice to make sure it's safe. The children prod and push to get Jackie outside, until hesitantly, he finally goes.
**Some summaries taken from our Westchester Library System catalog and Amazon.
December 18 is International Migrants Day.
Adults
1. The House of Broken Angels (Luis Alberto Urrea) (available in print in English, print in Spanish, large print, and CD audiobook)
Listed in The Guardian as one of the best novels on migration, this book by Pulitzer Prize finalist Urrea tells the story of Big Angel and his rambunctious de la Cruz clan who gather in San Diego to celebrate his 70th birthday. Through quips, jokes, and the riotous and poignant relationships of these high rollers, college students, veteranos, and other colorful characters, Urrea gives the reader a rollicking good time. Through a wonderful style all his own, history, and drama, he celebrates Mexican-American life and attacks the anti-Mexican racism in American culture. And through the hardships and resilience of the family, Urrea portrays how Mexicans and Mexican-Americans are caught in the politics and economics of borders and labor exploitation by the US and Mexico. Reflecting past and current life, this spell-binding novel is a revelation.
2. The Warmth of Other Suns (by Isabel Wilkerson) (available in print and CD audiobook)
In this landmark work based on monumental research including interviews with over 1200 people, Pulitzer Prize winner Wilkerson chronicles one of the Great Migrations in America: the exodus of 7 million African Americans from the South to the North and West between 1915 and 1970. She emphasizes the newer scholarship. Rather than the dregs of society fleeing Jim Crow, those who fled this oppression were more educated and committed to family and community. This migration is now viewed as a modern version of the Europeans who flooded America’s shores in the 1800s and 1900s. What links them is the determination to take great risks to create a better future. Wilkerson brings this history to life by telling the stories of three people who made this journey. Highly readable, this work is an important book not to be missed.
3. The Unsettling Of Europe: How Migration Reshaped a Continent (Peter Gatrell) (available in print)
In this groundbreaking work, historian Gatrell presents research that belies past scholarship of how European nations’ changing demographics influence their development and identities. Past analyses posit that Europe, unlike the US, is not a continent of immigrants, and new flows of people are temporary and generally unwelcome. Gatrell shows that refugees and migrants have been and are central to the continent’s economic and social development, especially after WWII with the huge forced relocation and refugee flows, and then through the post-colonial labor migration that fueled Europe’s economic renaissance and today’s crises in “peripheral Europe” that have caused influxes of refugees fleeing from their countries. Gatrell also focuses on the stories of individual migrants, and he recognizes that migration can be unsettling for everyone.
Teens/Young Adults
1. Jesse (Gary Soto) (available in print)
A 1994 YA classic about two brothers who leave their abusive home to attend college and become farmworkers to earn money for food.
2. From Farmworker to Astronaut: My Path to the Stars (José M. Hernández) (available in print in English, print in Spanish, and ebook)
At age 6, Hernandez was working the fields with his family and dreaming of becoming an astronaut; as an adult, he was traveling to the International Space Station on the Space Shuttle Discovery. This memoir tells the story of his journey.
3. Voices from the Fields: Children of Migrant Farmworkers Tell Their Stories (interviews and photographs by S. Beth Atkin) (available in print)
A myriad of voices from Mexican-American children speak through the pages of this anthology, which includes both text and images.
Children
1. The Thing About Luck (Cynthia Kadohata) (available in print)
There is bad luck, good luck, and making your own luck — which is exactly what Summer must do to save her family in this winner of the National Book Award by Newbery Medalist Cynthia Kadohata. Summer knows that kouun means "good luck" in Japanese, and this year her family has none of it. Just when she thinks nothing else can possibly go wrong, an emergency whisks her parents away to Japan — right before harvest season.
2. Migrant (Maxine Trottier) (available in print)
Anna is the child of Mennonites from Mexico, who have come north to harvest fruit and vegetables. Sometimes she feels like a bird, flying north in the spring and south in the fall, sometimes like a jackrabbit in an abandoned burrow, since her family occupies an empty farmhouse near the fields, sometimes like a kitten, as she shares a bed with her sisters . . . But above all Anna wonders what it would be like to be a tree rooted deeply in the earth, watching the seasons come and go, instead of being like a "feather in the wind."
3. Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez (Kathleen Krull) (available in print in English and print in Spanish)
As a young boy, Cesar Chavez grew up on an 80-acre ranch in Arizona in the midst of joyous family reunions. When his family had to leave Arizona, however, to work as migrant laborers in California, their lives were turned upside down. During these excruciating days and nights, Cesar struggled — but then found the resolve to one day help his fellow workers. Yuyi Morales brings Cesar's childhood and early days as an organizer to life with stunning illustrations.
**Some summaries taken from our Westchester Library System catalog.
National Native American Heritage Month
These recommendations are created in conjunction with the Croton Free Library.
Adults
This Pulitzer Prize-winning classic by one of the most artistic masters of Native American literature beautifully evokes the landscape of the American West as it tells the story of Abel, a Native American young man of the Pueblo of Jemez in New Mexico. Abel has come back after World War II to America and his people where he fights a heart-wrenching inner battle to find his place and identity again. The war and his experiences in the world have severed him from the life of the reservation, a world of wholeness and connectedness to the land and its people, a world known as “house made of dawn.”
“Abel is a composite of the boys I knew at Jemez. An appalling number...died young...violent deaths...many who have survived...are a sad lot of people.” Though Abel plunges through a terrible downward spiral, he doesn’t suffer their fate. The ending is a beautifully-written, poignant triumph of spirit and love.
2. The Plague of Doves (Louise Erdrich) (available in print, large print, ebook, e-audio, and CD audiobook)
At the center of this novel by one of the most prolific masters of Native American literature is the murder of a white family and the murder of the three innocent Ojibwe men and boy who come upon the bodies and report the murders. Racism blinds the white authorities to any goodness in these people and, ironically, they are blamed for the crime. A posse of white vigilantes pursues them, and they are lynched.
Over decades the lives of the descendants of the victims and vigilantes who have lived in the same North Dakota town for generations intertwine. Many colorful characters reveal hidden truths --intimacies, feuds, lusts, secrets, and smoldering anger over personal and historical injustices. There is also love, romance, and friendship, even forgiveness, which blunt, if not redeem, the specter of the past.
3. 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus (Charles C. Mann) (available in print, Spanish, ebook, and CD audiobook)
In this groundbreaking book that radically changed our understanding of the Americas before the arrival of the Europeans in 1492, science journalist Charles C. Mann puts the lie to the stereotypes of Native Americans as underachievers, spiritual saints, or a combination of the two.
Rather than focusing on unproven theories or ever-changing discoveries, he uses his research to present what we want and need to know. Native Americans, for example, transformed their land so completely that Europeans arrived in a hemisphere already massively “landscaped” by human beings.
He rounds out this epic by exploring both the great tragedy that befell and destroyed this world--as much as 95 percent of the population died due to exposure from European diseases--and the magnificence of these great peoples, their cultures, and their contributions to humanity.
Teens/Young Adults
1. An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People (Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz) (available in print)
A thorough and compelling history of indigenous people that thoroughly debunks the pervasive myths of Western colonialism. Two education experts, Debbie Reese and Jean Mendoza, created this edition for middle- and high-school students in 2019, five years after Dunbar-Ortiz published the popular adult edition.
2. The Marrow Thieves (Cherie Dimaline) (available in print)
In a dystopian future, on an Earth destroyed by climate change, all humans have lost the ability to dream -- except the indigenous people of North America.
3. Give Me Some Truth (Eric Gansworth) (available in print)
Two Native American teens, living on a reservation near the Canadian border, are trying to figure out their place in the world. A+ historical fiction about music, art, love, history, and community.
Children
For ages 9-13
This book tells the story of the Ojibwa family in the 19th century. The book centers around Omakayas, who was adopted as an infant after being the sole survivor of a smallpox epidemic in her family’s village. Erdrich researched the daily life of Ojibwa villages in depth to write this historically moving and accurate novel.
2. The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses (Paul Gobel, illus. by Paul Gobel) (available in print and e-audio)
For ages 5-9
Caldecott-winning author Paul Gabel tells the story of a young Native American girl who loved to care for her tribe’s horses. When a thunderstorm scares the horses into a stampede, carrying the young girl off in the process, the girl then finds herself in a new land, with a handsome stallion horse. Hunters from her tribe find this out and try to bring her “home.” The girl knows her true home is with the horses.
3. My Heart Fills with Happiness (Monique Gray Smith, illus. by Julie Flett) (available in print and ebook)
For ages 1-3
There are so many things that can make your heart happy. For this girl it is moments like bannock on the stove, moccasins for dancing, and drumming with a loving relative that make her heart full. In this charming board book, children will enjoy experiences that hint at a Native American heritage in a clearly contemporary setting.
4. Mama, Do You Love Me? (Barbara M. Joosse, illus. by Barbara Lavalee) (available in print, ebook, and DVD)
For ages 3-5
A familiar question children often wonder about their parents: Will they still love me if I get into mischief? Fortunately, this Innuit mama is able to reassure her little girl that she loves her unconditionally, no matter what. A beautiful story about unconditional love between a parent and child.
**Some summaries taken from our Westchester Library System catalog.
Disability Employment Awareness Month
Adults
1. Temple Talks (Dr. Temple Grandin)
One of the world's leading experts on autism explains topics that have arisen from many questions she has been asked, followed by the questions themselves and her answers. For experienced parents and teachers, those learning about autism, and the person with autism, there may be answers here never considered. One mother asks about her young son who is terrified by her coworker and throws a tantrum whenever he sees her. Grandin says "...sometimes children with autism will avoid certain people not because they have done anything bad to them but because they cause the child to experience sensory overload..." such as from "a certain soap or perfume smell or a high-pitched voice." This excellent book may well be a lifesaver.
2. Far From the Tree (Andrew Solomon)
Explores the relationship of parents and their children who are different from what the parents expected and/or know how to deal with. From interviews with families coping with deafness, Dwarfism, Down syndrome, autism, schizophrenia, severe multiple disabilities, with children who are prodigies, transgender, conceived in rape, or criminals, Solomon concludes that diversity is what unites us and the experience is universal. At the heart of the matter is the parenting question--to what extent parents should accept their children for who they are, understanding that the situation or disability is not an obstacle to their children's becoming their best selves, and to what extent parents should help their children, understanding that to become their best selves their children's situation or disability must be changed. Whether it is to opt for cochlear implants for the deaf or gender reassignment surgery for transgender people, Solomon relates with compassion the struggles and triumphs families experience caring for a challenging child.
3. the curious incident of the dog in the night-time* (Mark Haddan)
A heart-rending story about difference and courage narrated by Christopher Boone, a fifteen-year-old boy who says he is a "mathematician with some behavioral difficulties." Readers often assume Christopher's condition is Asperger's, high-functioning autism, or savant syndrome. But Haddon has written "[the book] is not about Asperger's...if anything it is about difference, is about seeing the world in a surprising and revealing way." Who Christopher is, his unique way of thinking and acting, is brilliantly captured in the way he tells what happened when he decided to pursue the mystery of who killed the neighbor's dog and by making a journey to find his estranged mother in London--frightening, dangerous, and requiring great ingenuity and courage for a boy whose information and sensory input is very different from the world's and the people around him.
*Haddon writes the title with no caps.
Teen/Young Adults
1. Unbroken: 13 Stories Starring Disabled Teens (ed. by Marieke Nijkamp) (available in print)
An anthology of stories from 13 authors who identify as disabled, including Dhonielle Clayton, Kody Keplinger, Karuna Riazi, Francisco X. Stork, and more.
2. The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism (Naoki Higashita) (available in print, ebook, or audio)
Translated from Japanese, this one-of-a-kind memoir offers a window into the mind of a teen and his experience of autism. Higashita answers readers' questions -- like "Why don't you make eye contact when you're talking?" -- with candor, grace, and a startlingly broad perspective.
Two Muslim teens meet during a spring break trip to Qatar. One is trying to come to terms with systemic racism; the other is hiding a multiple sclerosis diagnosis from their family.
Children
1. Thank You, Mr. Faulker (Patricia Polacco) (available in print or multimedia kit)
At first, Trisha loves school, but her difficulty learning to read makes her feel dumb – until, in the fifth grade, a new teacher helps her understand and overcome her problem.
2. Ian’s Walk (Laurie Lears) (available in print)
A young girl realizes how much she cares for her autistic brother Ian when he gets lost at the park.
3. El Deafo (Cece Bell) (available in print, ebook, or in Spanish)
The author recounts in graphic novel format her experiences with hearing loss at a young age, including using a bulky hearing aid, learning how to lip read, and determining her "superpower."
4. Out of My Mind (Sharon M. Draper) (available in print, large print, CD audiobook, ebook, or e-audio)
A brilliant, impatient fifth-grader with cerebral palsy discovers a technological device that will allow her to speak for the first time.
5. Fish in a Tree (Lynda Mullaly Hunt) (available in print, large print, CD audiobook, ebook, or e-audio)
Sixth-grader Ally excels at covering the fact that she cannot read, but at her seventh school in as many years, she is challenged to admit she needs help.
At first, Trisha loves school, but her difficulty learning to read makes her feel dumb – until, in the fifth grade, a new teacher helps her understand and overcome her problem.
2. Ian’s Walk (Laurie Lears) (available in print)
A young girl realizes how much she cares for her autistic brother Ian when he gets lost at the park.
3. El Deafo (Cece Bell) (available in print, ebook, or in Spanish)
The author recounts in graphic novel format her experiences with hearing loss at a young age, including using a bulky hearing aid, learning how to lip read, and determining her "superpower."
4. Out of My Mind (Sharon M. Draper) (available in print, large print, CD audiobook, ebook, or e-audio)
A brilliant, impatient fifth-grader with cerebral palsy discovers a technological device that will allow her to speak for the first time.
5. Fish in a Tree (Lynda Mullaly Hunt) (available in print, large print, CD audiobook, ebook, or e-audio)
Sixth-grader Ally excels at covering the fact that she cannot read, but at her seventh school in as many years, she is challenged to admit she needs help.
Hispanic Heritage Month
"La biblioteca gratuita de Croton tiene una pequeña pero excelente colección en Español de novelas reconocidas escritas por una gran variedad de autores populares que incluye a Isabel Allende, Esmeralda Santiago, Gloria Evangelina Anzaldúa, Rosa Montero, Carlos Fuentes, Oscar Hijuelos, y muchos más."
(English Translation: The Croton Free Library has a small but good Spanish language collection of novels by well-known authors and others including: Isabel Allende, Emeralda Santiago, Gloria Andzalda, Rosa Montero, Carlos Fuentes, Oscar Hijuelos, and many more.
Adult
At the heart of, "The Book of Unknown Americans" by, Spanish American novelist, Cristina Henriquez, is the love story of Mayor Torro, a sensitive Panamanian boy, and Maribel Rivera, a beautiful Mexican girl. Through the intertwined stories of their families, neighbors, and friends from Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Mexico, Guatemala, and Panama, Henriquez depicts the heartbreak and heroism of the Hispanic immigrant experience in the United States.
"The Old Gringo" is a beautifully-written novel by Carlos Fuentes that imagines the real-life encounter between the American newspaperman Ambrose Bierce who as an old man sought out Pancho Villa’s rebel forces and General Tomas Arroyo. the passionate and ruthless guerrilla fighter determined to destroy the hacienda system. The intimacy and incompatibility of these two men, evoking the complex history of Mexico and the United States, is profoundly moving and powerful.
The Fourteen Sisters of Emilio Montez O’Brien by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Oscar Hijuelos is a celebration of femininity. In prose as poetic and beautiful as the sisters, Hijuelos recounts the heartwarming epic story of the Montez O’Brien family where the female presence is so profound it influences the cosmic order. Mother, father, sisters, and brother are lushly portrayed. But it is mainly through the eldest Margarita and the youngest Emilio that the lives, loves, tragedies, and triumphs of this warm, raucous Mexican-Irish American family are revealed.
5. "La Hija Del Canibal" (Rosa Montero) (Spanish/Español)
Teen/Young Adults
Growing up in Harlem, Xiomara — better known as "X" — finds a haven from the outside world in writing. But is she ready to perform her slam poetry in front of an audience?
2. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Benjamin Alire Sáenz) (available in print, ebook, or e-audio)
On the surface, Aristotle and Dante have nothing in common... until they meet, and their relationship changes both their lives forever.
3. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter (Erkia L. Sánchez) (available in print, ebook, or e-audio)
Julia never wanted to be the perfect Mexican daughter, but after the death of her sister, she isn't sure what her world looks like anymore.