The Slug And The Snail

An illustrated own-voices fable about self-acceptance and pride from a member of the Irish Traveller nomadic ethnic minorityDrawn from the Irish Traveller oral storytelling tradition, DeBhairduin’s tale is a gentle allegory about difference, self-acceptance and different ways of seeing the world.Two slugs travel happily together as brothers, until they meet a crow who shows them that they have no home. Ashamed, one of the slugs decides to make himself a home, and calls himself snail. The brothers grow apart and become suspicious of each other. The slug with no shell-house feels ashamed until he learns to see that the very road he travels is his home, and so he shall never be homeless.The happy slug no longer sees himself through the judging eyes of others, but proudly asserts his place in the world and the two brothers travel happily together once more.

Taming Papa

Mélie doesn’t know how to relate to her father, a political prisoner in another country whom she has never met, when he is released and immigrates to join her family in Montreal.“Where I come from, you have to say the same things as everyone else or keep quiet,” Mélie’s mother tells her. “And your father is not someone who knows how to keep quiet. Or say the same thing as everyone else. So that got him in trouble.”However, ever since he came into Mélie’s life, keeping quiet is the only thing her father has done. Partly because Sami doesn’t speak the same language as his daughter, and partly because he doesn’t know how to live as a free man anymore. Mélie has to tame him, like the kitten that she just found, and like Mr. Xavier and his partner seem to be doing with Mei-Li, the little girl they recently adopted. Things that are worthwhile aren’t always easy.Key Text Featureschapters;dialogueCorrelates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.5.6Describe how a narrator’s or speaker’s point of view influences how events are described.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.3Describe how a particular story’s or drama’s plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.4Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone

An Unexpected Light

Nobel Prize winner José Saramago tells a quiet and poetic story, an excerpt from his book Small Memories, of a lasting childhood experience of simple, soulful joy.The narrator’s memories of a lost childhood paradise focus on two glorious days when he helped his uncle take some piglets to the market in Santarém. They traverse dusty roads, sleep in a barn and awake to a miraculous moonglow, and hear the animals in their “infinite conversations.” The journey, the night, the wind, the light. . . . This poetic story is an unforgettable adventure narrated by José Saramago and presented alongside Armando Fonseca’s fanciful and evocative illustrations.A very special gift for readers of all ages.

Call Me Al

Ali is an eighth-grade kid with a lot going on.Between the pressure from his immigrant parents to ace every class, his crush on Melissa, who lives in the rich area of town while he and his family live in a shabby apartment complex, and trying his best to fit in with his friends, he feels like he’s being pulled in too many different directions.But harder still, Ali is becoming increasingly aware of the racism around him. Comments from his friends about Pakistani food or his skin color are passed off as jokes, but he doesn’t find them funny. And when Ramadan starts, Ali doesn’t tell anyone he’s fasting because it just seems easier. Luckily he finds solace in putting his feelings into words―and poems. But his father is dead set against him using art as a distraction when he’s got schoolwork and a future career as a doctor to focus on.Ali’s world changes when he, his mom and his little brother are assaulted by some racist teens. Ali must come to terms with his roiling feelings about his place in the world, as a Pakistani immigrant, a Muslim and a teenager with his whole life ahead of him. With help from his grandfather, an inspiring teacher and his friend, Ali leans on his words for strength. And eventually he finds his true voice.The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

Loud: Stories To Make Your Voice Heard

“No one can do it for you, but you don’t have to do it alone.”Big names in Italian comics gathered in a unique and powerful anthology to say enough to gender-based violence.Ellie, Sabrina, Rose, Laura, Liz, Camilla. Their stories touch us deeply because they happened and they happen to us too, to our sisters, friends, neighbors.Sometimes we don’t even realize it, we minimize it, we don’t have the tools to understand, react, talk about it out loud. And that’s exactly why this book was born: to break the silence and fill it in our stories and our words, to ensure that situations like this never happen again.Gender-based violence takes many forms, from subtle manipulation to outright physical abuse, and it knows no boundaries. Loud: Stories to Make Your Voice Heard is a powerful anthology curated by a feminist collective of Italian comics creators working in solidarity to unite, support, and empower others in the fight against toxic masculinity, both in the comics industry and beyond.

The Legend Of Tiger And Tail-Flower

The #1 bestselling picture book in Korea . . . a laugh-out-loud blend of joyous comics and lush full spread illustrations!Tiger is a bit grumpy. Why won’t the other forest animals give him food…even when he yells at them? Why doesn’t anyone want to be his friend?Then a talking Dandelion shoots down from space and attaches permanently to his tail. (Don’t ask how). *shake shake shake* Why won’t Tail-Flower come off?! Why does everyone in the forest seem to like her better?Stuck with each other, and against all odds, Tiger and Tail-Flower become fast friends and set off on a series of adventures. Rescuing Mother Hen and her lost egg from a cliff. Fording a river for Rabbit, Hedgehog, and Raccoon. Throwing a big party with everyone in the forest!Tiger and Tail-Flower even grow old together. And though they don’t realize it, one day their last adventure arrives. When they decide to travel through the forest and climb the big mountain in the sky, a hunter’s net snares them deep in the forest. But Tail-Flower gets an idea, and with a twinkle in her eye, she asks:“Tiger, we’ll always be best friends, right?”Lee Gee Eun is the most beloved picture book artist working in Korea today. The Legend of Tiger and Tail-Flower is her magnum opus: a ridiculously exuberant picture book—with a surprisingly moving ending—that spans 80 pages of breathtaking comics and full spread illustrations. Readers young and old will delight in and become fast friends with the legend of this irrepressible pair.