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Celebrating Diversity is close to our hearts here at Kamali’i. We genuinely believe that a diverse world is not only a beautiful world but a better one. Over the last few years, it’s been a rollercoaster of emotions as we as a society strive to make the world a more inclusive, equal, and equitable place, but one of the big wins has been the huge influx of books written for children that celebrate the histories and stories of diverse cultures.
Books are magical vessels for learning. When we read stories, the part of our brain that’s active is the experiential part of our brain. That means that when we read a story about someone else, we experience the same emotions that the fictional character does. So the more we read and read with our children, the more empathetic we all become. We begin to see people through their stories, which helps us understand their lived experiences!
As we celebrate Black History Month, we hope you and your family make a point to learn about the incredible Black leaders and the joys and sorrows that the larger black community experiences every day. We’ve gathered a list of some amazing books to help your family do just that. We’ve got books for all ages, and we hope many of these become family favorites you read again and again.
Pre-K – 8 Years
- Parker Looks Up: An Extraordinary Moment
When Parker Curry came face-to-face with Amy Sherald’s transcendent portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama at the National Portrait Gallery, she didn’t just see the First Lady of the United States. She saw a queen—one with dynamic self-assurance, regality, beauty, and truth who captured this young girl’s imagination. Inspired by a real-life experience, Parker, and her mother, Jessica Curry, tell the story of a young girl and her family, whose trip to a museum becomes an extraordinary moment in a moving picture book. - Sulwe
Sulwe has skin the color of midnight. She is darker than everyone in her family. She is darker than anyone in her school. Sulwe just wants to be beautiful and bright, like her mother and sister. Then a magical journey in the night sky opens her eyes and changes everything. - Brown Boy Brown Boy, What Can You Be
A story about a boy named Matthew who asks himself a very simple but powerful question: Brown Boy Brown Boy, What Can You Be? From a scientist who studies bumblebees to a meteorologist who predicts the weather, the sky is the limit for Matthew and all children. - Skin Like Mine
From the Creators of Hair Like Mine, Skin Like Mine, the second book in the Kids Like Mine Series, is a fun, easy-to-read for beginners as well as advanced readers. An entertaining yet creative way to address and celebrate diversity among young children. Guaranteed to make you smile and a bit hungry. - Dream Big, Little One
Featuring 18 trailblazing black women in American history, Dream Big, Little One is the irresistible board book adaptation of Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History.
Among these women, you’ll find heroes, role models, and everyday women who did extraordinary things – bold women whose actions and beliefs contributed to making the world better for generations of girls and women to come. Whether they were putting pen to paper, soaring through the air, or speaking up for the rights of others, the women profiled in these pages were all taking a stand against a world that didn’t always accept them.
Early to Middle Readers
- In Daddy’s Arms, I Am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers
In this intergenerational collection of poetry by new and established African American writers, fatherhood is celebrated with honor, humor, and grace. This book employs an inventive range of media to bring each of the poems to life. In Daddy’s Arms I Am Tall testifies to the powerful bond between father and child, recognizing family as our greatest gift, and identifying fathers as being among our most influential heroes. - The Journey of Little Charlie
Twelve-year-old Charlie is down on his luck: His sharecropper father just died, and Cap’n Buck has come to collect a debt. Fearing for his life, Charlie strikes a deal with Cap’n Buck and agrees to track down some folks accused of stealing from the cap’n and his boss. It’s not too bad of a bargain for Charlie until he comes face-to-face with the fugitives and discovers their true identities. Torn between his guilty conscience and his survival instinct, Charlie needs to figure out his next move — and soon. It’s only a matter of time before Cap’n Buck catches on. - Ghost Boys
Twelve-year-old Jerome is shot by a police officer who mistakes his toy gun for a real threat. As a ghost, he observes the devastation unleashed on his family and community in the wake of what they see as an unjust and brutal killing. Soon Jerome meets another ghost: Emmett Till, a boy from a different time but with similar circumstances. Emmett helps Jerome process what has happened on a journey toward recognizing how historical racism may have led to the events that ended his life. Jerome also meets Sarah, the daughter of the police officer, who grapples with her father’s actions. - Piecing Me Together
Jade believes she must get out of her poor neighborhood if she’s ever going to succeed. Her mother tells her to take advantage of every opportunity that comes her way. And Jade has. But some opportunities she doesn’t really welcome, like an invitation to join Women to Women, a mentorship program for “at-risk” girls. She’s tired of being singled out as someone who needs help; someone people want to fix. Jade wants to speak, to create, to express her joys and sorrows, her pain, and her hope. Maybe there are some things she could show other women about understanding the world and finding ways to be real, to make a difference. - Blended
Piano-prodigy Isabella, eleven, whose black father and white mother struggle to share custody, never feels whole, especially as racial tensions affect her school, her parents both become engaged, and she and her stepbrother are stopped by police.
Advanced Readers and Young Adult
- The Hate U Give
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death made a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Star does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life. - March Series
Discover the inside story of the Civil Rights Movement through the eyes of one of its most iconic figures, Congressman John Lewis. March is the bestselling graphic novel trilogy recounting his life in the movement. - Blackout
A summer heatwave blankets New York City in darkness. But as the city is thrown into confusion, a different kind of electricity sparks. A first meeting. Long-time friends. Bitter exes. And maybe the beginning of something new. When the lights go out, people reveal hidden truths. Love blossoms, friendship transforms, and new possibilities take flight.
Happily Ever Afters
Sixteen-year-old Tessa Johnson has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She’s rarely seen herself reflected in the pages of the romance novels she loves. The only place she’s a true leading lady is in her own writing. When Tessa is accepted into the creative writing program of a prestigious art school, she’s excited to finally let her stories shine. But when she goes to her first workshop, the words are just…gone. Fortunately, her best friend has a solution: Tessa just needs to find some inspiration in a real-life love story of her own. And she’s ready with a list of romance novel-inspired steps to a happily ever after. But as Tessa checks each item off Caroline’s list, she gets further and further away from herself. She risks losing everything she cares about. She’s well on her way to having her own real-life love story, but is it the one she wants, after all? - A Song of Wraiths and Ruin Series
Magic creates a centuries-long divide between peoples in this stunning debut novel inspired by North African and West African folklore. An action-packed tale of injustice, magic, and romance, this novel immerses readers in a thrilling world and narrative.
There are so many more books for all ages that we could have added to this list! Let us know if you and your family check any of these out and which ones were the most loved and impactful!
