Nonfiction Books
2023 Nonfiction Book Nominees
Video Introduction for the Nonfiction books by Janelle Yoder, Maricopa County Library District
Using Primary Sources (General Information):
The Library of Congress- Using Primary Sources
111 Trees: How One Village Celebrate the Birth of Every Girl by Rina Singh, 2020
Trees, India, environment, Social Studies
Sundar Paliwal, who is from a small Indian village ruled by ancient customs. As he grows to be a man, Sundar suffers much heartbreak and decides it is time for change to come to his village. Sundar is determined to live in a place where girls are valued as much as boys and where the land is not devastated by irresponsible mining. Sundar's plan? To celebrate the birth of every girl with the planting of 111 trees. Though many villagers resist at first, Sundar slowly gains their support. And today, there are over a quarter of a million trees in his village, providing food, water and opportunities for women to earn a living. His efforts have turned a once barren and deforested landscape into a fertile and prosperous one where girls can thrive.
Lesson Ideas:
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Awards:
2022 Yellow Cedar
Award Ontario Library Association nominee
2021 Bank Street Best Children’s Book
2021 Green Earth Book Award
2021 Social Justice Literature Award
2020 Book List Editor Choice Book Winner
Read-Alikes:
Butterflies Belong Here: A Story of One Idea, Thirty Kids, and a World of Butterflies – Deborah Hopkinson
Save the Bees – Bethany Stahl
The International Day of the Girl – Jessica Dee Humphreys
Old Enough to Save the Planet- Loll Kirby
Carter Reads the Newspaper by Deborah Hopkinson 2019
Woodson, Carter Gordon, historians, African-American historians, Social Studies
Carter G. Woodson was born to two formerly enslaved people ten years after the end of the Civil War. Though his father could not read, he believed in being an informed citizen, so Carter read the newspaper to him every day. As a teenager, Carter went to work in the coal mines, and there he met Oliver Jones, who did something important: he asked Carter not only to read to him and the other miners, but also research and find more information on the subjects that interested them.
Lesson Ideas:
Read Across America Teaching Guide
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Shirley's lesson ideas: (Grade 3+). Who were these people? When did they live? Why should tehy be in a history book (what ddid each do to deserve being in the book: Sarah Breedlove, Rebecca Lee Crumpler, Peter Salem, Lewis Latimer, Shirley Chisholm, Joseph Cinque, Charles Drew, Marcus Garvey, Frances Harper, Edmonia Lewis (also a Native American), Elijah McCoy, Dred Scott, Phyllis Wheatley, Richard Wright and Crispus Attucks. You can also change the list to Mexican-Americans: Rudolfo Anaya, Marcario Garcia, Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales, Juan Felipe Herrera, Dolores Huerta, Octaviano Larrazolo, Joseph Phillip Martinez, RUben Salazar, Luis Valdez, Roberto Clemente, Sylvia Mendez, Arturo Alfonso Schomburg and Sandra Cisneros or Native Americans: Powhatan, Tamanend, Joseph Brant, Sequoyah, Wilma Mankiller, Princess Nokia, Jim Thorpe, Andrew Blackbird, Gall, Maria Tallchief, Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Elias Boudinot, Maria Tallchief, Blackhawk, Susan Flesch or Asian-Americans: Dr. Sammy Lee, Phillip Vera Cruz, Joyce Chen, I.M. Pei, Patsy Mink, Steven Chen, Duke Kahanamoka, Kalpana Chawla, Steven Chen, Kalapana Chawla and Yuji Ichioka.
Awards:
National Council for the Social Studies Carter G. Woodson Book Award (Honor) 2020
Parents Choice Silver Honor Award
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Book
New York Public LibraryTop 10 Books for Kids
California Reading Association Eureka! Nonfiction Children’s Book Award Silver Honor
Literacy & Social Justice Special Interest Group/International Literacy Association
Social Justice Literature Award 2020
Parents’ Choice Silver Honor Award 2019
NCSS/CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2020
ALSC Notable Children’s Books 2020
Northern Lights Book Award (Biography) Northern Dawn Awards 2019
Literary Arts Eloise Jarvis McGraw Award for Children’s Literatur finalist 2020
Bank Street College of Education Best Children’s Books of the Year 2020
National Christian School Association – Children’s Crown Award nominee 2020-2021
Connecticut Nutmeg Awards nominee 2021
Delaware State Reading Association Delaware Diamonds nominee 2020-2021
Greater Kansas City Association of Schol Librarians Great Kids Can Read Award
nominee 2021-2022
Kansas National Education Association -State Reading Circl Recommended Reading
list (intermediate) 2020
State Library of Louisian and Louisiana Center for the Book - Louisiana Young Readers’
Choice Award nominee (Grades 3-5) 2021-2022
Oregon Council of Teachers of English – Oregon Spirit Award Honor 2019
Pennsylvania School Librarians Association – Pennsylvania Young Reader’s Choice
Awards nominee (Grades K-3)
Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College – Paterson Prize for Books for
Young People Honor book 2020
Read-Alikes:
The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read – Rita Lorraine Hubbard
Midnight Teacher – Janet Halfmann
Carter G. Woodson – James Haskins
Carter G. Woodson: the Father of Black History – Patricia & Fredrick McKissack
Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13 by Heaine Becker 2018
Apollo 13 (spacecraft), mathematician, African-American mathematician, biography, Social Studies
You've likely heard of the historic Apollo 13 moon landing. But do you know about the mathematical genius who made sure that Apollo 13 returned safely home? As a child, Katherine Johnson loved to count. She counted the steps on the road, the number of dishes and spoons she washed in the kitchen sink, everything! Boundless, curious, and excited by calculations, young Katherine longed to know as much as she could about math, about the universe.
Lesson Ideas:
Activities and Comprehension Questions
Rosie Reads Discussion Questions
All About Katherine Johnson Powerpoint
Shirley's lesson ideas: Research other remarkable women in science and math; when did they live, what were their accomplishment's?
Awards:
Vermont Red Clover Award Master Selection
Morning Calm Medal nominee
Towner Award nominee
Silver Birch Express Award nominee
Indiana Young Hoosier Book Award nominee
Junior Library Guild selection
NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Book
NCTM Mathematical Honor Book
Bank Street Cook Prize winner
NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Book
ILA Notable Book for Global Society
ILA Teachers’ Choice Reading selection
Amelia Bloomer selection
Chicago Public Library Best Book of Year
Read-Alikes:
The Story of Katherine Johnson: a Bio Book for Young Readers – Andrea Thorpe
Hidden Figures: the True Story of Black Women and the Space Race Young Readers’
Edition - Margot Lee Shetterly
A Computer Called Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Helped Put America on the Moon
Suzanne Slade
You Should Meet: Katherine Johnson – Thea Feldman
Counting the Stars: The Story of Katherine Johnson, NASA Mathemation – Lisa Cline-
Ransome
The Girl With a Mind for Math: the Story of Raye Montague – Julia Finley Mosca
Human Computer: Mary Jackson, Engineer – Andi Diehn
Crossings: Extraordinary Structures for Extraordinary Animals by Katy Duffield, 2020
Wildlife crossings, conservation projects, animals, environment, Science
Around the world, bridges, tunnels, and highways are constantly being built to help people get from one place to another. But what happens when construction spreads over, under, across, and through animal habitats? Thankfully, groups of concerned citizens, scientists, engineers, and construction crews have come together to create wildlife crossings to help keep animals safe.
Lesson Ideas:
Shirley's lesson ideas: What other ways can animals cross the highway; draw or write a description of the animal crossings.
Awards:
Kansas NEA Reading Circle List Primary Title
Maine Chickadee Award nominee
Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year selection
California Eureka! Excellence in Nonfiction Gold Award
Texas Topaz Nonfiction Reading List
Keystone to Reading Elementary Book Award nominee
ALA/ALSC Notable Children’s Book
Missouri Dogwood Reader Award Final nominee
Read-Alikes:
Except Antarctica – Todd Sturgell
Animal Habitats – Judy Press
Animal Homes – Ann O. Squire
A Day with the – Sharon Rentta
How Animals Build – Moira Butterfield
Animal Architects – Amy Cherrix
If Animals Built Your House – Bill Wise
Dinosaur Lady: The Daring Discoveries of Mary Anning, the First Paleontologist by Linda Skeers, 2020
Bio-nature, dinosaurs, Science/Social Studies
Mary Anning loved scouring the beach near her home in England for shells and fossils. She fearlessly climbed over crumbling cliffs and rocky peaks, searching for new specimens. One day, something caught Mary's eye.
Bones. Dinosaur Bones.
Mary’s discoveries rocked the world of science and help create a brand-new field of study: paleontology. But many people believed women couldn’t be scientists, so Mary wasn’t given the credit she deserved. Nevertheless, Mary kept looking and learning more, making discoveries that reshaped scientific beliefs about the natural world.
Lesson Ideas:
Teachers Pay Teachers (free)
Awards:
Outstanding Science Trade Books, 2015-2022
SB & F Prize for Excellence in Science Books, 2006-2022
Notable Social Science Trade Books for Young People, 2015-2022
The RISE: a Feminist Book Project List, Nonfiction 2021
Read-Alikes:
Fossil Huntress: Mary Leakey, Paleontologist – Andi Diehn
Gutsy Girls Go for Science Paleontogists: with STEM projects for Kids – Karen Bush Gibson
When Sue Found Sue: Sue Hendrickson Discovers T-Rex – Toni Buzzeo
Mary Anning – Marla Isabel Sanchez Vegara
Fossils for Kids: a Junior Student’s Guide to Dinosaur Bones, Ancient Animals, and
Prehistoric Life on Earth – Ashley Hall
Mary Anning’s Curiosity – Veronica Kulling
Mary Anning: the Fossil Hunter – Dennis Brindell Fradin
Stone Girl Bone Girl: the Story of Mary Anning – Laurence Anholt
Mary Anning and the Sea Dragon – Jeannine Atkins
The Fossil Girl: Mary Anning’s Dinosaur Discovery – Catherine Brighton
Mary Anning – Sara Spiller
Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera by Candace Fleming 2020
Bees, Honeybees, bee behavior, Science
A tiny honeybee emerges through the wax cap of her cell. Driven to protect and take care of her hive, she cleans the nursery and feeds the larvae and the queen. But is she strong enough to fly? Not yet! Apis builds wax comb to store honey, and transfers pollen from other bees into the storage. She defends the hive from invaders. And finally, she begins her new life as an adventurer. The confining walls of the hive fall away as Apis takes to the air, finally free, in a brilliant double-gatefold illustration where the clear blue sky is full of promise-- and the wings of dozens of honeybees, heading out in search of nectar to bring back to the hive.
Lesson Ideas:
Book Review and Teaching Ideas
Awards:
Robert F. Sibert Medal winner
Orbis Pictus Honor
Texas Bluebonnet Master List
AAAS/Suburu Finalist SB & F Prize for Excellence in Science Books
Cook Prize Honor Book
A Kids’ Book Choice Award finalist
New York Public Library Best Bok of the Year
Horn Book Fanfare Best Book of the Year
BCCB Blue Ribbon Book
Book List Editor’s Choice
ALA Notable Children’s Book
Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year
Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
Best Book: Kirkus, NPR, Shelf Awareness, SLJ, Publishers Weekly
Read-Alikes:
Explore My World: Honey Bees – Jill Exbaum
The Honeybee – Kirsten Hall
Kaia and the Bees – Maribeth Boelts
Bee and Me – Allison Jay
The Secret Life of Bees – Moira Butterfield
Hello Honeybees – Hannah Rogge
The Bee Book – Charlotte Milner
The Secret Life of Bees – Moira Butterfield
The Buzzy Bee Book for Kids: Storybook, Bee Facts, and Activities – Alice McGinty
Honey Bees: Discover Pictures and Facts about Honeybees for Kids – Bold Kids
I Am a Bee – Rebecca McDonald
National Geographic Readers: Buzz, Bee – Jennifer Szymanski
The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastics by Susan Hood 2021
Plastics, environment, recycling, scrap, Science
There is a growing plastic problem and meet just a few of the young activists who are standing up and speaking out for change.
· You’ll hear about the “Be Straw Free” campaign, started by nine-year-old Milo Cress.
· You’ll discover how scientists are using jellyfish snot and munching, crunching caterpillars to break down plastic pollution faster.
· You’ll meet Xóchitl Guadalupe Cruz López, the eight-year-old girl turning old plastic bottles into solar heaters.
Lesson Ideas:
Resources and Further Reading
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Shirley's lesson ideas: Explore/list ways kids can clean the oceans; design a contraption for cleaning the oceans. What can you do with all the recovered plastic from the oceans and land?
Awards:
2022 Notable Poetry Book – NCTE Award for Excellence
2021 Chicago Public Library Best Informational Books for K-3
Read-Alikes:
What a Waste: Rubbish, Recycling, and Protecting Our Planet – Jess French
Save the Ocean - Bethany Stahl
A Planet Full of Plastic: and How You Can Help – Neal Layton
Saving Tally: an Adventure into the Great Pacific Plastic Patch – Serena Lane Ferrari
Harry Saves the Ocean: Teaching Children about Sea Pollution and Recycling – N.G.K. &
Sylvia Fae
Earth Ninja: a Children’s Book About Recycling, Reducing, and Reusing – Mary Nhin
Kids Fight Plastic: How to be a #2minutesuperstar – Martin Dorey
Plastic Ahoy! Investigating the Great Pacific Garbage Patch – Patricia Newman
The Mess We Made – Michelle Lord
Mamie on the Mound: a Woman in Baseball's Negro Leagues by Leah Henderson 2020
Johnson, Mamie, woman baseball player, African-American baseball player, Negro League ,Sports, Social Studies
Mamie "Peanut" Johnson had one dream: to play professional baseball. She was a talented player, but she wasn't welcome in the segregated All-American Girls Pro Baseball League due to the color of her skin. However, a greater opportunity came her way in 1953 when Johnson signed to play ball with the Negro Leagues' Indianapolis Clowns, becoming the first female pitcher to play on a men's professional team. During the three years she pitched for the Clowns, her record was an impressive 33-8. But more importantly, she broke ground for other female athletes and for women everywhere.
Lesson Ideas:
The Story of Mamie Johnson (YouTube)
Black Women in Professional Baseball
Shirley's lesson plans: Research other Negro baseball players-- who were they? When did they play and for what team/city? Tiffany Brooks, Eeri Yoshida, Ila Borders, Mo'Ne Davis, Toni Stone, Connie Morgan, Effa Manley, Olivia Taylor, Pearl Barrett, Isabelle Baxter, Billie Harris.
Awards:
Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People 205-2022
CCBC Choices Award
Read-Alikes:
She Loved Baseball: the Effa Manley Story – Audrey Vernick
A Strong Right Arm: the Story of Mamie “Peanuts” Johnson – Michelle Y. Green
Catching the Moon: the Story of a Young Girl’s Baseball Dream – Crystal Hubbard
The Kid From Diamond Street: the Extraordinary Story of Baseball Legend Edith
Houghton – Audrey Verrick
What Were the Negro Leagues? – Varian Johnson
Curveball: the Remarkable Story of Toni Stone the First Woman to Play Professional
Baseball in the Negro League – Martha Ackmann
Remember My Name: My Story from First Pitch to Game Changer – Mo’ne Davis
Meet the Philadelphia Dolly Vardens: Inspired by the First African American Women’s
Professional Baseball Team – Sabrina A. Brinson
The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read by Rita Lorraine Hubbard, 2020
Walker, Mary, women slaves, freedman-woman, reading, Social Studies
In 1848, Mary Walker was born into slavery. At age 15, she was freed, and by age 20, she was married and had her first child. By age 68, she had worked numerous jobs, including cooking, cleaning, babysitting, and selling sandwiches to raise money for her church. At 114, she was the last remaining member of her family. And at 116, she learned to read.
Lesson Ideas:
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Educators Guide from Publisher
Texas Bluebonnet Awards Activities and much more
Read Across America using Diverse Literature
Shirley's lesson ideas: Mary Walker inspired other adults who could not read to learn no matter how old tthey were: think of someone you know or you yourself and describe how they or you overcame obstacles to learn something or be able to do something.
Awards:
Comstock Read Aloud Book Award winner 2021
Texas Bluebonnet Award winner 2022
Minnesota Book Award nominee 2022
Rhode Island Children’s Book Award nominee 2022
Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award nominee 2021
Virginia Young Readers Program Award nominee 2021
ALSC Notable Children’s Books Selection 2021
Bank Street College Best Children’s Book of the Year selection 2021
Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices selection 2021
Notable Books for a Global Society Award selection 2021
Ohio Ohioana Book Award finalist 2021
Read-Alikes:
The Power of Her Pen: the Story of Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel L. Payne – Lesa Cline-
Ransome
Carter Reads the Newspaper – Deborah Hopkinson
Nasreen’s Secret School: a True Story from Afghanistan – Jeanette Winter
Poet: the Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton – Don Tate
Fauja Singh Keeps Going: the True Story of the Oldest Person to Ever Run a
Marathon – Simran Jeet Singh
Lillian’s Right to Vote – Jonah Winter
One Hundred Steps: the Story of Captain Sir Tom Moore – Captain Tom Moore
Try It! How Frieda Caplan Changed the Way We Eat by Mara Rockliff, 2021
Food and drink, fruits and vegetables, food and drink-cooking
In 1956, Frieda Caplan started working at the Seventh Street Produce Market in Los Angeles. Instead of competing with the men in the business with their apples, potatoes, and tomatoes, Frieda thought, why not try something new? Staring with mushrooms, Frieda began introducing fresh and unusual foods to her customers—snap peas, seedless watermelon, mangos, and more!
Lesson Ideas:
Read Aloud (YouTube)
Ag in the Classroom Lesson Plan
Oklahoma Agriculture in the Classroom Lesson Ideas
Shirley's lesson ideas: Create a new fruit or vegetable that is nutritious and delicious: you can combine two or three fruits/vegetables that now exist; what is its name, color size, is it a fruit of vegetable or combination, nutritional values (serving size, calories, carbohydrates, protein, etc.). Where does it grow (country, in a tree, on a plant, on the ground, underground).
Awards:
Smithsonian Magazine 10 Best Children’s Books of 2021
Tablet Magazine Best Jewish Children’s Books of 2021
Missouri Dogwood Award nominee 2022-2023
California Reading Association Eureka! Nonfiction Honor Book 2021
Read-Alikes:
Grow: How We Get Food From Our Garden – Karl Beckstrand
I Can Eat a Rainbow – Olena Rose
Eating the Alphabet – Lois Ehlert
To Market, To Market – Nikki McClure
Carrots Like Peas – Hannah Elliot
The Ugly Vegetables – Grace Lin
Edible Colors – Jennifer Vogel Bass
Oliver’s Vegetables – Vivian French
The Vegetables We Eat – Gail Gibbons
The Fruits We Eat – Gail Gibbons