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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House Arrest
by K. A. Holt
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
A baby brother with a birth defect causes twelve-year-old Timothy to commit a crime. Under house arrest he uses a journal to work out his problems.
by K. A. Holt
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
A baby brother with a birth defect causes twelve-year-old Timothy to commit a crime. Under house arrest he uses a journal to work out his problems.
How to Make a Movie in 10 Easy Lessons
by Robert Blofield
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Lights! Camera! Action! Learn about the process of film-making, from script writing to final production. Diagrams and colorful illustrations in graphic format.
by Robert Blofield
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Lights! Camera! Action! Learn about the process of film-making, from script writing to final production. Diagrams and colorful illustrations in graphic format.
Hunter
by Mercedes Lackey
Illustrator: Larry Dixon
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Joy, a skillful Hunter, battles daily with deadly Otherworld creatures. But can she meet the challenges of the political battles in the all-powerful government. Spot decorations.
by Mercedes Lackey
Illustrator: Larry Dixon
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Joy, a skillful Hunter, battles daily with deadly Otherworld creatures. But can she meet the challenges of the political battles in the all-powerful government. Spot decorations.
In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse
by Joseph Marshall III
Illustrator: Jim Yellowhawk
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
On a trek with his grandfather, Jimmy, 11, learns about the great warrior Crazy Horse, who was also teased for not looking like a Lakota.
by Joseph Marshall III
Illustrator: Jim Yellowhawk
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
On a trek with his grandfather, Jimmy, 11, learns about the great warrior Crazy Horse, who was also teased for not looking like a Lakota.
I Will Always Write Back
by Caitlin Alifirenka
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
For a school assignment Caitlin, 12, wrote a “pen-pal” letter to Zimbabwe. Martin received it and a close friendship began that changed the two lives.
by Caitlin Alifirenka
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
For a school assignment Caitlin, 12, wrote a “pen-pal” letter to Zimbabwe. Martin received it and a close friendship began that changed the two lives.
Kiki and Jacques
by Susan Ross
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
In a decaying U. S. mill town originally settled by French Canadians, this story explores the issues aroused when Somali refugees join the community.
by Susan Ross
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
In a decaying U. S. mill town originally settled by French Canadians, this story explores the issues aroused when Somali refugees join the community.
Last of the Sandwalkers
written and illustrated by Jay Hosler
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
An intrepid group of beetles leads a scientific expedition and makes fascinating discoveries that challenge their isolated homeland's world-view. Dynamic drawings.
written and illustrated by Jay Hosler
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
An intrepid group of beetles leads a scientific expedition and makes fascinating discoveries that challenge their isolated homeland's world-view. Dynamic drawings.
Legend: The Graphic Novel
by Marie Lu
Illustrator: Kaari
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Full-color graphic novel adaptation of Lu's “Legend” brings to life the struggle between the Republic and the Patriots and the relationship between Day and June.
by Marie Lu
Illustrator: Kaari
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Full-color graphic novel adaptation of Lu's “Legend” brings to life the struggle between the Republic and the Patriots and the relationship between Day and June.
Like a River
by Kathy Cannon Wiechman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Two teenaged Union soldiers, each hiding a secret, face danger and the horrors of gunfire and imprisonment in this gripping story of loyalty and courage.
by Kathy Cannon Wiechman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Two teenaged Union soldiers, each hiding a secret, face danger and the horrors of gunfire and imprisonment in this gripping story of loyalty and courage.
Listen to the Moon
by Michael Morpurgo
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
On the Scilly Islands, a boy and his father find an injured girl who is unable to speak and has no memory of how she got there. Can they help her?
by Michael Morpurgo
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
On the Scilly Islands, a boy and his father find an injured girl who is unable to speak and has no memory of how she got there. Can they help her?
Masterminds
by Gordon Korman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Serenity, New Mexico--where “special” takes on a new meaning for the thirteen-year-olds who live there. Are the Surety guards keeping them safe or in prison?
by Gordon Korman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Serenity, New Mexico--where “special” takes on a new meaning for the thirteen-year-olds who live there. Are the Surety guards keeping them safe or in prison?
Newt's Emerald
by Garth Nix
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
In the nineteenth century a heroine disguises herself as a boy and experiences romance, magic, and mystery.
by Garth Nix
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
In the nineteenth century a heroine disguises herself as a boy and experiences romance, magic, and mystery.
Nimona
written and illustrated by Noelle Stevenson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Lord Blackheart takes on an unpredictable sidekick in his battle against Sir Goldenloin and an evil political system. Imaginative digital comic panels.
written and illustrated by Noelle Stevenson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Lord Blackheart takes on an unpredictable sidekick in his battle against Sir Goldenloin and an evil political system. Imaginative digital comic panels.
Orbiting Jupiter
by Gary D. Schmidt
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
ARC -- On a rural Maine farm, teenaged father Joseph, 14, joins the family of 12-year-old Jack as a foster child.
by Gary D. Schmidt
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
ARC -- On a rural Maine farm, teenaged father Joseph, 14, joins the family of 12-year-old Jack as a foster child.
Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes
by Rick Riordan
Illustrator: John Rocco
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Capturing flesh-eating horses, fulfilling seemingly impossible tasks, and outwitting the Gods? No problem for Atalanta, Perseus, and other Greek heroes, dude! Dramatic painterly illustrations.
by Rick Riordan
Illustrator: John Rocco
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Capturing flesh-eating horses, fulfilling seemingly impossible tasks, and outwitting the Gods? No problem for Atalanta, Perseus, and other Greek heroes, dude! Dramatic painterly illustrations.
P.S. I Still Love You
by Jenny Han
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Lara Jean's first romance is threatened when a video shows them embracing. Positive family relationships help her.
by Jenny Han
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Lara Jean's first romance is threatened when a video shows them embracing. Positive family relationships help her.
Running Dry
by Stuart A. Kallen
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Is there enough clean water for everyone? What might be causing the world to run dry? Explore the answers. Photographs, index, and bibliography.
by Stuart A. Kallen
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Is there enough clean water for everyone? What might be causing the world to run dry? Explore the answers. Photographs, index, and bibliography.
Sally Ride
by Tam O'Shaughnessy
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
As an introverted teen tennis star, Ride discovered a love of physics, which launched her into the heretofore all-male world of astronauts. Photographs of key people and artifacts.
by Tam O'Shaughnessy
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
As an introverted teen tennis star, Ride discovered a love of physics, which launched her into the heretofore all-male world of astronauts. Photographs of key people and artifacts.
Show and Prove
by Sofia Quintero
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
In the south Bronx in 1983, three teenagers try to make sense of poverty, drugs, race relations, and war in the Middle East.
by Sofia Quintero
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
In the south Bronx in 1983, three teenagers try to make sense of poverty, drugs, race relations, and war in the Middle East.
Six Impossible Things
by Fiona Wood
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Reeling from major family traumas, Dan contends with a new school, a sad mother, and a huge crush on the girl next door.
by Fiona Wood
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Reeling from major family traumas, Dan contends with a new school, a sad mother, and a huge crush on the girl next door.
Six of Crows
by Leigh Ardugo
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Seventeen-year-old Kaz leads his gang of outcasts to a far-off island as they try to capture the scientist producing a drug that could destroy humanity.
by Leigh Ardugo
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Seventeen-year-old Kaz leads his gang of outcasts to a far-off island as they try to capture the scientist producing a drug that could destroy humanity.
Somewhere There Is Still a Sun
by Michael Gruenbaum
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Michael Gruenbaum's life in Czechoslovakia, as remembered and retold, changes radically after the Nazi invasion in 1939. Some documents and a brief bibliography.
by Michael Gruenbaum
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Michael Gruenbaum's life in Czechoslovakia, as remembered and retold, changes radically after the Nazi invasion in 1939. Some documents and a brief bibliography.
Stand-Off
by Andrew Smith
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
A high school senior deals with losing his best friend, rooming with a 12-year-old freshman, and longing for his girlfriend.
by Andrew Smith
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
A high school senior deals with losing his best friend, rooming with a 12-year-old freshman, and longing for his girlfriend.
Switch
by Ingrid Law
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Although their magic has gone awry, the Beaumonts need to rescue Grandma Pat, who suffers from dementia.
by Ingrid Law
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
Although their magic has gone awry, the Beaumonts need to rescue Grandma Pat, who suffers from dementia.
Terrorist
written and illustrated by Henrik Rehr
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
How does a poor student from a tiny village become a terrorist who changes the course of history? Black-and-white drawings set the edgy mood. Afterword. Map.
written and illustrated by Henrik Rehr
Ages: 12+
Published: 2015
How does a poor student from a tiny village become a terrorist who changes the course of history? Black-and-white drawings set the edgy mood. Afterword. Map.