The Gigantic List of Diverse Books Published December 2022 (+ Free Printable)
Updated: Jan 28
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The holiday season is here and along with it comes a ton of diverse children's books to help bring the year to a close. There are books that represent a variety of communities and cultures. Stacey Abrams is back with follow up to Stacey's Extraordinary Words. Her new book, Stacey's Remarkable Books, is an inspiring tale about the life changing power of books. Fans of the wildly popular Happy Hair book series by Mechal Renee Roe will be excited to check out her new book, Smart Sisters. This new picture book celebrates the bond between confident and empowered sisters and best friends.
Related Reading: Gigantic List of Diverse Books Published September 2022
This resource list is a labor of love that includes publisher's descriptions along with links for more information. This list doesn't include all of the books publishing November 2022. These are the books on our radar that were submitted by publishers, authors, and the Helping Kids Rise community. If you notice a book that fits our mission that is not featured here, please send us an email to let us know. We'll be happy to update this list to include them.
Be on the lookout for our most notable books published in 2022 book list coming soon.
Books Published December 6, 2022
Updated as we receive submissions
In a rhythmic celebration of sport and play, four-time Grand Slam champion and tennis superstar Naomi Osaka shares key steps to becoming a true champ, including being kind, working as a team, doing your best, and most importantly, having fun.
At Play Academy,
We love to move.
That's why we play.
We are champs and we play all day!
Inspired by Osaka's game-changing program Play Academy, which instills confidence in and provides resources to young girls through sports, The Way Champs Play is an exciting and inspiring anthem for all kids in and out of the classroom who want to PLAY ALL DAY!
Use this book to:
Discuss different types of sports. Talk with children about good sports(wo)manship. Encourage kids to engage in sport and play for their overall health and happiness.
And more!
This Little Golden Book features beautiful illustrations and rhyming text about colors, plus a social justice theme that encourages Black children to celebrate themselves.
Beautiful colors--look up and look down.
Beautiful babies in all shades of brown.
This delightful concept book doesn't just teach colors--it does so with a focus on brown as a celebration and a validation of Black children. As beautiful Black babies play together in a park, they discover yellow flowers, red berries, green grass, and more. This Little Golden Book offers a way for families with very young children to begin addressing themes of diversity and equality.
This empowering board book inspires young readers to use their own special voice to make a difference in the world.
If you want to make a difference,
but you don't know where to start
Begin by searching way deep down
to find what's in your heart
Whether your voice shines through singing, drawing, or dancing--whether it's soft or loud, kind or proud--everyone has a voice that can effect change. This empowering and heartfelt message is conveyed through beautiful, lyrical rhyme that will encourage even the youngest readers to think about what's important to them.
This first book in the Brown Baby Parade series celebrates Black and brown babies and delivers a universal message of love, letting all babies know that they are cherished from head to toe.
Love is in the bathroom when Daddy combs my hair.
He picks out my Afro and clips in bows with care.
Love is in the kitchen. We all sit down to eat--
waffles, milk, and sausage, and yummy syrup sweet.
A little girl observes the ways that love is shown and shared throughout her day. From Sister's kisses when she wakes to eating breakfast with her family and playing with friends at school, love is all around.
Nikki Shannon Smith's soothing, rhythmic text and Ronique Ellis's warm, welcoming illustrations pair beautifully to create heartwarming scenes of everyday life. It's never too early to show little ones that they are valued and cherished, and this book does just that.
Harriet Tubman by Janay Brown- Wood, Illustrated by Robert Paul Jr.
Inspire and educate your little one with a Little Golden Book biography about Harriet Tubman! It's the perfect introduction to nonfiction for preschoolers.
This Little Golden Book about Harriet Tubman--a true hero who helped to free enslaved Black people as a conductor on the Underground Railroad--is an inspiring read-aloud for young children.
Books Published December 13, 2022
Updated as we receive submissions
The companion to the #1 New York Times bestseller and NAACP Image Award winner Stacey's Extraordinary Words, from political leader Stacey Abrams and artist Kitt Thomas.
Stacey's favorite day of the week is Thursday, when the whole class goes to the library and she gets to lose herself in her beloved books.
On one of these special days, Stacey discovers that a new student named Julie has trouble reading in English, so they begin sharing books and stories to practice. Soon, more students start to join them.
Books take the group on magical adventures and reveal other worlds and cultures--but best of all, they bring them together as friends.
This is another inspiring tale, based on a true story from Stacey Abrams's childhood, about the life-changing power of books.
Natasha Anastasia Tarpley returns with a breakout new picture book series all about Keyana, the protagonist of her bestselling title I Love My Hair!, and the people and places she adores.
Keyana's always full of big ideas. Her latest and greatest plan is to host a perfect family movie night. From aunts to uncles to her five favorite cousins, everyone is invited! She knows the best way to impress her guests is with a fabulous soiree, and there's a lot on her to-do list. But when the night doesn't go as planned, she'll have to rely on a little help from the people she loves most.
With warm illustrations by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow, this character-centric new picture book series from Natasha Anastasia Tarpley will give Keyana a fresh, commercial update that's perfect for today's young readers.
The New York Times bestselling team behind Parker Looks Up returns with this Level 1 Ready-to-Read about the joy of growing a garden.
Parker is growing her own backyard garden! She plants tulips with Nana and herbs and vegetables with Mom Mom. After patiently waiting all winter long, Parker sees her garden bloom! This story celebrates Parker's relationships with her two grandmothers and the joy of nurturing plants in the garden, and the backmatter features Parker's love of taking nature walks in her neighborhood.
Books Published December 27, 2022
Updated as we receive submissions
Confident, empowered sisters and best friends are celebrated in this read-together picture book celebrating sisterly love and joy. From the author of the Happy Hair series, which promotes self-love, positivity, and acceptance.
Perfect together! Always and forever! My sister and me!
Beautiful Black and Brown girls with gorgeous natural hairstyles are the stars of this vibrant, rhythmic picture book. With encouraging words of unity and support on each page, it's a great read-aloud to promote confidence and self-esteem among girls of all ages.
Look for all the books in the Happy Hair series:
- Happy Hair
- Cool Cuts
- I'm Growing Great
- I Love Being Me! (Step Into Reading)
- I Am Born to Be Awesome! (Step Into Reading)
A beginner's exploration of love, relationships, and families - the latest in the FIRST CONVERSATIONS board book series, which offers adults the opportunity to begin important conversations with young children in an informed, safe, and supported way.
Developed by experts in the fields of early childhood and activism against injustice, this topic-driven board book offers clear, concrete language and beautiful imagery that young children can grasp and adults can leverage for further discussion.
While young children are avid observers and questioners of their world, adults often shut down or postpone conversations on complicated topics because it's hard to know where to begin. Research shows that talking about issues like love, relationships, and families from the age of two not only helps children understand what they see, but also increases self-awareness, self-esteem, and allows them to recognize and confront things that are unfair, like discrimination and prejudice.
This fourth book in the series begins the conversation on love with a supportive approach that considers both the child and the adult. Stunning art accompanies the simple and interactive text, and the backmatter offers additional resources and ideas for extending this discussion.
Get ready to swing with A Child's Introduction to Jazz, an interactive journey into one of the richest and most soulful music genres in the world. Listen while you learn with QR codes that will connect you to the instruments and musical flair of jazz.
Welcome to jazz! Feel the music and rhythms of all the different styles of jazz, from swing and Dixieland to the blues and bebop, with this interactive introduction to the world's coolest music.
Author Jabari Asim will take you on the journey through the history of jazz as you discover the most important musicians and singers while hearing some really cool sounds. You'll learn all about the roots of jazz in Africa and New Orleans and how the music traveled to different parts of the United States and around the world. Along the way you'll meet legendary trumpeter Louis Armstrong, who shaped a new form of jazz called improvisation; pianist and bandleader Duke Ellington, who helped create the big band sound of the swing era; and the singer Billie Holiday, whose songs such as "God Bless the Child," "Don't Explain," and "Lady Sings the Blues" have become jazz standards.
Listen along to the sounds of jazz by downloading music and hearing instruments such as trumpets, clarinets, trombones, and even singers scatting as they improvise melodies. With a pull-out poster showing the different instruments of jazz, A Child's Introduction to Jazz hits the perfect beat and will have you bebopping and scatting in no time!
Award-winning author-illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh sheds light on the significance of Aztec manuscripts and culture
Our world, little brother, is an amoxtlalpan, a land of books.
In the jungles where the jaguar dwells, the Mayas make books.
In the mountains the cloud people, the Mixtecs, make them as well. So do others in the coast and in the forests.
And we the Mexica of the mighty Aztec empire, who dwell in the valley of the volcanoes, make them too.
A young Aztec girl tells her little brother how their parents create beautiful painted manuscripts, or codices. She explains to him how paper is made from local plants and how the long paper is folded into a book. Her parents and others paint the codices to tell the story of their people's way of life, documenting their history, science, tributes, and sacred rituals.
Duncan Tonatiuh's lyrical prose and beloved illustration style, inspired by the pre-Columbian codices, tell the story of how--contrary to the historical narrative that European colonizers bestowed "civilization" and knowledge to the Americas--the Aztec and their neighbors in the Valley of Mexico painted books and records long before Columbus arrived, and continued doing so among their Nahua-speaking descendants for generations after the Spanish Conquest. From an award-winning author-illustrator, A Land of Books pays tribute to Mesoamerican ingenuity and celebrates the universal power of books.
From the award-winning author of the Jada Jones chapter books comes an illustrated spinoff series perfect for STEM fans!
Valentine's Day is approaching, and Miles Lewis doesn't really like all the mush that comes with it. He is excited about the candy experiments they're doing in science class, though. And when his teacher asks for adult volunteers to help out, Miles and his friend Jada share that they're both planning on inviting their grandparents. That's when they realize that Miles's Nana and Jada's Pop Pop have a lot in common--could they be a perfect match?
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Not only is this Book Bingo tons of fun, it's also full of great prompts to help little readers diversify their reading. Reading diverse children's books can introduce children to worlds outside of their own and can also foster a spirit of empathy, kindness, and acceptance. Get your free download by clicking the button below:
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