Diverse Reads in Children's and YA Literature

      Summary    This text is a picture book containing informational poems about living creatures that live underneath the Earth's soil. In this text, readers will discover 15 humorous poems that teach about dirt and the creatures that call it home. This text represents an unconventional observance of dirt, how it is formed, the living creatures that reside in it, and its critical role in supporting the planet as an active resource of life.   Justification for this text   I chose this text because the author of the book, David L. Harrison has achieved multiple accolades for his poetry works. Also, students could benefit from the text's vivid illustrations and humorous language to inspire an interest in poetry, which can be a challenging genre to promote interest in. Attractive Design/Read the Pictures The illustrator, Kate Cosgrove showcases vivid illustrations of chipmunks, ants, earthworms, spiders, and other creatures functioning in their natural...

  Summary The Gilded Ones is about a sixteen-year-old girl named Deka who discovers that she possesses gold blood which is considered to be a curse and heavily forbidden in the ancient kingdom of Otera. After discovering this at purity ceremony, she is immediately disowned by her father, her only living family member (her mother is deceased). Following this discovery, she suffers many "deaths" only to recover miraculously and reincarnate back to life (one of the most common characteristics of gold-blooded people). She soon joins a tribe of other gold-blooded women and is soon met with a major dilemma--deciding whether she should stay in her home village and be ostracized, or accept her true identity and go to war against the entities that attack girls like her. What does the text have to do with the reader personally? Although this is a fantasy text, readers may be able to discover some real-life topics of the book. One of them would be self-discovery. This is something that...

      Summary This text is an illustrated biographic of the life of the iconic Queen of Tejano music, Selena Quintanilla-Perez (1971-1995). The text chronicles her journey from performing as a child and teenager singing in her family's band to a barrier-breaking artist in Tejano music who accomplished many accolades and successes. These accolades and successes include being one of the most successful and celebrated Latin-American music artists of all time. Justification for this text I selected this text because it is a Tejas Award winning-book. Plus, I think that inclusion of this text will encourage curiosity in students about Tejano music and culture. It could also serve as their introduction to Selena who tragically passed away nearly 30 years ago. This text could teach them the major impact that she had on Hispanic-American culture and music in her very brief life. The book does mention her tragic and violent death at the hands of her former fan club president and fr...

Summary This is the story of Lily, whose family moves in with their ill grandmother, who Lily calls Halmoni. Lily, who is heavily influenced by her Halmoni's stories of tigers, sees one of those tigers come to life. This claims that Halmoni stole the stories from the tigers and they want them back. So, the tiger strikes a deal with Lily to return the stories that Halmoni stole from them. In exchange for this return, Halmoni's health can be restored. Although Lily is tempted to accept this offer, she quickly learns that there are many challenges that comes with dealing with the tigers. Justification My justification for including this text is the fact that it is a Newbery Medal honor book. Also, students in Grades 3-6 would greatly appreciate the balance of realism and fantasy that the book provides. The realism is illustrated in issues like family illness, death, and cultural stereotypes. The fantasy is illustrated through the presence of the tigers and their interactions with ...

  Summary    This story is told by an Ojibwe girl who refers to her grandmother's teachings about the sanctity of water. In the story, a metaphorical black snake seeks to destroy the land and describes the snake has already arrived as an oil pipeline. As a response, she calls for the people of her tribe to stand together  and protect the land, its animals and the water.   Justification for this text   I chose this text because it is a Caldecott Medal Award winner (2021) and a Jane Addams' Children's Book Award Winner. Also, students may benefit from using this text to not only learn about Native American heritage and culture, environmentalism, and the Dakota Access Pipeline protests. Attractive Design The illustrator, Michaela Goade uses watercolor illustrations to depict people with varying skin tones, ages, genders, and attire. These illustrations support the narrative that even though the text could be used to reflect indigenous culture, any attack agai...

  Summary Efren looks up to his parents who work hard to provide for him and his younger siblings , Max and Mia. Although Efren and his siblings are American-born, he constantly worries about his parents who are undocumented. Then his greatest fear comes true when his mother is deported and sent across the border to Tijuana, Mexico. At this point, the burden lays heavily upon Efren to be strong for his younger siblings as his father takes on an extra job to earn the money necessary to help get his mother back in the United States. He also shoulders the responsibility of navigating through school as if things are normal while supporting his best friend's campaign to run for school president.  Justification  My justification for selecting this book is because it was the winner of  Pura Belpre Medal Award in 2020, the Poppy Award in MG in 2021, two International Latino Book Award, and an SCBWI Crystal Kite Award in 2021.  This book was also reviewed favorably in Ki...

  Summary Ronit, an Israeli girl and Jamil, a Palestinian boy are separated by a barrier fence that  divides Israel and Gaza. Generations of conflict provide even more distance between them. Tensions rising between their fathers further complicate matters as the two teenagers fall deep into a forbidden love. Knowing that their love could create a rift between their families, Ronit and Jamil go to great lengths to keep their romance a secret. The story, told in novel in verse, mirrors the Shakespearean love story, Romeo and Juliet with a modern and duo-cultural lens. Justification I selected this book because it provides poetry, historical and cultural context in one text. Young readers (particularly those in 7th grades and up) could gain a great sense of culture from reading this book. Although it is short and written in verse format, readers can get a sense of how stories may be told in different ways. How much does the text agree or clash with the readers' views of the wor...