Welcome to the Bank Street Children's Book Committee's (CBC) Searchable Best Books List, a tool designed to help educators, families, librarians, and others access developmentally appropriate and engaging books for young readers (ages birth - 18).
Our online Searchable Best Books List draws from the committee's annual Best Children's Books of the Year-beginning with the list of books published in 2000-with each featuring more than 600 high-quality titles for young readers.
To share feedback about the tool, please feel free to email bookcom@bankstreet.edu. To learn more about the CBC, visit https://www.bankstreet.edu/cbc/.
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Across So Many Seas
Ruth Behar
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Beginning in 1492, four 12-year-old Sephardic Jewish girls in different times and places leave their homelands, carrying their traditions with them, with great courage. Author's note. Sources.
Ruth Behar
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Beginning in 1492, four 12-year-old Sephardic Jewish girls in different times and places leave their homelands, carrying their traditions with them, with great courage. Author's note. Sources.
Adventures of Mary Jane
Hope Jahren
Illustrator: map by Virginia Norey
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Follow the perilous 1850s journey of Huckleberry Finn's friend, the undaunted 14-year-old Mary Jane, southward on the Mississippi River from Minnesota to Mississippi. Rich period details. Map. Greyscale spot art. Extensive back matter.
Hope Jahren
Illustrator: map by Virginia Norey
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Follow the perilous 1850s journey of Huckleberry Finn's friend, the undaunted 14-year-old Mary Jane, southward on the Mississippi River from Minnesota to Mississippi. Rich period details. Map. Greyscale spot art. Extensive back matter.
And Then, Boom!
Lisa Fipps
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
With the help of his friends and his rescue dogs, 11-year-old Joe tries to fend for himself after his grandmother dies and his mom leaves. Free verse.
Lisa Fipps
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
With the help of his friends and his rescue dogs, 11-year-old Joe tries to fend for himself after his grandmother dies and his mom leaves. Free verse.
Answers to Dog
Pete Hautman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
When 12-year-old Evan goes running, a border collie starts following him, and the two begin to bond. But his mother is adamant that he cannot have a dog.
Pete Hautman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
When 12-year-old Evan goes running, a border collie starts following him, and the two begin to bond. But his mother is adamant that he cannot have a dog.
Astrochimps, The: America's First Astronauts
Dawn Cusick
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Understanding how chimpanzees reacted to space travel lay the groundwork for sending human astronauts on NASA missions. Spaceflight glossary and detailed resources.
Dawn Cusick
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Understanding how chimpanzees reacted to space travel lay the groundwork for sending human astronauts on NASA missions. Spaceflight glossary and detailed resources.
Averil Offline
Amy Noelle Parks
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Gifted 12-year-old computer whiz Averil struggles with over-protective helicopter parents and the intrusive, new technology—Ruby Slippers— which tracks and reports every aspect of her life.
Amy Noelle Parks
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Gifted 12-year-old computer whiz Averil struggles with over-protective helicopter parents and the intrusive, new technology—Ruby Slippers— which tracks and reports every aspect of her life.
Ballerina of Auschwitz, The
Dr. Edith Eva Eger, with Esmé Schwall, edited by Jordan Engle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
With grit and humanity, Edie, an accomplished gymnast-dancer, and her sister Magda survive the horrors of Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Young readers edition of The Choice. Mature content
Dr. Edith Eva Eger, with Esmé Schwall, edited by Jordan Engle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
With grit and humanity, Edie, an accomplished gymnast-dancer, and her sister Magda survive the horrors of Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Young readers edition of The Choice. Mature content
Bard and the Book, The: How the First Folio Saved the Plays of William Shakespeare from Oblivion
Ann Bausum
Illustrator: Marta Sevilla
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Explore the complicated and eventful history surrounding the survival of Shakespeare's plays in the First Folio collection. Folk-art-style illustrations. Rich back matter.
Ann Bausum
Illustrator: Marta Sevilla
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Explore the complicated and eventful history surrounding the survival of Shakespeare's plays in the First Folio collection. Folk-art-style illustrations. Rich back matter.
Beastly Beauty
Jennifer Donnelly
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
In this retelling of Beauty and the Beast, an imprisoned noblewoman and a handsome thief break a century-old curse once the maiden learns to love herself.
Jennifer Donnelly
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
In this retelling of Beauty and the Beast, an imprisoned noblewoman and a handsome thief break a century-old curse once the maiden learns to love herself.
Between Two Brothers
Crystal Allen
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
When his beloved older brother suffers a brain injury in a car accident, Isaiah (Ice), a Black boy, defies dire predictions and devises ways to help him recover. Back matter.
Crystal Allen
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
When his beloved older brother suffers a brain injury in a car accident, Isaiah (Ice), a Black boy, defies dire predictions and devises ways to help him recover. Back matter.
Bird Nerd
Jennifer Ann Richter
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Nyla, a Black girl, must win a fifth grade birding competition with a suburban school and alienates her best friend in her struggle for acceptance. Multiple descriptions of birds and their calls and songs.
Jennifer Ann Richter
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Nyla, a Black girl, must win a fifth grade birding competition with a suburban school and alienates her best friend in her struggle for acceptance. Multiple descriptions of birds and their calls and songs.
Bite by Bite: American History Through Feasts, Foods, and Side Dishes
Marc Aronson and Paul Freedman. with contributions from Dr. Frederick Douglass Opie, Amanda Palacios, Tatum Willis, David Zheng
Illustrator: Toni D. Chambers
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Starting with prehistory, the authors show that "American" food is multicultural, with many traditions that started long before any Europeans arrived. Black-and-white illustrations. Back matter. Sources.
Marc Aronson and Paul Freedman. with contributions from Dr. Frederick Douglass Opie, Amanda Palacios, Tatum Willis, David Zheng
Illustrator: Toni D. Chambers
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Starting with prehistory, the authors show that "American" food is multicultural, with many traditions that started long before any Europeans arrived. Black-and-white illustrations. Back matter. Sources.
Black Girl You Are Atlas
Renée Watson
Illustrator: Ekua Holmes
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Written in various poetic forms, this semi-autobiographical collection celebrates Black girlhood and Black sisterhood, and encourages young people to embrace their future boldly. Vibrant, mixed-media illustrations.
Renée Watson
Illustrator: Ekua Holmes
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Written in various poetic forms, this semi-autobiographical collection celebrates Black girlhood and Black sisterhood, and encourages young people to embrace their future boldly. Vibrant, mixed-media illustrations.
Black Star (The Door of No Return series)
Kwame Alexander
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
In the American South in the 1920s, Charley's summer revolves around her Black family, church, and playing baseball. An encounter with white teenagers changes everything. In verse. Sequel to The Door of No Return. Mature content
Kwame Alexander
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
In the American South in the 1920s, Charley's summer revolves around her Black family, church, and playing baseball. An encounter with white teenagers changes everything. In verse. Sequel to The Door of No Return. Mature content
Bletchley Riddle, The
Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
During World War II, Lizzie's American grandmother insists that she leave England before the Germans attack. But Lizzie needs to find out what secrets her brother is hiding, and why their mother might be missing.
Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
During World War II, Lizzie's American grandmother insists that she leave England before the Germans attack. But Lizzie needs to find out what secrets her brother is hiding, and why their mother might be missing.
Book of Denial, The
Ricardo Chávez Castañeda
Illustrator: Alejandro Magallanes
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
A boy grapples with his father's harrowing literary project on the killing of children throughout history. Bold graphic illustrations on each page explore the devastating themes. Mature content
Ricardo Chávez Castañeda
Illustrator: Alejandro Magallanes
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
A boy grapples with his father's harrowing literary project on the killing of children throughout history. Bold graphic illustrations on each page explore the devastating themes. Mature content
Born a Girl: It Takes Courage
Alice Dussutour
Illustrator: Alice Dussutour
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Five girls from around the world fight gender-related issues. Each chapter is followed by additional information about the problem addressed in it. Vibrant illustrations. Back matter. Resources. Mature content
Alice Dussutour
Illustrator: Alice Dussutour
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Five girls from around the world fight gender-related issues. Each chapter is followed by additional information about the problem addressed in it. Vibrant illustrations. Back matter. Resources. Mature content
Breaking into Sunlight
John Cochran
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Thirteen year old Reese is torn between following what his mother expects of him and searching for ways to help his drug addicted father.
John Cochran
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Thirteen year old Reese is torn between following what his mother expects of him and searching for ways to help his drug addicted father.
Buffalo Dreamer
Violet Duncan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Summer's idyllic vacations on the reservation include picking sweetgrass, dancing at powwows, and riding horseback. But this summer she also learns about her grandfather's painful past in a residential school. Black-and-white and greyscale spot art.
Violet Duncan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Summer's idyllic vacations on the reservation include picking sweetgrass, dancing at powwows, and riding horseback. But this summer she also learns about her grandfather's painful past in a residential school. Black-and-white and greyscale spot art.
Call Me Al
Wali Shah and Eric Walters
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Ali's parents have high expectations about his academic achievements and future career, but when he experiences anti-Muslim behavior, it's writing that helps him sort through his emotions.
Wali Shah and Eric Walters
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Ali's parents have high expectations about his academic achievements and future career, but when he experiences anti-Muslim behavior, it's writing that helps him sort through his emotions.
Chronically Dolores
Maya Van Wagenen
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Dealing with severe symptoms of her chronic disease, Dolores meets a fellow outsider, Terpsichore, who is on the autism spectrum. Can their growing friendship help them heal and adjust to high school?
Maya Van Wagenen
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Dealing with severe symptoms of her chronic disease, Dolores meets a fellow outsider, Terpsichore, who is on the autism spectrum. Can their growing friendship help them heal and adjust to high school?
Clutch Time (Shot Clock series)
Caron Butler and Justin A. Reynolds
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
As Kofi, a star Black basketball player, spends his summer reuniting with his old team, his father returns from prison. Can they rebuild their relationship?
Caron Butler and Justin A. Reynolds
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
As Kofi, a star Black basketball player, spends his summer reuniting with his old team, his father returns from prison. Can they rebuild their relationship?
Code Name Kingfisher
Liz Kessler
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Liv's bubbe has never talked about her past, but when Liv is assigned a family history school project, she learns about her grandmother's extraordinary life in Holland during World War II.
Liz Kessler
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Liv's bubbe has never talked about her past, but when Liv is assigned a family history school project, she learns about her grandmother's extraordinary life in Holland during World War II.
Deer Run Home
Ann Clare LeZotte
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Abused and neglected, a Deaf girl does her best to survive with only the sporadic help of her sister. Told in spare but intense free verse. Author's note.
Ann Clare LeZotte
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Abused and neglected, a Deaf girl does her best to survive with only the sporadic help of her sister. Told in spare but intense free verse. Author's note.
Dinner at the Brake Fast
Renee Beauregard Lute
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Tacoma's efforts to retrieve her depressed father's prized memento, stolen from the wall of her family truck-stop diner, lead to unusual adventures with two new friends.
Renee Beauregard Lute
Ages: 12+
Published: 2024
Tacoma's efforts to retrieve her depressed father's prized memento, stolen from the wall of her family truck-stop diner, lead to unusual adventures with two new friends.