Meet the creator of the graphic novel series InvestiGators, John Patrick Green! This laugh-out-loud sleuth series introduces two gumshoe gators Mango and Brash, the super spy duo who crack cases and catch criminals in the jaws of justice! John shares more about his inspiration for this series, his most memorable teachers and librarians, his favorite childhood books, and more here.
Read a Q&A with John Patrick Green here →
Share these remarkable books from the ALA’s Top 100 Most Challenged Books 2010-2019.
Find ALA’s 10 Most Challenged Books from 2020 here.
Find more ideas to fight censorship at your school or library
on ALA’s Banned Books Week website.
Watch our anti-racist education webinar, featuring authors Dr. Crystal M. Fleming (Rise Up: How You Can Join the Fight Against White Supremacy), Bethany C. Morrow (So Many Beginnings: A Little Women Remix), and Aminah Mae Safi (Travelers Along the Way: A Robin Hood Remix). In this conversation moderated by Julia Torres, a teacher-librarian in Denver Public Schools, the authors discussed how educators and librarians can build a more inclusive collection for their schools and libraries.
Find more resources mentioned during the event below:
More Resources for Continuing Anti-Racist Education:
ILA Children’s Right to Read
NCTE Intellectual Freedom Center
NCTE Committee Against Racism and Bias in the Teaching of English (CARBTE)
American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom
Disrupt Texts
Diversity in Children’s Books Infographic (2018) by Sarah Park Dahlen
More Anti-Racist Book Lists to Build Your Collection
Social Justice Books
We are KidLit Collective
Nonfiction to Pair with So Many Beginnings by Bethany C. Morrow:
Time Full of Trial: The Roanoke Island Freedmen’s Colony, 1862-1867 by Patricia C. Click
Nonfiction to Pair with Travelers Along the Way by Aminah Mae Safi:
The Crusades Through Arab Eyes by Amin Maalouf
Nonfiction to Pair with Rise Up by Crystal M. Fleming:
Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong by James W. Loewen
Check out our list nonfiction and fiction books to add to your anti-racist collections and classroom curriculums. Create more inclusive, representative and equitable collections by incorporating these newly published works and backlist favorites into your school and library collections!
National Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Month is observed from September 15 – October 15. We’re celebrating our Hispanic authors, illustrators, and creators this month (and every month) and sharing Hispanic stories. Keep reading to discover new books and revisit your favorites!
Discover books for National Hispanic and Latinx Heritage month here →
Add the Grishaverse books to your classroom library! With a second season of the hit Shadow and Bone Netflix original series in the works, now’s the perfect time to revisit Leigh Bardugo’s bestselling series and introduce new readers to the Grishaverse!
Want to create a lesson plan for Shadow and Bone? Download our Shadow and Bone teacher’s guide with discussion questions, extended learning activities, and more!
Download the discussion guide for A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix, part of our new Remixed Classics brand! In Remixed Classics, authors from diverse backgrounds take different literary classics from centuries past and reinterpret them through their own unique cultural lens. This collection will serve YA readers as both a series of fun, engaging reads as well as a subversive overall look at what our society has deemed “classic” works that are overwhelmingly cishet, white, and male.
A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix by C.B. Lee
On Sale September 7, 2021
Ages 12 to 18
Two intrepid girls hunt for a legendary treasure on the deadly high seas in this YA remix of the classic adventure novel Treasure Island.
1826. The sun is setting on the golden age of piracy, and the legendary Dragon Fleet, the scourge of the South China Sea, is no more. Its ruthless leader, a woman known only as the Head of the Dragon, is now only a story, like the ones Xiang has grown up with all her life. She desperately wants to prove her worth, especially to her mother, a shrewd businesswoman who never seems to have enough time for Xiang. Her father is also only a story, dead at sea before Xiang was born. Her single memento of him is a pendant she always wears, a simple but plain piece of gold jewelry.
But the pendant’s true nature is revealed when a mysterious girl named Anh steals it, only to return it to Xiang in exchange for her help in decoding the tiny map scroll hidden inside. The revelation that Xiang’s father sailed with the Dragon Fleet and tucked away this secret changes everything. Rumor has it that the legendary Head of the Dragon had one last treasure the plunder of a thousand ports that for decades has only been a myth, a fool’s journey.
Xiang is convinced this map could lead to the fabled treasure. Captivated with the thrill of adventure, she joins Anh and her motley crew off in pursuit of the island. But the girls soon find that the sea—and especially those who sail it are far more dangerous than the legends led them to believe.
Praise for A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix:
“Vividly realized and brimming with romantic adventure. Rooted in the legend of Chinese pirate queen Ching Shih, C.B. Lee’s A Clash of Steel is richly imagined and thrilling to the end.”
Malinda Lo, bestselling author of Last Night at the Telegraph Club
“Lavishly drawn and studded with jewels from the original, C.B. Lee has written a remix that delves deep into questions of family, love, and treasure. This is a book I wish I’d had as a young, queer teen and it deserves a spot in any collection.”
Natalie C. Parker, author of the Seafire trilogy
“A Clash of Steel is an action-packed tale of fierce friendship and queer found family, with a playful sapphic romance that will make your heart flutter! C.B. Lee immerses you in the world of the Qing dynasty with vivid and authentic detail you will feel the danger of the waves and yearn for the tastes and smells of the markets.”
Julia Ember, author of Ruinsong
Need back-to-school icebreakers or storytime ideas? Download this activity kit to be used alongside School’s First Day of School! “A perfect first day read-aloud,” says School Library Journal!
School’s First Day of School story by Adam Rex; pictures by Christian Robinson
It’s the first day of school at Frederick Douglass Elementary and everyone’s just a little bit nervous, especially the school itself. What will the children do once they come? Will they like the school? Will they be nice to him?
The school has a rough start, but as the day goes on, he soon recovers when he sees that he’s not the only one going through first-day jitters.
Adam Rex has written several books for young readers, including the New York Times bestselling Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich and The True Meaning of Smekday. His first day of school was at Lookout Mountain Elementary in Phoenix. He lives now with his wife and son in Tucson.
Christian Robinson‘s award-winning books for young readers include Josephine, which was a Coretta Scott King Honor Book as well as a Sibert Honor Book and Harlem’s Little Blackbird, which was an NAACP Image Award nominee. His latest book Last Stop on Market Street earned four starred reviews and was on the New York Times bestseller list. This is his first book for Roaring Brook Press.
A New York Times Bestseller
Boston Globe Best Books of the Year
Goodreads Choice Awards
Washington Post Best Books of the Year
Publishers Weekly Best Books of the Year
Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year
★ SEVEN STARRED REVIEWS! ★
★ “An essential purchase that is simultaneously funny, frank, and soothing. A perfect first day read-aloud.”—School Library Journal
★ “Sure to become a staple for first days of school everywhere.”—Horn Book
★ “This charming reversal of first-day-of-school nerves will delight little ones and help put their own anxieties at bay.”—Booklist
★ “A delightful, perspective-tweaking back-to-school picture book.”—Shelf Awareness
★ “Deftly juggles well-placed jokes and keen insights into feeling comfortable in one’s own skin—or bricks, as the case may be.”—Publishers Weekly
★ “Using his signature, simple style, Robinson alternates scenes of the building and its interiors with shots that show the boisterously diverse kids’ first day. A unique point of view makes this school book stand out.”—Kirkus Reviews
★ “A new and promising approach for school-shy youngsters, and it’ll make the already school-positive want to give their beloved building a hug.”—Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Join us and our authors at these upcoming virtual events, including book buzzes, webinars, conferences, and more! Check back for updates, as more upcoming events will be added soon. Plus, ICYMI: watch archived videos from our past events here!
Watch archived videos from past events →From 9/1/21 through 9/30/21, select Macmillan Children’s titles are discounted 25% off (with our regular lending terms). Available from your public library vendor of choice!
Adrianna Cuevas is the author 2021 Pura Belpré Honor Book The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez. Her new book Cuba in My Pocket tells the story of a twelve-year-old boy who leaves his family in Cuba to immigrate to the U.S. by himself, based on the author’s family history.
Adrianna shares more about her inspiration for the story and her advice for young writers here!
Read our Q&A with Adrianna Cuevas here →
