Outstanding! December 2022

Picture Books


Bathe the Cat, by Alice B. McGinty, illustrated by David Roberts, Chronicle, 2022.

When a brown-skinned daddy, in a two-dad home, uses refrigerator magnets to spell out the chores for his multiracial family, the cat makes creative adjustments.  Bouncy rhyme and colorful, energetic illustrations reveal the madness as the floor is fed, the rug is rocked and the dishes are mowed. (Grades P-2)


The Legend of Gravity, by Charly Palmer, illustrated by Charly Palmer, BYR, 2022.

A new kid helps take a team of friends to the playground basketball championship and becomes the stuff of legend. Painterly illustrations full of personality and vernacular prose combine in a superb modern-day, tall-tale read-aloud about a group of African-American friends. (Grades 1-3)


The World Belongs to Us, by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by Leo Espinoza, Nancy Paulsen/PRH, 2022.

Woodson and Espinosa deliver a joyous celebration of childhood pulled from recollections of Brooklyn summers of not so long ago. (Grades K-5)

Fiction


The Last Mapmaker, by Christina Soontornvat, Candlewick, 2022.

This book transports you to another world and is a complex story that shows us what impact a power-hungry country can have on other people’s lives and the effect of war and greed. This is a “can’t miss” story of high adventure, fantasy, and trust, loyalty and friendship. (Grade 4-6)


Unraveller, by Frances Hardinge, Amulet, 2022.

Teenagers Kellen, and his friend Nettle, are drawn into a dangerous plan to uncover a hidden league of cursers. Elegant prose, a richly imagined world and complex characters contribute to a superb fantasy adventure. While several descriptors indicate whiteness, skin color is not defined. (Grades 7-12)


The Door of No Return, by Kwame Alexander, Little, Brown, 2022.

In the 19th century Ashante Kingdom, 12-year-old Kofi Offin's life changes in unimaginable ways when he fails to heed his parents' warning. Engaging, enlightening, horrifying, and necessary. (Grades 5-8)

Nonfiction


Choosing Brave: How Mamie Till-Mobley and Emmett Till Sparked the Civil Rights Movement, by Angela Joy, illustrated by Janelle Washington, Roaring Brook, 2022.

Written in accessible free-verse style, this carefully researched, well-structured biography covers the life of Mamie Till-Mobley, the mother of Emmett Till. Vibrant illustrations provide a fitting counterpoint to the moving text. Recommended for all collections. (Grades 4-8)


Alias Anna: A True Story of Outwitting the Nazis, by Susan Hood, HarperCollins, 2022.

An 8th grade school project uncovers a grandmother's history as a Ukranian child prodigy, evading the Holocaust with her sister. Short, poetic chapters with a dynamic voice, reveal the teen's unbelievable experiences. Extensive backmatter, sources and photographs add up to a gripping topical read. (Grades 6-9)


Peace Is a Chain Reaction: How World War II Japanese Balloon Bombs Brought People of Two Nations Together, by Tanya Lee Stone, Candlewick, 2022.

Stone weaves three interrelated stories: the incarceration of Japanese Americans on the West Coast in camps, the balloon bomb from Japan that went off in Bly, Oregon, and later how Japanese women who made the bombs apologized. (Grades 5-10)

Biography


Victory. Stand! Raising My Fist for Justice, by Tommie Smith, illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile, Norton, 2022. 

Olympic gold medalist Tommie Smith tells his story of life as a poor sharecropper’s son who became a legend at San Jose State University who protested racism by raising his fist from the medal stand at the summer Olympics in Mexico City in 1968. (Grades 7-12)