FREEDOM SUMMER
by Deborah Wiles
illustrated by Jerome Legarrigue
Atheneum
ISBN: 0689830165
Ages 4-8

Joe (who's white) and John Henry (who's black) are best friends. They love to do all the same things, and they have many of the same dreams about the future. But in the summer of 1964, the boys come face-to-face with bitter prejudice. The townspeople choose to fill in the community swimming pool with tar rather than comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and allow blacks and whites to swim together. See how the boys find a way to stand together when challenged with injustice.

BUILDING A NEW LAND: African Americans in Colonial America
by James Haskins and Kathleen Benson
illustrated by James Ransome
HarperCollins/Amistad
ISBN: 0688102662
Ages 7-10

This book continues the From African Beginnings series which explores the lives of African Americans during the formative years of our country. You'll learn how African Americans fought to preserve their traditions and culture during the dark era of slavery.

SALT IN HIS SHOES: Michael Jordan in Pursuit of a Dream
by Deloris Jordan
illustrated by James Ransome
Schuster
ISBN: 0689833717
Ages 6-8

When basketball superstar Michael Jordan was a boy, he wasn't sure he'd ever be tall enough to excel at the game he loved. To cheer him up, his mother told him that if he put salt in his shoes it would help him grow. Every night she sprinkled salt in his shoes. But when the salt didn't seem to do the trick, Michael's father reminded him that being tall wasn't the only path to being an excellent basketball player --- hard work and giving his all were far more important. Hmmm. Guess they were both right!

DEAR ELLEN BEE: The Civil War Scrapbook of Two Union Spies
by Mary E. Lyons and Muriel M. Branch
Atheneum
ISBN: 0689823797
Ages 10-14

Two women --- a wealthy white socialite and a daughter of freed slaves --- come together to work for the Union Army during the Civil War. They use the code name "Ellen Bee" to communicate with each other and pass along important information about the war efforts. This exciting, historical book is based on a true story.

TAKE IT TO THE HOOP: Magic Johnson
by Quincy Troupe
illustrated by Shane W. Evans
Jump at the Sun
ISBN: 0786805102
Ages 5-9
32 pages

Basketball legend Magic Johnson comes to life via the poetry and pictures in this hip and vivid book.

MY FAMILY SHALL BE FREE!: The Life of Peter Still
by Dennis Brindell Fradin
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0060295953
Ages 10-up
144 pages

Separated from his mother when he was just a boy, Peter Still lived as a slave for more than 40 years. He was finally able to buy his freedom and he went north where he was reunited with his mother and younger siblings he never knew he had. He then bravely returned to the south to help his wife and children to freedom. This pwerful true story of courage will inspire you.

MASTER MAN: A Tall Tale of Nigeria
by Aaron Shepard
illustrated by David Wisniewski
HarperCollins
ISBN: 0688137830
Ages 5-up
32 pages

Shadusa claims to be the strongest man in the village. But even though he can carry carry two antelopes and haul more firewood than anyone, there is someone stronger. And then a third man comes along who's stronger still. This bright and wacky tale told in comic-book style is a colorful look at human nature and the storytelling of Africa.

WORDS WITH WINGS: A Treasury of African-American Poetry and Art
selected by Belinda Rochelle
HarperCollins/Amistad
ISBN: 0688164153
All ages
48 pages

This beautiful and powerful anthology contains poems from 20 noted poets paired with the stunning artwork of 20 acclaimed African-American artists. The work here represents a broad range of life experience --- sure to prove enlightening for any reader.

THERE COMES A TIME: The Struggle for Civil Rights
by Milton Meltzer
Random House
ISBN: 0375804072
Ages 10-up
192 pages

Meltzer traces the fight for civil rights from the first slave ships that sailed to Colonial America, through the Civil War, and through the turbulent 1960s. He explores the changes made in those 300 years and the challenges that still exist today. Photos, an index and a bibliography are included. Don't miss this vivid slice of history.

THE SPIDER WEAVER: A Legend of Kente Cloth
by Magaret Musgrove
illustrated by Julia Cairns
Scholastic
ISBN: 0590987879
Ages 4-up
40 pages

This picture book, based on a tale from Ghana (Africa), stars a magical spider that made a colorful web and inspired weavers to create the pattern in their cloth. In modern times, bright kente cloth, as it is known, is worn all over the world by people of African heritage.

DREAM FREEDOM
by Sonia Levitin
Harcourt
ISBN: 0152024042
Ages 10-up

It may be difficult for us to believe, but slavery still exists in the year 2001. In Sudan, Africa's largest country, thousands of men women and children are captured and forced into hard labor. In this engrossing book based on a true story and current events, a group of students from Colorado learns about the horrifying conditions in Sudan and begins taking action to stop them.

MIRACLE'S BOYS
by Jacqueline Woodson
Putnam
ISBN: 0399231137
Ages 10-up

Growing up in New York City isn't easy for 12-year-old Lafayette and his older brothers. Especially because they are on their own, after the death of their parents. Oldest brother Ty'ree tries to hold things together, working to earn enough money to support them all, but it's a struggle. And it doesn't help matters that Lafayette's brother Charlie acts totally different (often very mean and angry) since he's come back from the juvenile correctional facility. The events of one dramatic weekend will determine whether the boys will be able to stick it out on their own after all. This is a gripping story that offers a peek into life in modern-day Harlem, and pays tribute to the powerful love these brothers have for each other.

LET IT SHINE!: Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters
by Andrea Davis Pinkney
illustrated by Stephen Alcorn
Harcourt
ISBN: 015201005X
All ages

This powerful book profiles 10 black women who courageously fought for their rights and beliefs in the face of racism and oppression. Leaders like Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman and U.S. congresswoman Shirley Chisolm (the first black woman elected to the House of U.S. Representatives) are among those featured.

UPTOWN
by Bryan Collier
Henry Holt
ISBN: 0805057218
Age Level: All ages

Readers get a kicky, vibrant view of life in Harlem, New York, as seen by a boy who lives there. From "chicken and waffles" to jazz, a pick-up basketball game or corner barbershop, it's all home. Collier's paintings --- a swirl of color, texture and shape -- bring his poetic words alive.

FREEDOM RIVER
by Doreen Rappaport
illustrated by Bryan Collier
Jump at the Sun
ISBN: 0786803509
Age Level: All ages

Readers get a kicky, vibrant view of life in Harlem, New York, as seen by a boy who lives there. From "chicken and waffles" to jazz, a pick-up basketball game or corner barbershop, it's all home. Collier's paintings --- a swirl of color, texture and shape -- bring his poetic words alive.

ONLY PASSING THROUGH: The Story of Sojourner Truth
by Anne Rockwell
illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
Crown
ISBN: 0679891862
Ages 7-10

Bold, stylized watercolors make this picture book-biography shine. You'll meet Sojourner Truth and discover how she rose from slavery to become one of the most powerful people in the American abolitionist (anti-slavery) movement in the late 1800s.

VIRGIE GOES TO SCHOOL WITH US BOYS
by Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard
illustrated by E. B. Lewis
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 0689800762
Ages 5-8

More than anything, Virgie wants to go to school like her five older brothers do. But like lots of people at the time, Virgie's brothers think it's a waste of time for girls to go to school. And besides that, Virgie's brothers don't believe that she can make the seven-mile walk to school, either. But Virgie proves them wrong on all counts as she bravely stands up for herself. Lewis's airy portraits capture the look and rhythm of African American life just after the Civil War.