Books in this category address a wide range of historical and current forms of bigotry, prejudice that is both intentional and systemic and prejudice that is unintentional, but just as hurtful. In some books prejudice is the primary focus of the story; in others it is part of the fabric of the book but not its central theme.
This is whichCatvalue: 6
All Books in the Prejudice & Discrimination Category
White Socks Only Evelyn Coleman (Author), Tyrone Geter (Illustrator) A grandmother tells the story about her first trip into town during the days of segregation in Mississippi. [Grade Level: K - 3]
Whitewash Ntozake Shange (Author), Michael Sporn (Illustrator) Based on an actual incident, this book tells the story
of a young African-American girl who is distressed when
a gang of white boys attacks her and her brother on their
way home from school and spray-paints her face white.
Told from the perspective of the young target of the attack, the story shows how she begins to recover from the incident through grieving and the support of her family and friends. [Grade Level: 2 - 5]
Wings Written and Illustrated by Christopher Myers Wings is the retelling of a myth that highlights the beauty and perils of being different. Ikarus Jackson is very different: he has wings and he can fly. But at school, his wings attract too much attention, and kids think he is 'showing off.' One girl realizes he must be lonely being the only one who has wings, and resolves to step in and stop the name-calling and teasing towards Ikarus. [Grade Level: K - 3]
A Woman for President: The Story of Victoria Woodhull Kathleen Krull (Author), Jane Dyer (Illustrator) Victoria Woodhull was the first woman to do many things: the first woman to own a newspaper, to speak before Congress, and to have a seat on the stock exchange. But her boldest act was announcing herself as the first female candidate for the presidency of the United States in 1872—before women even had the right to vote. Arguably one of the most revolutionary women in American history, she was breaking boundaries many years ahead of her time. [Grade Level: 2 - 5]
A World of Knowing: A Story About Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet Andy Russell Bowen (Author), Elaine Wadsworth (Illustrator) This Creative Minds series biography provides a contemporary account of the life of the man who developed American Sign Language. Thomas Gallaudet was driven by the experiences of Alice Cogswell, the nine-year-old deaf daughter of a neighbor, to travel to Europe and study methods for teaching deaf students. Upon returning to the U.S., Gallaudet founded the American School for the Deaf. In 1864, his son, Edward, established the first college for the deaf which in 1986 became Gallaudet University. [Grade Level: 4 - 6]
Yoko Written by Rosemary Wells When a young girl brings her favorite lunch of sushi to school, her classmates make fun of what she eats until one classmate tries it for himself. [Grade Level: Pre-K - 1]
You Come to Yokum Carol Otis Hurst (Author), Kay Life (Illustrator) It is 1921, and Frank and his brother move with their family to Yokum Pond to run a hunting and vacation lodge. While their father struggles to master driving the "tarnatious machine," their new Model T Ford, their mother is busy campaigning for ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Undeterred by the rural setting and less-than-receptive neighbors, she brings the fight for suffrage to the farmers' wives and millworkers of the surrounding towns, much to the consternation of her husband and a number of the lodge's guests.
[Grade Level: 3 - 6]
