I’m sharing a multicultural reading list sent my way through various emails.
From the email:
Early in 2015, Edith Campbell invited a handful of colleagues who share a passion for children, literacy and diversity to work with her on a Summer Reading list. She invited us to suggest titles we had read and wanted to recommend. As conversations took place, the focus of the list became clear.
Books we recommend are ones written or illustrated by Native Americans or writers/illustrators of color. We want readers to become familiar with the names on the list and their creative work. As you’ll see, not all the books are stories about Native Americans or People of Color, and some are ones in which characters are LGBTQ or disabled.
We are Edith Campbell, Sarah Park Dahlen, Sujei Lugo, Lyn Miller-Lachmann, Debbie Reese, and Ebony Elizabeth Thomas.
Titles:
PICTUREBOOKS
A is for Activist by Innosanto Nagara. (Also available in Spanish and Swedish) Triangle Square, 2013. 32 pgs.
Big Red Lollipop by Rukhsana Khan and Sophie Blackall. Viking, 2010. 40 pgs.
Colors of the Wind: The Story of Blind Artist and Champion Runner George Mendoza by J. L. Powers, George Mendoza and Hayley Morgan-Sanders.
Purple House Press, 2014. 32 pgs.
Hana Hashimoto, Sixth Violin by Chieri Uegaki and Qin Leng. Kids Can Press, 2014. 32 pgs.
Hungry Johnny by Cheryl Minnema and Wesley Ballinger. Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2014. 32 pgs.
I Love Ugali and Sukuma by Kwame Nyong’o. CreateSpace, 2013. 36 pgs.
Imani’s Moon by Janay Brown-Wood and Hazel Mitchell. Mackinac Island Press, 2014. 32 pgs.
Jazz by Walter Dean Myers and Christopher Myers. Holiday House, 2008. 48 pgs.
Jonathan and His Mommy by Irene Smalls and Michael Hays. Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 1994. 32 pgs.
Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book by Yuyi Morales. Chronicle Books, 2003. 32 pgs.
Lailah’s Lunchbox: A Ramadan Story by Reem Faruqi and Lea Lyon. Tilbury House Publishers, 2015. 32 pgs.
Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match/Marisol McDonald No Combina by Monica Brown Ph.D. and Sara Palacios. Children’s Book Press, 2013. 32 pgs.
My Colors, My World/Mis Colores, Mi Mundo by Maya Christina Gonzalez. Children’s Book Press, 2013. 32 pgs.
My Three Best Friends and Me, Zulay by Cari Best and Vanessa Brantley Newton. Farrar Straus and Giroux, 2015. 40 pgs.
One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia by Miranda Paul and Elizabeth Zunon. Millbrook Press, 2015. 32 pgs.)
Tía Isa Wants A Car by Meg Medina and Claudio Muñoz. Candlewick, 2011. 32 pgs.
The Phoenix on Barkley Street by Zetta Elliott. Rosetta Press, 2014. 32 pgs.
The Third Gift by Linda Sue Park and Bagram Ibatoulline. Clarion Books, 2011. 32 pgs.)
We March by Shane Evans. Roaring Brook Press, 2012. 32 pgs.
—–Middle Grade—–
Ash Mistry and the Savage Fortress by Sarwat Chadda. Ash Mistry Chronicles. HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2012. 320 pgs.
Bayou Magic by Jewell Parker Rhodes. Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2015. 256 pgs.
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014. 336 pgs.
Can You See Me Now by Estela Bernal. Piñata Books, 2013. 160 pgs.
Geeks, Girls and Secret Identities by Mike Jung and Mike Maihack. Arthur A. Levine Books, 2012. 320 pgs.
How I Became A Ghost by Tim Tingle. How I Became a Ghost Series. RoadRunner Press, 2013. 160 pgs.
I Lived On Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosín and Lee White. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2015. 464 pgs.
March Book 1 by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin. March Trilogy. Top Shelf Productions, 2013. 128 pgs.
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams Garcia. Amistad, 2011. 240 pgs.
Revolution is Not a Dinner Party by Ying Chang Compestine. Henry Holt and Co., 2007. 249 pgs.
The Revolution of Evelyn Serrano+ by Sonia Manzano. Scholastic, 2012. 224 pgs.
Shooting Kabul by N. M. Senzai. Simon and Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books, 2011. 288 pgs.
The Zero Degree Zombie Zone by Patrick Henry Bass and Jerry Craft. Scholastic, 2014. 144 pgs.
—–Young Adult—–
Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor. Viking Books for Young Readers, 2011. 368 pgs.
Antigoddess by Kendare Blake. The Goddess War series. Tor Teen, 2014. 352 pgs.
Ash by Malinda Lo. Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2010. 272 pgs.
Chameleon by Charles R. Smith Jr. Candlewick, 2010. 384 pgs.
Charm and Strange by Stephanie Kuehn. St. Martin’s Griffin, 2013. 224 pgs.
Chasing Shadows by Swati Avasthi and Craig Phillips. Knopf Books For Young Readers, 2013. 320 pgs.
Crazy Horse’s Girlfriend by Erika Wurth. Curbside Splendor Publishing, 2014. 288 pgs.
Gabi, A Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero. Cinco Puntos Press, 2014. 208 pgs.
How It Went Down by Kekla Magoon. Henry Holt and Co., 2014. 336 pgs.
If I Ever Get Out of Here by Eric Gansworth. Arthur A. Levine, 2014. 368 pgs.
If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan. Algonquin Young Readers, 2013. 256 pgs.
Jumped In by Patrick Scott Flores. Henry Holt and Co., 2013. 304 pgs.
Legend by Marie Lu. Legend series. G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, 2011. 336 pgs.
The Living by Matt de la Peña. First in a series. Delacorte Press, 2013. 320 pgs.
Madman of Piney Woods by Christopher Paul Curtis. Companion to Elijah of Buxton. Scholastic Press; 2014. 384 pgs.
Money Boy by Paul Yee. Ray Liu. Groundwood Books, 2013. 184 pgs.
None of the Above by I. W. Gregorio. Balzar + Bray, 2015, 352 pgs.
Pig Park by Claudia Guadalupe Martinez. Cinco Puntos Press, 2014. 246 pgs.
Shadowshaper by Daniel José Older. Arthur A. Levine, 2015. 304 pgs.
Silver People by Margarita Engle. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers, 2014. 272 pgs.
Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith. Tantalize series. Candlewick, 2007. 336 pgs.
When Reason Breaks by Cindy L. Rodriguez. Bloomsbury USA, 2015. 304 pgs.
Written in the Stars by Aisha Saeed. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2015, 304 pgs.
Zero Fade by Chris L. Terry. Curbside Splendor, 2013. 294 pgs.
Links etc.
On Facebook:
We’re the People: Summer Reading 2015
<https://www.facebook.com/wearethepeoplesummerreading>
At Edith Campbell’s blog, Crazy QuiltEdi
We’re the People: Summer Reading 2015
<https://campbele.wordpress.com/2015/05/21/were-the-people-summer-reading-2015-2/>
At Nathalie Mvondo’s blog: Multiculturalism Rocks
We’re the People: Summer Reading 2015
<http://multiculturalism.rocks/2015/05/21/were-the-people-summer-reading-2015/>
At Debbie Reese’s Tumblr:
An Inclusive Summer Reading List for Kids/Young Adults!
<http://debbiereese.tumblr.com/post/119601447442/an-inclusive-summer-reading-list-for-kids-young>
On Pinterest, we divided the books into three lists:
We’re the People: Picture Books, Chapter Books, Early Readers <https://www.pinterest.com/nathaliemvondo/were-the-people-summer-reading-2015-picture-books-/>
We’re the People: Summer Reading List 2015, Middle Grade <https://www.pinterest.com/nathaliemvondo/were-the-people-summer-reading-2015-middle-grade/>
We’re the People: Summer Reading List 2015, Young Adult <https://www.pinterest.com/nathaliemvondo/were-the-people-summer-reading-2015-young-adult/>
The Book Wars 
This list looks great! Will check out these stories this summer! :) I also see my book Lailah’s Lunchbox up there! Thanks for the feature and hope you all enjoy it!