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Booklists for Educators

Explore Our Booklists for Youth:

Black Lives Matter - Teen edition

Who Put This Song On?

Who Put This Song On?
by Morgan Parker

"17-year-old Morgan is a black teen triumphantly figuring out her identity when her conservative town deems depression as a lack of faith, and blackness as something to be politely ignored. Ages 15-18.

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When You Look Like Us

When You Look Like Us
by Pamela N. Harris

A boy who must take up the search for his sister when she goes missing from a neighborhood where black girls disappearances are too often overlooked. Ages 15-18.

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Concrete Rose

Concrete Rose
by Angie Thomas

A gang leader’s son finds his effort to go straight for the sake of his child challenged by a loved one’s brutal murder, set 17 years before the events of The Hate U Give. Ages 15-18

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Love Is a Revolution

Love Is a Revolution
by Renee Watson

Harlem teenager Nala is looking forward to a summer of movies and ice cream until she falls in love with the very woke Tye and pretends to be a social activist. Ages 12-14

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One of the Good Ones: Shouldn't Being Human Be Enough?

One of the Good Ones: Shouldn't Being Human Be Enough?
by Maika Moulite; Maritza Moulite

When teen social activist & history buff Kezi Smith is killed under mysterious circumstances after attending a social justice rally, her sister Happi & their family are left reeling in the aftermath. Ages 12-14.

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Chlorine Sky

Chlorine Sky
by Mahogany L. Browne

A novel-in-verse about a young girl coming-of-age and stepping out of the shadow of her former best friend. Perfect for readers of Elizabeth Acevedo and Nikki Grimes. Ages 15-18

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Happily Ever Afters

Happily Ever Afters
by Elise Bryant

Tessa Johnson has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She's rarely seen herself reflected in the pages of the romance novels she loves. Ages 15-18

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The Black Kids

The Black Kids
by Christina Hammonds Reed

With the Rodney King riots closing in on high school senior Ashley and her family, the privileged bubble she has enjoyed, protecting her from the difficult realities most black people face, begins to crumble. Ages 15+

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I Am Alfonso Jones

I Am Alfonso Jones
by Tony Medina

The ghost of fifteen-year-old Alfonso Jones travels in a New York subway car full of the living and the dead, watching his family & friends fight for justice after he is killed by an off-duty police officer while. Ages 12+

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I’m Not Dying With You Tonight

I’m Not Dying With You Tonight
by Kimberly Jones

Told from two viewpoints, Atlanta high school seniors Lena and Campbell, one black, one white, must rely on each other to survive after a football rivalry escalates into a riot. Ages 15+

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All American Boys

All American Boys
by Jason Reynolds

When sixteen-year-old Rashad is mistakenly accused of stealing, classmate Quinn witnesses his brutal beating at the hands of a police officer who happens to be the older brother of his best friend. Ages 14+

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Say Her Name

Say Her Name
by Zetta Elliott; illustrated by Loveis Wise

Poems Inspired by the #SayHerName campaign,centering on the experiences of black women, girls, and femmes & pay tribute to victims of police brutality. Ages 12+

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Just mercy: adapted for young adults: a true story of the fight for justice

Just mercy: adapted for young adults: a true story of the fight for justice
by Bryan Stevenson

Lawyer & social justice advocate Bryan Stevenson offers a glimpse into the lives of the wrongfully imprisoned. Ages 14+

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We are Not Yet Equal: Understanding Our Racial Divide.

We are Not Yet Equal: Understanding Our Racial Divide.
by Carol Anderson; Tonya Bolden.

From the Civil War to America today, an acclaimed historian re-frames the conversation about race. Ages 12+

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