One Crazy Summer, a Coretta Scott King Book Award winner and National Book Award nominee, is a historical novel for children that was published in 2009 by Rita Williams-Garcia. Other works by this author include P.S. Be Eleven, Like Sisters on the Homefront, and Clayton Byrd Goes Underground.This guide is based on the 2009 Amistad/HarperCollins Kindle edition. Set in 1968, the novel describes what happens when Delphine Gaither and her two younger sisters, Vonetta and... Read One Crazy Summer Summary

Slam! is a 1996 young adult novel written by Walter Dean Myers. Drawing from Myers’s own experiences growing up in Harlem and his love for basketball, Slam! tells the story of 17-year-old Greg “Slam” Harris and his efforts to succeed in basketball and school while avoiding the pitfalls in his neighborhood.Plot SummaryGlen “Slam” Harris lives in Harlem but attends a well-known charter school, Latimer, in the Bronx. The school is mostly white, and Slam, who... Read Slam! Summary

The Crossover (2014) is a coming-of-age novel in verse by award-winning children’s author and poet Kwame Alexander. The narrative follows a 12-year-old Black boy named Josh Bell whose poems express his love for basketball and his family. With his twin brother, Jordan, Josh’s sense of self evolves as he uses basketball to deal with his father’s death. The book explores themes of Confidence and Vulnerability; Basketball as Life Lessons; and Music, Rhythm, and Identity.Rebound, a... Read The Crossover Summary

Originally published in 2018, The Parker Inheritance is a fast-paced mystery novel with messages about identity and society. Varian Johnson presents a dynamic young protagonist, Candice, who teams up with her new friend Brandon to uncover the truth behind a mysterious letter that reveals the hidden history of Lambert, South Carolina.The Parker Inheritance is the recipient of a number of awards: it was named a 2019 Coretta Scott King Honor Book, a Publishers Weekly Best... Read The Parker Inheritance Summary

The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales is a collection of folktales published in 1985 by author Virginia Hamilton. The collection won the Coretta Scott King Award among many other praises and notices. A Black author of over 40 books centered on Black identity and heritage, Hamilton is well-informed about the history of Black folktales and shares her knowledge in an introduction and with notes after each individual story. Hamilton didn’t write the tales—people passed... Read The People Could Fly Summary

The Rock and the River is a young adult historical fiction work that earned author Kekla Magoon the Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award upon its publication in 2009. Set in the 1960s Civil Rights era, the story’s protagonist, Samuel Childs, is the son of a famous activist who worked alongside Dr. King and the brother of a teenager involved with a local Black Panther group. The tensions between the historical “passive resistance”... Read The Rock and The River Summary

The Season of Styx Malone (2018) is a contemporary realistic middle grade novel written by Kekla Magoon. Caleb Franklin, 10, seeks a summer of unique adventures to prove he is the opposite of ordinary, despite his father’s insistence that Caleb and his brother Bobby Gene never stray beyond the town limits. Then Caleb meets Styx Malone, a cool, daring 16-year-old boy in the foster care system who shows the Franklin brothers a quick way to... Read The Season of Styx Malone Summary

The Skin I’m In is a 1998 middle-grade novel by American author Sharon G. Flake. A Coretta Scott King Honor Book, The Skin I’m In follows 13-year-old Maleeka Madison III and her struggle with self-confidence while being bullied for her dark complexion. Guided by the new and unusual English teacher, Miss Saunders, Maleeka hones her talent for creative writing and develops self-love. The text explores such themes as bullying, poverty, grief, and beauty standards. Other... Read The Skin I'm In Summary

Published in 2016, Nicola Yoon’s The Sun Is Also a Star is a young-adult novel and National Book Award Finalist. Told from multiple character perspectives, the novel tells the story of the romance that transpires over one day between two young people, Natasha Katherine Kingsley and Daniel Jae Ho Bae, and the impact they have on the people around them. Natasha and Daniel come from different racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. Natasha is an undocumented... Read The Sun Is Also a Star Summary

Walter Dean Myers first published his middle grade novel, The Young Landlords, in 1979. Like most of the 100 books Myers penned before his death in 2014, the story centers on Black youth. The Young Landlords is particularly personal to Myers, however, because he writes about the neighborhood in Harlem, New York, where he grew up, describing the sort of activities and individuals he encountered as a youth. The main character, 15-year-old Paul Williams, pays... Read The Young Landlords Summary

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, published by Kwame Mbalia in 2019, is the first novel in a middle-grade fantasy trilogy. Set in modern-day Chicago, Alabama, and the mythical lands of Alke, the novel is the hero’s journey of Tristan Strong, a seventh grader coming to terms with the death of his best friend. The novel is a winner of the 2020 Coretta Scott King honor book for contributions to Black children’s literature... Read Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky Summary

Unbought and Unbossed by Shirley Chisholm is a political memoir originally published in 1970. Written by America’s first African American congresswoman, the book draws from Chisholm’s extensive expertise as both a pioneering politician and an educator who held a master’s degree in early childhood education from Columbia University. The work was published at the height of the Civil Rights Movement and second-wave feminism, situating it within the broader context of 1960s and 1970s social activism... Read Unbought and Unbossed Summary

Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice is a graphic memoir telling the story of Tommie Smith’s life. In it, Smith recounts his earliest years in Texas through his decision to start running and his experiences into the 21st century. He explores in particular how key moments of the Civil Rights Movement affected his life and the lives of those around him. Victory. Stand! is cowritten by Derrick Barnes and Dawud Anyabwile. Smith himself is... Read Victory. Stand! Summary

Zora and Me (2010) is a middle grade novel by Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon. Both authors held a strong interest in 20th-century Black American writer Zora Neale Hurston, and they wanted to introduce her to younger readers. Bond has an MFA in poetry, while Simon has an MA in anthropology; Hurston was both a writer and an anthropologist. Inspired by real details from Hurston’s childhood as illustrated in her short stories, Bond and Simon... Read Zora and Me Summary