Black History Month Book Spotlight:

Celebrate Black History Month with children of all ages by reading stories of African-Americans overcoming adversity and making their multicultural mark on the world. There are many rich biographies and themes to explore with children during Black History Month (February) or any time of year. Follow @hereweeread for more great book suggestions.

Follow Your Dreams, Little One by: Vashti Harrison

New York Times bestselling author-illustrator Vashti Harrison shines a bold, joyous light on black men through history in this board book edition of Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History.

This beautifully illustrated board book highlights true stories of black men in history. The exceptional men featured include artist Aaron Douglas, civil rights leader John Lewis, dancer Alvin Ailey, lawman Bass Reeves, tennis champion Arthur Ashe, and writer James Baldwin.

The legends in this book span centuries and continents, but what they have in common is that each one has blazed a trail for generations to come.

Baby Young, Gifted, and Black: With a Mirror!

by: Jamia Wilson (Author) and Andrea Pippins (Illustrator)

Meet icons of color from past and present in this baby board book celebration of inspirational achievement. A collection of positive, yet simple, affirmations to encourage the next generation. Highlighting the talent of Black leaders and changemakers from around the world, young dreamers will develop confidence, self-assurance, and self-belief.

Created in the spirit of Nina Simone’s song “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black,” meet figureheads, leaders and pioneers such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, as well as cultural trailblazers like Zadie Smith and athletes like Serena Williams. Jamia Wilson has carefully curated this range of Black icons and the book is stylishly brought together by Andrea Pippins’ colorful and celebratory illustrations.

Mae Among the Stars by: Roda Ahmed (Author), Stasia Burrington (Illustrator)

A beautiful picture book for sharing and marking special occasions such as graduation, inspired by the life of the first African American woman to travel in space, Mae Jemison. An Amazon Best Book of the Month!

A great classroom and bedtime read-aloud, Mae Among the Stars is the perfect book for young readers who have big dreams and even bigger hearts.

When Little Mae was a child, she dreamed of dancing in space. She imagined herself surrounded by billions of stars, floating, gliding, and discovering.

She wanted to be an astronaut.

Her mom told her, “If you believe it, and work hard for it, anything is possible.”

Little Mae’s curiosity, intelligence, and determination, matched with her parents’ encouraging words, paved the way for her incredible success at NASA as the first African American woman to travel in space.

This book will inspire other young girls to reach for the stars, to aspire for the impossible, and to persist with childlike imagination.