Children’s Literature Book Recommendations

By Suzy Leopold

    All across the globe the world has changed. Life is difficult to navigate during a global pandemic that includes many restrictions. Everyone is acquiring new knowledge and understanding of how we can be safe, happy, and even do our part.

“Children’s books can play a powerful role in helping 

kids navigate life’s challenges.”

—Caroline Bologna, Huff Post

    During this unprecedented time, many picture books were published to offer information and comfort to readers of all ages. These books include fiction and nonfiction picture books, middle grade, early readers, and more. 

    Additional children’s literature continues to be published and will soon be available for children of all ages. These timely books provide an  understanding of the world around us concerning the current situation with global health issues. 

    Many recently picture books offer facts and information about viruses and germs. Children’s mental and emotional needs are addressed, such as anxiety, stress, and separation from family and friends. These books support our youth to understand they are not alone in their feelings and how they can do their part—hand washing, social distancing, and mask wearing.

    As Mr. Fred Rogers said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”

    This first picture book recommendation is, COVID-19 HELPERS: A Story for Kids about the Coronavirus and the People Helping during the 2020 Pandemic is written by Beth Baker and illustrated by Kary Lee. It is published by Blair, November 2020. 

    This book provides comforting words for readers, ages 5-11, and includes positive, honest information. 

    And just like Mr. Rogers, encourages children to “look for the helpers.”

 

    Keeping the City Going, is written and illustrated by Brian Floca, made its debut in April 2021. The book is a heartfelt thank you to all essential workers during the stay at home orders of the pandemic and is written for ages 4-8. Back matter includes an author’s note.

    The publisher, Atheneum Books for Young Readers states, “An ode to the essential workers keeping the country operating during the COVID-19 pandemic.” Caldecott Medal Winner, Brian Floca’s words and illustrations speak to the reader while everyone is sheltering in place.

    Author, Kate Messner conducted interviews with Dr. Fauci to create the picture book narrative, Dr. Fauci: How a Boy from Brooklyn Became America’s Doctor. The book is illustrated by Alexandra Bye and published by Simon and Schuster, June 2021. 

    The story is about America’s loved doctor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

    This picture book biography is written for ages 4-8, and includes Dr. Fauci’s role of working with seven presidents. A timeline, facts, and more are included in the back matter.

    Written by Theresa Trinder and illustrated by Grant Snider, There is a Rainbow, is published by Chronicle Books, January 2021. The heart warming message is filled with hope for young readers, ages 3-5. The illustrations are vibrant and expressive.

    The following excerpt shares the uplifting message that makes the book perfect for a read aloud:

On the other side of the window, there is a neighbor.

On the other side of sadness, is a hug.

And on the other side of a storm, there is a rainbow.

    The fifth and final recommendation is a nonfiction book written by Suzanne Slade; illustrated by Elisa Paganelli. June Almeida, Virus Detective! The Woman Who Discovered the First Human Coronavirus is published by Sleeping Bear Press and released in March 2021. This biography is written for 6-9 year olds.

    June was 34 years old when she discovered the first human coronavirus. Her work continues to support researchers today. Sharing a book trailer of this Scottish internationally renowned virologist and woman pioneer.

    Many helpers are doing their part during this unfamiliar and sometimes scary time. As a parent, a grandparent, an educator, a story teller, and a children’s book writer I want to do my part to put these books in the hands of children and students. 

    Perhaps you, too, have read and shared recently published books about the COVID-19 pandemic health crisis with young readers. Share additional children’s literature titles that are timely and relevant during the global pandemic.

    Let’s all do our part to offer reassurance and let children know they are safe. Read to them. Listen to them. Hug on them.

To be eligible for a give away, share a title, including the author and illustrator of a recently published book that addresses the COVID-19 theme. Write it in the comment section. I will paint a watercolor bookmark for one lucky winner—US only. The winner will be announced on the GROG Blog on May 19th.

Additional resources and links for parents and teachers: 

School Library Journal

New York City School Library System

The Today Show on NBC

Helping Children Cope, NASP

Multicultural Children's Book Day 2019~by Christy Mihaly

GROG is jumping in a bit early this year to start the celebration of the sixth annual Multicultural Children’s Book Day -- January 25, 2019.  

Children’s reading and play advocates and bloggers Valarie Budayr from Jump Into a Book and Mia Wenjen from Pragmatic Mom teamed up in 2014 to create this national event and non-profit initiative. MCBD's mission is to raise awareness of the need for kids’ books celebrating diversity in homes and schools and libraries. It also works to get more of these books into the hands of young readers, parents, and educators. 

In 2018, MCBD's total social media share impressions totaled more 3.2 billion (with a "B"). That is spreading the word! MCBD involves a giant blog tour with book reviews by lots of bloggers (including GROG) and tweeters; classroom giveaways and educational materials; and a huge Twitter Party. 

MCBD’s Twitter Party is set for 1/25/19 at 9:00 p.m. EST. They'll be giving away lots of prizes and book bundles. More details here. And check out the official MCBD hashtag, #ReadYourWorld.

For this year's GROG multicultural book review I'm pleased to share an illustrated picture book, Celebrate Holi with Me! 

Part of the Toddler Diaries series, this book is written by Shoumi Sen (a MCBD co-host) and illustrated by Abira Das. This creative team published the "From the Toddler Diaries" series on CreateSpace. These books bring holidays celebrated in India to life for young readers. 

Shoumi, who grew up in Paris, Mumbai, and Dubai, wanted to help Asian Indians living around the world preserve a connection to their culture. As she explains, "Living outside India, it is sometimes challenging for parents to ensure that their children remain connected to their Indian roots, while at the same time, appreciating the culture of the place they are growing up in. Books can certainly help with that challenge and my hope is that the series 'From The Toddler Diaries'  can play a part in helping our children grow into global citizens."

Riya, the book's lively narrator, introduces readers to the Hindu spring festival of Holi. This book retells the ancient story of Prahlad, whose evil father could not sway him from his devotion to Lord Vishnu. Prahlad of course prevailed, and Holi is a celebration of how good triumphs over evil. The colorful illustrations depict celebrants of all ages throwing and spraying colored powders and water, playing music and singing, dancing, and enjoying delicious foods. It's a neighborhood-wide color-and-water fight!

Educators will appreciate the glossary, which defines words from Bollywood to gulal and abeer (colored powders and shiny crystals thrown as part of celebrating Holi) to malpoa (a yummy dessert). Check out the book on Amazon here. 

And here's more from the good folks at MCBD: 

FREE RESOURCES 

Free Empathy Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians and Educators.

Free Diversity Books for Teachers.

A word about the MCBD sponsors: 

Medallion Level Sponsors

Honorary: Children’s Book Council, The Junior Library Guild, TheConsciousKid.org.

Super Platinum: Make A Way Media

GOLD: Bharat Babies, Candlewick Press, Chickasaw Press, Juan Guerra and The Little Doctor / El doctorcito, KidLitTV,  Lerner Publishing Group, Plum Street Press,

SILVER: Capstone Publishing, Carole P. Roman, Author Charlotte Riggle, Huda Essa, The Pack-n-Go Girls,

BRONZE: Charlesbridge Publishing, Judy Dodge Cummings, Author Gwen Jackson, Kitaab World, Language Lizard – Bilingual & Multicultural Resources in 50+ Languages, Lee & Low Books, Miranda Paul and Baptiste Paul, Redfin, Author Gayle H. Swift,  T.A. Debonis-Monkey King’s Daughter, TimTimTom Books, Lin Thomas, Sleeping Bear Press/Dow Phumiruk, Vivian Kirkfield,

MCBD 2019 is honored to have the following Author Sponsors on board

Honorary: Julie Flett, Mehrdokht Amini, Author Janet Balletta, Author Kathleen Burkinshaw, Author Josh Funk, Chitra Soundar, One Globe Kids – Friendship Stories, Sociosights Press and Almost a Minyan, Karen Leggett, Author Eugenia Chu, CultureGroove Books, Phelicia Lang and Me On The Page, L.L. Walters, Author Sarah Stevenson, Author Kimberly Gordon Biddle, Hayley Barrett, Sonia Panigrah, Author Carolyn Wilhelm, Alva Sachs and Dancing Dreidels, Author Susan Bernardo, Milind Makwana and A Day in the Life of a Hindu Kid, Tara Williams, Veronica Appleton, Author Crystal Bowe, Dr. Claudia May, Author/Illustrator Aram Kim, Author Sandra L. Richards, Erin Dealey, Author Sanya Whittaker Gragg, Author Elsa Takaoka, Evelyn Sanchez-Toledo, Anita Badhwar, Author Sylvia Liu, Feyi Fay Adventures, Author Ann Morris, Author Jacqueline Jules, CeCe & Roxy Books, Sandra Neil Wallace and Rich Wallace, LEUYEN PHAM, Padma Venkatraman, Patricia Newman and Lightswitch Learning, Shoumi Sen, Valerie Williams-Sanchez and Valorena Publishing, Traci Sorell, Shereen Rahming, Blythe Stanfel, Christina Matula, Julie Rubini, Paula Chase, Erin Twamley, Afsaneh Moradian, Lori DeMonia, Claudia Schwam, Terri Birnbaum/ RealGirls Revolution, Soulful Sydney, Queen Girls Publications, LLC

We’d like to also give a shout-out to MCBD’s impressive CoHost Team who not only hosts the book review link-up on celebration day, but who also works tirelessly to spread the word of this event. 

Co-Hosts and Global Co-Hosts

A Crafty Arab, Agatha Rodi Books, All Done Monkey, Barefoot Mommy, Biracial Bookworms, Books My Kids Read, Crafty Moms Share, Colours of Us, Discovering the World Through My Son’s Eyes, Descendant of Poseidon Reads, Educators Spin on it,  Growing Book by Book, Here Wee Read, Joy Sun Bear/ Shearin Lee, Jump Into a Book, Imagination Soup,Jenny Ward’s Class, Kid World Citizen, Kristi’s Book Nook, The Logonauts, Mama Smiles, Miss Panda Chinese, Multicultural Kid Blogs, Raising Race Conscious Children, Shoumi Sen, Spanish Playground

LOVING vs. VIRGINIA: Multi-Cultural Children's Book Day Review ~ Christy Mihaly

Tomorrow is the fourth annual Multi-Cultural Children's Book Day. Hurray! 

If you're a teacher looking for multicultural resources, check out the MCBD Classroom Kindness Kit. MCBD also is making available free books for teachers and diversity book lists and activities for parents and educators.

There's more information about the non-profit MCBD at the end of this post.



As part of MCBD, I have the great pleasure of reviewing Patricia Hruby Powell's excellent forthcoming Loving vs. Virginia.

Described as "a documentary novel of the landmark civil rights case," this book tells the story behind the 1967 United States Supreme Court case holding that states can't ban interracial marriage. It's illustrated by Shadra Strickland and published by Chronicle Books. In addition to Strickland's pictures (in a style she refers to as visual journalism from the 1950s and 1960s), the work features photographs and other primary source materials. Patricia Hruby Powell, author of the award-winning Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker, creates an excellent introduction to an important civil rights issue. At 260 pages, it's advertised for readers 12 and up. 

This spread from Loving v. Virginia illustrates the reality of "separate but equal" segregated schools.

Using verse, the author alternates between the voices of Mildred Jeter Loving (of Native American and African American heritage) and Richard Loving (white). Richard was a friend of Millie's older brothers as they grew up in a racially mixed rural community in Virginia, attending segregated schools. 

The short, poetic chapters provide emotional insights into the family lives, the injustice, the fears and devotion of this young couple. Outside of their small community, white onlookers stare at the couple and hurl insults. They're barred from entering whites-only venues. The injustices anger them, even as their love deepens. They travel to Washington, D.C. to get married. Only weeks later, they're arrested in bed, and terrorized by the local Sheriff because of their "illegal" marriage. They spend time in jail, stand trial and are convicted, and return to Washington, D.C. as exiles. Later, represented by the ACLU, the Lovings initiate their groundbreaking legal case. Nine years later, after numerous setbacks, the Supreme Court unanimously rules in their favor. They return at last to make their home and raise their children in Virginia, where they started. The main narrative spans fifteen years, 1952 to 1967.

First date with brothers and sister at the drive-in

Stopped by the Sheriff again

Arrested in the night, for being married

This hybrid historical fiction novel works well. Its fictional approach allows for lively dialog and lets us see into the hearts of the protagonists, while the factual background and supporting materials provide contextual information about the times in which the Lovings lived. Kudos to the team that created this beautiful book. I recommend it for readers of all ages. Note that some parents may want to be aware that the book describes the birth of the Lovings' first child before their marriage. Mildred left high school to have her first baby. 

Back matter includes a list of interviews conducted by the author and a timeline. Reading this novel may inspire older readers to read more deeply on the covered subject and related issues.

Mildred and Richard Loving, in a photo from the book

Multicultural Children's Book Day was founded by Valarie Budayr from Jump Into A Book and Mia Wenjen from PragmaticMom. Their mission is to raise awareness on the ongoing need to include kid’s books that celebrate diversity in home and school bookshelves while also working diligently to get more of these types of books into the hands of young readers, parents and educators. 

Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content. Using the Multicultural Children’s Book Day holiday, the MCBD Team are on a mission to change all of that.
Sponsors: Platinum Sponsors include Scholastic, Barefoot Books and Broccoli. Other Medallion Level Sponsors include Author Carole P. Roman, Audrey Press, Candlewick Press, Fathers Incorporated, KidLitTV, Capstone Young Readers, ChildsPlayUsa, Author Gayle Swift, Wisdom Tales Press, Lee& Low Books, The Pack-n-Go Girls, Live Oak Media, Author Charlotte Riggle, Chronicle Books and Pomelo Books.

Author Sponsors include: Karen Leggett Abouraya, Veronica Appleton, Susan Bernardo, Kathleen Burkinshaw, Maria Dismondy, D.G. Driver, Geoff Griffin, Savannah Hendricks, Stephen Hodges, Carmen Bernier-Grand,Vahid Imani, Gwen Jackson, Hena, Kahn, David Kelly, Mariana Llanos, Natasha Moulton-Levy, Teddy O'Malley, Stacy McAnulty, Cerece Murphy, Miranda Paul, Annette Pimentel, Greg Ransom, Sandra Richards, Elsa Takaoka, Graciela Tiscareño-Sato, Sarah Stevenson, Monica Mathis-Stowe SmartChoiceNation, and Andrea Y. Wang.