Hear My Voice/Escucha mi voz shares the stories of 61 these children, from Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Mexico, ranging in age from five to seventeen—in their own words from actual sworn testimonies. Befitting the spirit of the project, the book is in English on one side; then flip it over, and there’s a complete Spanish version.
Intermediate (ages 9-14)
Material appropriate for intermediate age groups
Boy, Everywhere
Sami loves his life in Damascus, Syria. He hangs out with his best friend playing video games; he’s trying out for the football team; he adores his family and gets annoyed by them in equal measure. But his comfortable life gets sidetracked abruptly after a bombing in a nearby shopping mall. Knowing that the violence will only get worse, Sami’s parents decide they must flee their home for the safety of the UK.
Almond: A Novel
Yunjae was born with a brain condition called Alexithymia that makes it hard for him to feel emotions like fear or anger. He does not have friends—the two almond-shaped neurons located deep in his brain have seen to that—but his devoted mother and grandmother provide him with a safe and content life. Their little home above his mother’s used bookstore is decorated with colorful Post-it notes that remind him when to smile, when to say “thank you,” and when to laugh.
Paola Santiago And The Forest Of Nightmares
Six months after Paola Santiago confronted the legendary La Llorona, life is nothing like she’d expected it to be. She is barely speaking to her best friends, Dante and Emma, and what’s worse, her mom has a totally annoying boyfriend. Even with her chupacabra puppy, Bruto, around, Pao can’t escape the feeling that she’s all alone in the world.
Pao has no one to tell that she’s having nightmares again, this time set in a terrifying forest. Even more troubling? At their center is her estranged father, an enigma of a man she barely remembers. And when Dante’s abuela falls mysteriously ill, it seems that the dad Pao never knew just might be the key to healing the eccentric old woman.
The Blue Wings
Two brothers bound together by affection and responsibility. Jadran is five years older than Josh and huge enough to be nicknamed Giant. Josh is younger, and smaller; but his sweet and stubborn brother thinks in a way that would be more typical of a small child. They are both dealing with changes to their newly blended, Muslim family. So Josh looks after Jadran and they both adjust. When the brothers find an injured young crane, Jadran wants to bring it back to their small apartment and teach it to fly at any cost. And it turns out the cost is high.
The Secret Life Of Spies
Uncover the lives of 20 real-life spies who made it their mission to uncover the truth and collect secret information from their enemies… This book presents personal accounts and testimonies from spies all over the world and throughout history and brings key moments in history to life for young readers.
Shaman’s Apprentice
Inspired by award-winning Inuk director Zacharias Kunuk’s short film of the same name, The Shaman’s Apprentice tells the story of a young shaman in training who must face her first test―a trip to the underground to visit Kannaaluk, The One Below, who holds the answers to why a community member has become ill. Facing dark spirits and physical challenges, the young shaman must learn to stifle her fear and listen to what Kannaaluk has to tell her.
Hey World, Here I Am!
A collection of poems and brief vignettes from the perspective of a girl named Kate Bloomfield, reflecting her views on friendship, school, family life, and the world.
Four Ancestors: Stories, Songs, and Poems from Native North America
Fire, Earth, Water, and Air are the powerful and mystical ancestors of the earth, as told in an illustrated collection of tales from more than thirty Native American cultures that capture the power and mystery of the natural world.
Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer
Mary Golda Ross designed classified airplanes and spacecraft as Lockheed Aircraft Corporation’s first female engineer. Find out how her passion for math and the Cherokee values she was raised with shaped her life and work.
This book is featured in WOW Currents: Scientists and Mathematicians in Children’s Literature and WOW Currents: Hidden Stories of Hope: Relevant Picture Book Biographies for Science Classrooms.
Read the review of this book in WOW Review Volume XVI, Issue 4.