Patricia C. McKissack

Fredrick McKissack, Jr.

A biography of the former slave who became well known as an abolitionist and advocate of women's rights.

Ain't I a Woman?

Sojourner Truth

Dear America

As a young African American girl pieces her first quilt together, the history of her family, community, and the struggle for justice and freedom in Gee's Bend, Alabama unfold.

A Gee's Bend Quilt

Stitchin' and Pullin'

Let's Clap, Jump, Sing, and Shout; Dance, Spin, and Turn It Out!

Mounting his horse, cold-hearted John Leep smiles as he anticipates evicting the widow Mayes for nonpayment of rent. When she comes up with the rent after all, Leep, unwilling to be disappointed, knocks her coins to the floor and hides one of them in his boot. The widow will be evicted in the morning; but as he departs, Leep is pursued by an unseen stalker. As Leep rides faster, so does his pursuer--clippity-cloppity, clippity-cloppity--until Leep reaches his home. Is John Leep safe at last or is Ol' Clip-Clop gonna SWALLOW HIM WHOLE?!!!!

A Ghost Story

Ol' Clip-Clop

An amazing chapter in American history is now available in Step into Reading, the premier leveled reader line. In 1838, a slave ship named the Amistad took hundreds of kidnapped Africans on a long journey across the Atlantic. But the brave captives would not give up their freedom, taking over the ship so they could sail back to their homeland. This History Reader is not to be missed. Step 4 Readers use challenging vocabulary and short paragraphs to tell exciting stories. For newly independent readers who read simple sentences with confidence.

Amistad: The Story of a Slave Ship

A biography of the former slave who became well-known as an abolitionist and advocate of women's rights.

In segregated 1950s Nashville, a young African American girl braves a series of indignities and obstacles to get to one of the few integrated places in town: the public library.

Goin' Someplace Special

CORETTA SCOTT KING – JOHN STEPTOE ILLUSTRATOR AWARD FOR NEW TALENT WINNER This final, magnificent picture book from three-time Coretta Scott King Award winner and Newbery Honor author Patricia McKissack is a poignant and uplifting celebration of the joy of giving. "Misery loves company,"" Mama says to James Otis. It's been a rough couple of months for them, but Mama says as long as they have their health and strength, they're blessed. One Sunday before Valentine's Day, Reverend Dennis makes an announcement during the service-- the Temples have lost everything in a fire, and the church is collecting anything that might be useful to them. James thinks hard about what he can add to the Temple's ""love box,"" but what does he have worth giving? With her extraordinary gift for storytelling, McKissack--with stunning illustrations by Harrison--delivers a touching, powerful tale of compassion and reminds us all that what is given from the heart, reaches the heart.

What Is Given from the Heart

Michael D. Chesworth

Miami Gets It Straight

Fredrick L. McKissack

Fredrick McKissack (Jr.)

Celebrates the lives of the first Africans arriving in America, depicting their hardships, triumphs, and contributions to American society.

The First African Americans, 1619

Hard Labor

Fredrick McKissack

Traces the history of the Negro leagues that evolved due to segregation in professional baseball up to the 1950s

The Story of the Negro Baseball Leagues

Black Diamond

A 2012 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book This gorgeous picture book by Newbery Honor winner Patricia C. McKissack and two-time Caldecott Medal-winning husband-and-wife team Leo and Diane Dillon is sure to become a treasured keepsake for African American families. Set in West Africa, this a lyrical story-in-verse is about a young black boy who is kidnapped and sold into slavery, and his father who is left behind to mourn the loss of his son. Here's a beautiful, powerful, truly unforgettable story about family, memory, and freedom. "Forceful and iconic," raves Publishers Weekly in a starred review.

Never Forgotten

One October night in 1745, John Leep, a mean and stingy lawyer, sets out to evict a widow from one of his rental houses and is followed by a ghostly rider.

Through moving prose and beautiful watercolors, award-winning author-illustrator duo collaborate to tell the poignant tale of a spirited young girl who comes face to face with segregation in her southern town. There’s a place in this 1950s southern town where all are welcome, no matter what their skin color…and ’Tricia Ann knows exactly how to get there. To her, it’s someplace special and she’s bursting to go by herself. When her grandmother sees that she’s ready to take such a big step, ’Tricia Ann hurries to catch the bus heading downtown. But unlike the white passengers, she must sit in the back behind the Jim Crow sign and wonder why life's so unfair. Still, for each hurtful sign seen and painful comment heard, there’s a friend around the corner reminding ’Tricia Ann that she’s not alone. And even her grandmother’s words—"You are somebody, a human being—no better, no worse than anybody else in this world”—echo in her head, lifting her spirits and pushing her forward.

With Audio Recording

Lift Every Voice and Sing

James Weldon Johnson

Felicia Marshall

Carolyn, the oldest of three siblings, wants to make sure her parents and grandparents love her best and decides to prove herself at the community play, but things do not turn out as she had planned.

Loved Best

Coretta Scott King Award winner and Newbery Honor author Patricia McKissack's inspiring A PICTURE OF FREEDOM is now back in print with a gorgeous new cover! It's 1859 and Clotee, a twelve-year-old slave, has the most wonderful, terrible secret. She knows that if she shares it with the wrong person, she will face unimaginable consequences. What is her secret? While doing her job of fanning her master's son during his daily lessons, Clotee has taught herself to read and write. However, she soon learns that the tutor, Ely Harms, has a secret of his own. In a time when literacy is one of the most valuable skills to have, Clotee is determined to use her secret to save herself, and her family.

Dear America: A Picture of Freedom

Little David Earl always knows what day of the week it is. He can tell by the clean, snappy-fresh apron Ma Dear is wearing -- a different color for every day. Monday means washing, with Ma Dear scrubbing at her tub in a blue apron. Tuesday is ironing, in a sunshine yellow apron that brightens Ma's spirits. And so it goes until Sunday, when Ma Dear doesn't have to wear an apron and they can set aside some special no-work time, just for themselves. In their first collaboration, Newbery Honor author Patricia McKissack and award-winninng illustrator Floyd Cooper lovingly recreate a slice of turn-of-the-century Southern life as it was for a single African-American mother and her son.

with audio recording

Ma Dear's Aprons

CORETTA SCOTT KING – JOHN STEPTOE ILLUSTRATOR AWARD FOR NEW TALENT WINNER This final, magnificent picture book from three-time Coretta Scott King Award winner and Newbery Honor author Patricia McKissack is a poignant and uplifting celebration of the joy of giving. "Misery loves company," Mama says to James Otis. It's been a rough couple of months for them, but Mama says as long as they have their health and strength, they're blessed. One Sunday before Valentine's Day, Reverend Dennis makes an announcement during the service-- the Temples have lost everything in a fire, and the church is collecting anything that might be useful to them. James thinks hard about what he can add to the Temple's "love box," but what does he have worth giving? With her extraordinary gift for storytelling, McKissack--with stunning illustrations by Harrison--delivers a touching, powerful tale of compassion and reminds us all that what is given from the heart, reaches the heart.

Patricia C. McKissack

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