(2) 4-6 This heartbreaking and resonant story of twelve-year-old best friends Asha (who is wealthy and Indian) and Yesofu (who is poor and Black) takes place during the Indian expulsion period in 1972 Uganda, which was part of President Idi Amin's Africanization policy. Athaide probes questions of nationalism, poverty, and privilege in original and compelling ways, and explores Asha's recognition that some differences cannot be easily bridged. Reading list, timeline. Bib.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2019

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes. Readers meet Louise Bennett Coverley (1919–2006), a Jamaican poet, musician, storyteller, and broadcaster known as "Miss Lou." Her "dialect poems sounded like the speech of everyday Jamaicans"; as a schoolchild, however, she was discouraged from writing anything but "proper English." Fernandes's vibrant textured illustrations reflect young Coverley's creativity and enthusiasm. Hohn's author's note includes her inspiration plus more about Coverley and Jamaican patois. Glos.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(3) YA Audre lives in Trinidad; Mabel in Minneapolis. The two young women meet when Audre, caught by her mother in an embrace with her girlfriend, is sent away to Minneapolis to stay with her father (who is close friends with Mabel's parents). The girls' alternating voices are distinct, even if a plethora of flashbacks and side stories crowd out the main narrative. The prose is sensuous and distinctive; themes of Black power (especially Black lesbian power) are strong; you won't see the ending coming.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2020

(2) YA Seventeen-year-old Khosi (This Thing Called the Future) tries to support herself and her sister as a sangoma, only to be accused of witchcraft. Then she learns she is pregnant. When a hate crime leaves a dead Somali immigrant at Khosi's door, she feels duty-bound to speak out in her South African community. The story's blend of Catholicism, traditional beliefs, and Western scientific thought allows readers to sample Khosi's culture.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2019

(2) 4-6 Straightforward text and comics-style sequential art combine in a (fictionalized) account of the Black student–led protest in 1976 Soweto, South Africa, in opposition to a law requiring half the school lessons be taught in Afrikaans. Separate chapters follow three individuals, including twelve-year-old Hector, whose lifeless body appears in a black-and-white photograph at book's end. An afterword describes how that photograph "became a powerful symbol." Lovingly illustrated portraits further humanize the three main characters. Bib., glos.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2019

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Ken Daley. A girl explores her Haitian heritage when she visits Auntie Luce, a painter. The aunt describes Haiti's history and their shared family stories. As she paints a portrait of the child, Auntie Luce helps the girl to better understand herself as a daughter of two cultures. Daley's acrylic paintings are lush and vibrant. An appended note provides more about the author's inspiration and Haitian history. Glos.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Andrea Pippins. In this "love letter...to the next generation of black changemakers" (per the book's welcome note), stylish digitally colored ink portraits illustrate fifty-two brief bios of black subjects; the person's iconic (unsourced) quotations appear in bold. The selections vary widely in era, nationality, background, and occupation, but the connecting factors are talent and willingness to work hard as a child. A "Hall of Fame" with photos is appended. Glos.

Reviewer: Christina Dorr

(2) PS In this light tale set in the unspecified "African veld," Lala is supposed to go to bed but is having none of it. "I just want to say good night to the goat..." and so on. That's the extent of this book's preschooler-perfect conflict, and the text could not be simpler, giving to Isadora's oil-paint and ink illustrations all the drama of sunset on the African plains.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2017

(3) K-3 CitizenKid series. Illustrated by Shane W. Evans. Young Deo flees his village in Burundi and ends up at a refugee camp, malnourished, without his family, and up against bullies and gangs. Through the power of play and banana-leaf soccer balls, Deo finds friendship and a sense of community. Striking mixed-media illustrations enhance this powerful story (inspired by real events) of survival and resurgence. An author's note is included. Websites.

Reviewer: Alia Jones

(4) YA Charlotte Adom starts college in Kumasi, Ghana, and becomes involved in political events, fighting against J. J. Rawlings when he takes power for the second time in 1981. The pull between Charlotte's everyday life with two competing love interests and her political activism is awkwardly depicted. Still, this rare YA novel on modern life in Africa fills a gap. Author's note included. Glos.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Tamar Blumenfeld. With Asher Naim. Ethiopian boy Yosef dreams that a giant eagle will fly his Jewish family to a new home; they're soon brought to Israel by airplane, his eagle come to life. This is an engaging fictionalized recollection of Operation Solomon, which in 1991 brought fourteen thousand Ethiopian Jews to Israel in two days, with (coauthor) Ambassador Naim's assistance. Blumenfeld's stylized paintings add specificity.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) 4-6 J. J. Keki, a Jewish musician and farmer from a small village in Uganda with Jewish, Christian, and Muslim residents, was about to visit the World Trade Center on 9/11. The day's horrific events inspired Keki to return to Uganda to start a coffee cooperative that would include the whole community. An engaging photo-essay about an unusual agricultural experiment. Bib., glos.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds. A dreamy, imaginative girl in Burkina Faso (the birthplace of fashion model and clean-water advocate Badiel) must journey far with her mother to get water every day. North American children may be surprised by this great need, and Verde's lyrical text may inspire young activists to help. Reynolds's art in dry tans capture Gie Gie's energy as she finds joy in her difficult life. Author's note appended.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Pat Cummings. Giving Cummings's lushly detailed paintings center stage, Lee simplifies the tale and puts it into Beauty's first-person voice. While the retelling retains the story's original details, the pictures portray all of the characters as black, in settings inspired by West Africa. The retelling is crisp, the drafting is skillful, and the compositions are dramatic. Princess-lovers of any color should enjoy it.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2014

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Jesse Joshua Watson. This picture book for older children packs a lot of sports and political history into forty pages. Set in 1990s South Africa, the story centers on two boys--one black, one white--who finally can play soccer together after the South African multiracial team wins the Africa Cup. The strong mixed-media illustrations reflect the text's emotion and energy. A historical note is appended. Timeline. Bib.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Hazel Mitchell. Little Imani is teased by the children in their Maasai village because she's small. Mama's bedtime stories help Imani dream so big that she tries--unsuccessfully--to "touch the moon." After watching warriors perform an adumnu (jumping dance), Imani knows how to realize her dream. This gentle girl-power fable veers a bit too far into fantasy but is grounded by the fetching illustrations' cultural details.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(1) 4-6 In this companion to Elijah of Buxton, set in 1901, thirteen-year-old African Canadian boy Benji Alston befriends Irish Canadian boy Alvin "Red" Stockard. The two encounter the (supposedly mythical) Madman of Piney Woods, who brings the past into present for both boys. Woven throughout this profoundly moving yet also at times very funny novel are themes of family, friendship, community, compassion, and the power of words.

Reviewer: Monica Edinger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2014

(4) 4-6 Gateway Biographies series. Two well-known international human rights activists are profiled in these slim biographies. Mandela's political life is chronicled closely and chronologically, with too many dates and events encumbering the relatively brief text; Yousafzai's biography is clearer but covers the same ground as her recent memoir. These easy-to-navigate resources are most suitable for younger report writers seeking basic biographical information. Reading list, timeline, websites. Bib., ind. Review includes these Gateway Biographies titles: Malala Yousafzai and Nelson Mandela

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(3) K-3 National Geographic Readers series. Short chapters with challenging but controlled vocabulary (Obama's text is simpler than Mandela's) track Obama's and Mandela's paths to becoming the first black presidents of their respective countries; pre-presidential civil rights work is emphasized more than presidential policy. "Words to Know" boxes and in-text transliteration support independent reading. Bright photographs, fact boxes, and pullout quotes increase accessibility. Mandela has an index. Timeline. Glos. Review covers these National Geographic Readers titles:Barack Obama and Nelson Mandela.

Reviewer: Rebecca Fox

(3) 4-6 This tale about family secrets and well-intentioned lies is inspired by the real-life experiences of the first black British Army officer, who was prejudicially denied a medal for his actions during WWI. Though the focus of the book is on family relationships and the stories people invent to protect their loved ones, Morpurgo also offers an understated, unexpectedly gentle meditation on prejudice.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin