In writing about her childhood growing up in Camaguey, Cuba, Alma Flor Ada evokes all the senses. Readers will smell jasmine, coffee, and grandmother’s perfume. They will see the bats flying overhead and hear adults share stories. Companion volume to Where the Flame Trees Bloom.
Under the Royal Palms: A Childhood in Cuba
Share the five days of Carnaval revelry — beginning with the lengthy preparations in Olinda, a northeastern Brazilian city. The book features stunning photographs and crisp text, handsomely formatted.
Carnaval
When Clorinda sees a ballet, she decides to follow her dream of becoming a ballerina and so leaves her comfortable farm life for the big city. At last, the charming cow-ballerina gets her big chance and though she performs only once, her talent is welcomed back on the farm. The rhyming story is illustrated in a lighthearted, comical style.
Clorinda
Cutie LaRue is normally a very agreeable child. But at bedtime she becomes downright defiant. As hard as her parents try to make Cutie sleepy, well, nothing works. But a talking doll named Night Owl may just hold the key to the Dreamland Nightclub where Cutie can dance, play music, and dream happily all night long! The talented husband/wife team of Andrea and Brian Pinkney have collaborated again to present this jaunty, imaginative nighttime tale.
Sleeping Cutie
Vivid colors depict the Haitian setting for a tale in which a goat uses the banza, a banjo, given to him by a tiger, for protection in an unforeseen way. The traditional tale is retold in a way ideal for sharing aloud, and is complemented by expressive illustrations.
The Banza: A Haitian Story
When Chester Cricket accidentally finds himself in a New York subway, he is befriended by a worldly mouse and cat. Before returning to his Connecticut home, Chester becomes Mario Bellini’s special pet and helps save Bellini’s Times Square newsstand with his very special talent.
The Cricket in Times Square
Old Pat is on his way to a contest that will name the finest harpist in all of Ireland. On the way, his ill-spirited companion, Young Tom, begins to scheme for his own victory. But thanks to Old Pat’s willingness to come to the aid of a fellow traveler, a mischievous leprechaun intervenes, ensuring that both Pat and Tom are appropriately repaid for their actions.
The Leprechaun’s Gold
Jiro becomes an apprentice puppeteer during a difficult time in Osaka, Japan. Though clumsy for a puppeteer, Jiro has other qualities that help him overcome grave situations and solve a dangerous mystery.
The Master Puppeteer
Rather than sleep, Baby wants to dance the polka, the cha cha – any and everything – exhausting the poor parents! After lots of activity, Ma and Pa finally tuck in the tuckered out baby. Rhyming text and flaps that lift on sturdy pages make a memorable book to share at bedtime and beyond.
Baby Danced the Polka
Rich paintings in limited colors convey the power of a people and a piece of their history. Done in the cadence of the Blues, this unique and powerful picture book inspired by the uniquely African American music and related experience is for older readers.
Blues Journey
Handsome illustrations of Shange’s evocative poem, “Mood Indigo,” pay homage to the many African American icons and visionaries who came to the author’s house when she was a child. From W.E.B. DuBois to Duke Ellington, the people we now know as luminaries are seen from the perspective of a young girl. This book is sure to generate discussion.
Ellington Was Not a Street
Experienced readers will enjoy this stunning and sophisticated visit to Harlem in word and image. Landmarks like the Cotton Club and the Apollo Theater are included and invite discussion.
Harlem
It’s summer vacation for Grace and her neighborhood friends, just the time for the fun to begin! Grace remains the imaginative, energetic girl first introduced in Amazing Grace (1991) as she involves all the kids in dramatic play. From helping an isolated older woman to creating a circus, Grace and her chums spend a delightful summer vacation close to home.
Starring Grace
A brief history of classical ballet opens this handsome, richly told collection of seven stories from ballets. Each story is introduced with information on the production and time period in which the ballet was first performed.
The Barefoot Book of Ballet Stories
Marian Anderson was an extraordinary contralto whose talent was celebrated in Europe long before she was recognized in her native United States. Anderson’s focus, musical talent, and the difficult times in which she lived are captured in a dramatic picture book biography.