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/.
How to Perform a Search and Save a List
Search
Advanced Search
Egg & Spoon
by Gregory Maguire
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Two Russian girls--one poor and one rich--accidentally change places in an adventure involving the Tzar, Baba Yaga, the Firebird, and climate change.
by Gregory Maguire
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Two Russian girls--one poor and one rich--accidentally change places in an adventure involving the Tzar, Baba Yaga, the Firebird, and climate change.
Every Body's Talking
by Dinna M. Jackson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
How we look, act, and move when we say something reveals a lot about us--and others, as we learn to read and use body language. Lively illustrations.
by Dinna M. Jackson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
How we look, act, and move when we say something reveals a lot about us--and others, as we learn to read and use body language. Lively illustrations.
Five, Six, Seven, Nate!
by Tim Federle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Auditions behind him, middle-schooler Nate starts rehearsals as Alien #7 for the Broadway production of E.T., enduring intimidating child stars and demanding directors.
by Tim Federle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Auditions behind him, middle-schooler Nate starts rehearsals as Alien #7 for the Broadway production of E.T., enduring intimidating child stars and demanding directors.
Flying with a Broken Wing
by Laura Best
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Living with her bootlegging aunt, visually impaired Cammie struggles for a new life. News of a school in Halifax and a new friend offer possible help.
by Laura Best
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Living with her bootlegging aunt, visually impaired Cammie struggles for a new life. News of a school in Halifax and a new friend offer possible help.
Freedom Summer
by Susan Goldman Rubin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Civil Rights groups recruit volunteers to do dangerous work registering African Americans to vote, and three are murdered. Illustrated with photographs.
by Susan Goldman Rubin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Civil Rights groups recruit volunteers to do dangerous work registering African Americans to vote, and three are murdered. Illustrated with photographs.
Frida & Diego
by Catherine Reef
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, two of Mexico's greatest artists, loved one another but had a complicated relationship. Illustrated with photographs and reproductions of their work.
by Catherine Reef
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, two of Mexico's greatest artists, loved one another but had a complicated relationship. Illustrated with photographs and reproductions of their work.
Gaijin
written and illustrated by Matt Faulkner
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Cinematic illustrations reveal a half-Japanese boy's struggles with discrimination in an internment camp following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Notes and sources.
written and illustrated by Matt Faulkner
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Cinematic illustrations reveal a half-Japanese boy's struggles with discrimination in an internment camp following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Notes and sources.
Greenglass House
by Kate Milford
Illustrator: Jaime Zollars
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Milo's parents are the proprietors of Greenglass House, an inn frequented by smugglers. Milo reluctantly teams up with Meddy to solve the mysteries that lie within its walls. Black-and-white illustrations.
by Kate Milford
Illustrator: Jaime Zollars
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Milo's parents are the proprietors of Greenglass House, an inn frequented by smugglers. Milo reluctantly teams up with Meddy to solve the mysteries that lie within its walls. Black-and-white illustrations.
Harlem Hellfighters
by J. Patrick Lewis
Illustrator: Gary Kelley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Poetic text and distinctive illustrations showcase both the bravery and jazz musicianship of an African American regiment during World War I. Bibliography and artist's notes.
by J. Patrick Lewis
Illustrator: Gary Kelley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Poetic text and distinctive illustrations showcase both the bravery and jazz musicianship of an African American regiment during World War I. Bibliography and artist's notes.
Hidden Like Anne Frank
by Marcel Prins
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
During World War II in the Netherlands, many Jewish children were hidden with strangers. First-person descriptions capture the fears, hardships, and emotional turmoil. Glossary, notes, maps.
by Marcel Prins
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
During World War II in the Netherlands, many Jewish children were hidden with strangers. First-person descriptions capture the fears, hardships, and emotional turmoil. Glossary, notes, maps.
Hook's Revenge
by Heidi Schulz
Illustrator: John Hendrix
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Captain of her own pirate ship, the teen-age daughter of Captain Hook, returns to Neverland to avenge her father's death and confront the fearsome crocodile. Black-and-white spot art.
by Heidi Schulz
Illustrator: John Hendrix
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Captain of her own pirate ship, the teen-age daughter of Captain Hook, returns to Neverland to avenge her father's death and confront the fearsome crocodile. Black-and-white spot art.
How I Discovered Poetry
by Marilyn Nelson
Illustrator: Hadley Hooper
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In fifty sonnets the author recalls the events in her 1950s childhood that led her to discover her love for poetry. Sketches and family photographs.
by Marilyn Nelson
Illustrator: Hadley Hooper
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In fifty sonnets the author recalls the events in her 1950s childhood that led her to discover her love for poetry. Sketches and family photographs.
Ida M. Tarbell
by Emily Arnold McCully
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Appalled by increasing disparities in wealth, investigative reporter Ida Tarbell succeeded in exposing the ruthless practices behind John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company, ushering in the era of muckraking journalism and progressive reform.
by Emily Arnold McCully
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Appalled by increasing disparities in wealth, investigative reporter Ida Tarbell succeeded in exposing the ruthless practices behind John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company, ushering in the era of muckraking journalism and progressive reform.
Jasmine and Maddie
by Christine Pakkala
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Jasmine has lost her father and her home. Maddie seems to have everything. Despite the tension between them, can they become friends?
by Christine Pakkala
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Jasmine has lost her father and her home. Maddie seems to have everything. Despite the tension between them, can they become friends?
Kinda Like Brothers
by Coe Booth
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Jarrett's life is jarred when a new baby, and her older brother, show up as foster children to his mother.
by Coe Booth
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Jarrett's life is jarred when a new baby, and her older brother, show up as foster children to his mother.
Lasso the Wind
by George Elliott Clarke
Illustrator: Susan Tooke
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Bold mixed-media illustrations complement the rich language of poems on subjects as diverse as picnicking dragons and the rigors of poverty.
by George Elliott Clarke
Illustrator: Susan Tooke
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Bold mixed-media illustrations complement the rich language of poems on subjects as diverse as picnicking dragons and the rigors of poverty.
Leaving China
written and illustrated by James McMullan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In vignettes, an illustrator of children's books and theater posters recounts his coming-of-age in Shanghai, Canada, and India. Beautiful watercolor illustrations.
written and illustrated by James McMullan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In vignettes, an illustrator of children's books and theater posters recounts his coming-of-age in Shanghai, Canada, and India. Beautiful watercolor illustrations.
Like No Other
by Una LaMarche
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
ARC A sixteen-year-old Hasidic girl examines her life in her Orthodox family and community after meeting and becoming romantically involved with a West Indian neighbor.
by Una LaMarche
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
ARC A sixteen-year-old Hasidic girl examines her life in her Orthodox family and community after meeting and becoming romantically involved with a West Indian neighbor.
Maybe One Day
by Melissa Kantor
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
When she is cut from her ballet program, Zoe thinks it is the worst thing that could happen. Then her best friend is diagnosed with cancer.
by Melissa Kantor
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
When she is cut from her ballet program, Zoe thinks it is the worst thing that could happen. Then her best friend is diagnosed with cancer.
Mending Horses
by M. P. Barker
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In 1839, freed from indentured servitude only to be falsely accused of theft and murder, sixteen-year-old Danny is almost lynched by a small town Connecticut mob.
by M. P. Barker
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In 1839, freed from indentured servitude only to be falsely accused of theft and murder, sixteen-year-old Danny is almost lynched by a small town Connecticut mob.
Moon at Nine
by Deborah Ellis
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In Tehran, teenage girls Farrin and Sadina become best friends, then fall in love. If they are caught disaster will surely follow.
by Deborah Ellis
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In Tehran, teenage girls Farrin and Sadina become best friends, then fall in love. If they are caught disaster will surely follow.
My Brother's Shadow
by Tom Avery
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
When a mysterious feral boy enters her life, eleven-year-old Kaia begins to come to terms with her beloved brother's devastating suicide.
by Tom Avery
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
When a mysterious feral boy enters her life, eleven-year-old Kaia begins to come to terms with her beloved brother's devastating suicide.
Nine Open Arms
by Benny Lindelauf
Illustrator: Dasha Tolstikova
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Life in an abandoned house at the edge of the world is equal parts puzzle, tragic romance, family history, and coming of age. Translator's note, glossary, character list, map, spot art for section openers.
by Benny Lindelauf
Illustrator: Dasha Tolstikova
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
Life in an abandoned house at the edge of the world is equal parts puzzle, tragic romance, family history, and coming of age. Translator's note, glossary, character list, map, spot art for section openers.
Noggin
by John Corey Whaley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
When sixteen-year-old Travis Coates wakes up after five years, his head has been attached to a new, disease-free body. His problems are just beginning.
by John Corey Whaley
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
When sixteen-year-old Travis Coates wakes up after five years, his head has been attached to a new, disease-free body. His problems are just beginning.
On a Clear Day
by Walter Dean Myers
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In a dystopian world, sixteen-year-old Dahlia joins a group in which members contribute to the fight against powerful organizations which control the world's resources.
by Walter Dean Myers
Ages: 12+
Published: 2014
In a dystopian world, sixteen-year-old Dahlia joins a group in which members contribute to the fight against powerful organizations which control the world's resources.