Salma the Syrian Chef Written by Danny Ramadan • Art by Anna Bron

A sweet story of Salma, recently immigrating to Canada from Syria with her mother. Facing the difficulties of a new culture both Salma and her mother miss her father, who is still in Syria, waiting to join them. Salma sees her mother's face, which was once full of joy now seems sad. Salma wants to do something for Mama. She tries drawing her a picture, but it just doesn't do. Salma decides that her mother misses Syrian food. She asks Jad, a Jordanian translator to help her find a recipe for foul shami. Seeking the aid of the adults around her, she gets the ingredients, and with many spills, broken bottles, and mistakes, she makes her mother's favorite dish. When her Mama comes home, the foul shami is waiting for her. With a knock on the door, all the adults that helped Salma have come to join in...with her mother smiling with joy.

The beauty of the story is the diversity of adults and students who come to Salma's aid. Classmates from Egypt, India, and Venezuela; her Canadian teacher, the Jordanian interpreter, her Somalian caretaker, a Lebanese gay couple, and a Persian grandmother...all there to help. A story of international cooperation. The only thing missing is a recipe for foul shami! 

Mark's Book Picks Score: 3

Reading Level: 2.0 • Interest Level: P-2 • AR Points: NA • Lexile Level: 570L • Publisher: Annick Press • Pages: 40 • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-1-7732-1375-0 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

Twins by Varian Johnson, Illustrated by Shannon Wright

 

Maureen and Francine are identical twins and getting ready to start the new school year in middle school. Maureen is the picture perfect, straight A student, but a bit withdrawn. Francine is more assertive and more in tune with what's cool. Throughout elementary school, the two girls were tied at the hip, doing everything together. Now that they are starting middle school, Francine wants to be herself, independent of Maureen. The first day of school, Maureen dresses in a hat and now has pierced ears. Maureen is upset because she was placed in Cadet Corps, has a different lunch period, and has only two classes with her sister. Francine continues to assert her independence by running for class president.

Maureen talks to her Cadet Corp teacher to get extra credit which she needs to get an A to make up for her lack in marching skills. Her teacher suggests running for office for extra credit. Her teacher also reveals that her parents had requested the schedule she has and wanted her in Cadet Corps to help her with her self-confidence. Even worse, she finds out that her parents did it at the request of Francine. Furious with her family, Maureen decides to run for class president against her sister. 

A fun, light book about sisters, family, middle school life, and learning to be independent. The fact that Maureen and Francine are African American is inconsequential to the story, which is the beauty of it.

Mark's Book Picks Score: 3

Reading Level:2.9 • Interest Level: 4-7 • AR Points: 1 • Lexile Level: GN360L • Publisher: Scholastic • Pages: 247 • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-1-338-23613-2 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

Loretta Little Looks Back; Three Voices Go Tell It by Andrea Davis Pinkney, Illustrated by Brian Pinkney

Three monologues from three generations, spanning from 1927 to 1968, tell the story of living as a sharecropper under Jim Crow laws in the heart of Mississippi. The pain, the struggle and the cruelty perpetrated upon Black Americans is richly told with vivid, historically accurate detail, but sensitivity for middle school readers. Though aimed to a middle school audience, this story will resonate with ALL readers.

The first monologue is that of Loretta Little the youngest of three girls born into a loving sharecropping family, whose mother passed while still an infant. Raised by her father and two older sisters, her story is one of determination and will, despite the roadblocks placed by a culture that is determined to marginalize and maintain their superiority and control. Loretta, while working in the fields, hears the cry of a baby. Left in the fields, called a Night Deep baby, the child will become a part of the Little family, raised by Loretta and her sisters who name him Roland, in memory of their mother's maiden name.

The second monologue is that of Roland, called Roly for short. He is raised with love, but also the hardships of a sharecropper's life. He is tasked with cultivating the land that Loretta and her sisters scrimped and saved to buy. He meets, falls in love, and marries Tess, who brings Roly a daughter named Aggie. But the farm life isn't for Tess and she leaves for a better life up North. Aggie will be raised by her father and aunts. Roly is a gifted cultivator who's talents make the land and livestock prosperous, only to have those that do not want to see Blacks prosper, poison the land and livestock. Roly is a man of conviction but short on words. He doesn't want to disturb the rules set by whites as he has seen the consequences of doing so.

The third monologue is that of Aggie. Aggie is headstrong, and holds nothing back. She will not be controlled. She works her share on the farm, but she has higher aspirations. She seeks equality. She seeks to have America live up to its promises. At a local meeting to assist Blacks in exercising their right to vote, she immediately volunteers, bringing her Aunt Loretta with her. Roly is against their call to action but he cannot stop the headstrong women in his life. Loretta, Aggie and others are beaten and humiliated for trying to exercise this basic American right. Every roadblock possible is put in their way, but Aggie and Loretta will not be deterred.

The story is detailed and does not hold back on the atrocities suffered by Black Americans for exercising their civil rights. The reader should come away with a better understanding of the past and the reasons for the present. Important background information is provided as well as additional resources. The book will provide excellent background and understanding of an aspect of American history that is rarely taught. Another important work, and a necessity for all school libraries. 

Mark's Book Picks Score: 5

Reading Level: 5.2 • Interest Level: 4-7 (really for all) • AR Points: 6 • Lexile Level: NA • Publisher: Little, Brown & Co • Pages: 269 • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-0-316-53377-6 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

This Book is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Jewell

 

Rarely do I find and read a book that teaches and explains complex issues as clearly and concisely as Tiffany Jewell does on the topic of racism. While written for middle and high school students, it is one that everyone needs to read. In fact, I feel this book is so important, it should form the basis of a required course on racism for all middle/high school students.

The topic is discussed in four sections: Waking Up: Understanding and Growing into my Identities, Opening the Window: Making Sense of the World, Choosing My Path: Taking Action and Responding to Racism, and Holding the Door Open: Working in Solidarity Against Racism. Interspersed throughout are activities that help the student process and learn about themselves, how they can grow, and how they can fit in and be active in the anti-racist movement.

What you will take away from the book depends on your own personal history and experience, but everyone will be more enlightened, more aware, and have a better understanding of racism, it's history, it's effects, and the world we are currently living in. This is not just about racism in America, but racism as it exists in many parts of the world. This book has made me more knowledgeable, thoughtful, understanding, and realize that one of my roles in the movement against racism is promoting books that enlighten, teach and open the eyes of our youth so they become a more tolerant and fair generation, a generation that moves towards ending racism.

Mark's Book Picks Score: No rating for non-fiction, but this book is very important.

Reading Level: 6.8 • Interest Level: 5-9 • AR Points: 3• Lexile Level: NA • Dewey: 303.385 Publisher: Francis Lincoln Quarto Books • Pages: 160 • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-0-7112-4521-1 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

 

As Brave as You by Jason Reynolds

Eleven year old Genie is a curious boy, maintaining a notebook to record all his questions and seeking answers from the all-knowing Google. His older brother Ernie is Mr. Cool, more concerned about his muscles and girls. Both boys are headed from home in Brooklyn to Grandma's and Grandpop's in rural Virginia, giving their parents a chance to work out marital issues while vacationing in Jamaica.

What unfolds is a heartwarming story of the boy's adjustment to rural life, making new friends, building a strong relationship with their grandparents and learning about family secrets. Especially touching is Genie's relationship with his blind Grandpop. Genie is amazed and full of questions as to how his Grandpop navigates a blind life, learns about his secret room, and is shocked by the gun he sometimes carries. Their relationship grows stronger as they become dependent upon each other. The quiet rural life unravels when Genie accidentally kills a bird, and Ernie has to face a situation that literally blows up in his face. While the characters are African American, the story is universal, about family, brothers, and courage.

Jason Reynolds has become one of my favorite authors. His words are perfect and warm as he builds characters that you feel close to. Some have felt that the book is slow, but the character building is what this book is all about. I grew to love Genie, Ernie, Grandma and Grandpop and at the end, yearned for their story to continue. 

Mark's Book Picks Score: 5

Reading Level: 4.8 • Interest Level: 5-9 • AR Points: 11 • Lexile Level: 750 • Publisher: Atheneum • Pages: 410 • Copyright: 2017 • ISBN: 978-1-481-41591-0 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

Again Again by e. lockhart

 

Adelade Buchwald had a very close relationship with her younger brother Toby, until their family is ripped apart by Toby's drug addiction. Her mother must stay in a separate city to support Toby in rehab, while Adelade and her father move in to the boarding school where her father teaches English. Despite the sadness over her brother's addiction and family separation, she develops a deep love for Mikey LL, trying to hide from him these feelings. The story starts with her emotional wreckage after Mikey breaks up with her when he leaves for Puerto Rico for the summer. She takes on a summer job walking dogs belonging to several of her school's teachers. On one of her walks she meets Jack, whom she adulates over and develops a new love. The love is made difficult by the hurt from Mikey's breakup and the sadness from her family.

Adelade Buchwald loves to be in love, but love for Adelade is elusive. In Again Again, we see how her relationships play out in different ways. Perhaps each version reveals how a situation exists in multiple universes, or  perhaps, we see how multiple situations play out for Adelade in her mind, before she actually takes action. It sounds complicated, but actually the font changes between what is thought to happen, and what actually happens. The real surprise comes in part IV.

Adelade is a very bright girl, attending a snooty, upper-crust eastern boarding school.  Her issues are very first world, but painful for her none-the-less. The writing is rich, but sometimes breaks into free verse. Its not clear why Lockhart does this...for emphasis? The alternative situations are interesting, especially when you see how the situation eventually plays out. Definitely a high school read, but you could offer it to a mature 8th grader.

Mark's Book Picks Score: 3.5

Reading Level: 5.0  •  Interest Level: 7-12 • AR Points: NA  •  Lexile Level: HL680L •  Publisher: Random House • Pages: 288 • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-0-385-74480-5 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding 6/15/21

Out the Door by Christy Hale

Out the Door is simple and direct. A young girl goes out the door, headed to school with her father. What follows is a sequential series of phrases, describing their journey, with text that highlights the prepositions. "Out the door...down the stoop...past the neighbors along the block...up to the light...across the street"...all the way to school. When school ends, the sequence is reversed, illustrated with smaller blocks on a double page spread.

The illustrations are what stand out here. The bold, cut paper collages with inked detail make the words meaningful. Some pages incorporate several images with white space between, but the ones that stand out are double page spreads and a full edge bleed, with a bold perspective from the child's point of view. My favorite is "below the ground" illustrating a scene in a subway station. The diversity extends from the main character who is a person of color, as well as the diversity illustrated in her community and classroom.

For primary students and read aloud focusing on sequencing, community, and prepositions.

Mark's Book Picks Score: 3

Reading Level: 1 • Interest Level: P-2 • AR Points: NA • Lexile Level: NA  • Publisher: Penguin • Pages: 40  • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-0-8234-4644-5 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

One Little Bag: An Amazing Journey by Henry Cole

This unique wordless picture book celebrates the life-cycle of a paper bag integrated with the life-cycle of a family. While the story conveyed is poignant and important, the illustrations that convey the story are what stand out. The pen and ink drawings are richly composed, textured and detailed, conveying the environmental message, along with the warmth and emotion of family. The use of brown spot color focuses on the paper bag, while a red heart focuses on the growth of the family.

The book immediately opens with a tree in a forest, which the following pages recount its harvest, manufacturing into a brown paper bag, and then utilized to contain the purchase of a flashlight by a little boy and his father. The title page is next, and so starts the story. The paper bag is used by the boy's father to pack his lunch, on which he places a red heart. The boy has a nightmare, so the father uses the bag to shade the flashlight to light his room so he can sleep. We see the boy grow, as the bag is used in his many life experiences. The father sends his son off to college, with bag in hand. The young man brings the bag and uses it to hold his sheets of guitar music, and sometimes to hold a snack. He meets a girl, with whom he falls in love with. A second red heart is added to the bag, as he uses the bag to hold an engagement ring. As he marries, the bag is used for petals of flowers, showered by a flower girl. As life continues, a third heart is added to the bag as a baby boy enters their life. When grandpa comes to live with them, the bag is utilized to hold snacks, valentines, and follows them on their adventures. A strong bond grows between grandson and grandpa, and the grandson adds a fourth heart to the bag. Suddenly, grandpa's chair is empty.  The bag is used to hold pictures and mementoes of grandpa. In the final scene, the grandson is planting a new tree, with its' roots protected by the paper bag as it is placed in the ground.

The message is clear. Excellent to use as an introduction to Earth Day, or a unit on the environment and recycling. Could also be used as a warm look at family, and how a family deals with the loss of a loved one. The diversity label comes from the multi-racial family in the story.

Mark's Book Picks Score: 5

Reading Level: 1• Interest Level: K-3 • AR Points: NA • Lexile Level: NA • Publisher: Scholastic • Pages: 48 • Copyright: 2020 • ISBN: 978-1-338-35997-8 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding

 

Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade, Illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera

 

In the opening spread, through a window, you see a young Gwendolyn Brooks sitting on the floor next to a case filled with books... 

Gwendolyn grew up in the big city of Chicago with little money to spare. Yet her family owned a great treasure - a bookcase filled with precious poems.

A powerful opening message of a story of inspiration. A story of how a parent's simple act of keeping books, inspires a girl to read, inspires a young woman to write, and inspires a mother to create verse that teaches, informs and reveals our humanity.

Gwendolyn's life was not easy, growing up during the depression and in a culture that would not accept her Black skin. But through the hardship, and never feeling that she fit in, Gwendolyn wrote. She was 11 years old when her first piece was published. She went to college studying great poets. Married with a family, money was tight, so Gwendolyn cleaned houses, but she still wrote. Gwendolyn went on to write 14 books, and the first Black person to win a Pulitzer Prize.

Cozbi A. Cabrera's acrylic paintings, boldly composed and beautifully textured brush strokes, communicate the emotion and action of the text. An "exquisite" book that can inspire any reader, regardless of age. Could be used as an introduction to a unit on poetry or study of Gwendolyn Brook's work.

Mark's Book Picks Score: 4

Reading Level: 4.8 • Interest Level: K-3 • AR Points: 0.5 • Lexile Level: 870L • Publisher: Harry N. Abrams • Pages: 48 • Copyright: 2019 • ISBN: 978-1-419-73411-3 • Available in Perma-Bound Binding