Recommendations

Picture Books

Juna’s Jar, Jane Bahk

The Little Guys, Vera Brosgol

Saturday, Oge Mora

A Different Pond, Bao Phi

Small in the City, Sydney Smith

Middle-Grade Books

Giants Beware!, Dragons Beware!, and Monsters Beware! — three gorgeous, zippy graphic novels by Jorge Aguirre and Rafael Rosado, and colored by the talented John Novak

The Jumbies series, by Tracey Baptiste

The War That Saved My Life, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley (check out the audio version narrated by Jayne Entwistle — it’s wonderful)

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, by Grace Lin

When Stars Are Scattered, by Omar Mohamed and Victoria Jamieson — learn more about the organization Omar Mohamed founded at RefugeeStrong.org

The Lost Girl, by Anne Ursu — on ogres, and sisters, and the power of flocks. Loved it.

Other Words for Home, by Jasmine Warga

Other Basketball-Themed Books I Loved

The Crossover, by Kwame Alexander

Power Forward, by Hena Khan

Dragon Hoops, by Gene Luen Yang

YA Books

Call Me Iggy, by Jorge Aguirre, illustrated by Rafael Rosado

Graceling, by Kristin Cashore

Bone Gap, by Laura Ruby

This One Summer, by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki

American Street, by Ibi Zoboi