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
Templar
by Jordan Mechner
Illustrator: LeUyen Pham
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
A few knights escape the persecution and massacre of the Templars by the King of France in 1307, and search for their legendary treasure.
by Jordan Mechner
Illustrator: LeUyen Pham
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
A few knights escape the persecution and massacre of the Templars by the King of France in 1307, and search for their legendary treasure.
The Archived
by Victoria Schwab
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Too many dead, called Histories, are waking up in the archive where they're kept. Sixteen-year-old Mackenzie must prevent them from escaping into the world.
by Victoria Schwab
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Too many dead, called Histories, are waking up in the archive where they're kept. Sixteen-year-old Mackenzie must prevent them from escaping into the world.
The Beginning of Everything
by Robyn Schneider
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
An accident ends sports for Ezra, a popular senior and tennis star. Will he be saved by his new friendship with Cassidy?
by Robyn Schneider
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
An accident ends sports for Ezra, a popular senior and tennis star. Will he be saved by his new friendship with Cassidy?
The Color of Silence
by Liane Shaw
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
An emotionally shattered teen-ager becomes an aide in a hospital where she meets a handicapped patient unable to communicate. Will they find a way to help one another?
by Liane Shaw
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
An emotionally shattered teen-ager becomes an aide in a hospital where she meets a handicapped patient unable to communicate. Will they find a way to help one another?
The Fire Horse Girl
by Kay Honeyman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In 1923, seventeen-year-old Jade Moon and her father leave China for America. Detained on Angel Island (near San Francisco), she must devise a way to get to the mainland.
by Kay Honeyman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In 1923, seventeen-year-old Jade Moon and her father leave China for America. Detained on Angel Island (near San Francisco), she must devise a way to get to the mainland.
The Lightning Dreamer
by Margarita Engle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
A fictionalized history of Cuba's great abolitionist and feminist poet, Gomez de Avellaneda, a.k.a. Tula, told in simple, powerful verse.
by Margarita Engle
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
A fictionalized history of Cuba's great abolitionist and feminist poet, Gomez de Avellaneda, a.k.a. Tula, told in simple, powerful verse.
The Living
by Matt De La Peña
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
A Mexican American worker on a luxury cruise liner shares his observations about class, new vistas, and romance as he gains a larger view of the world following a disaster.
by Matt De La Peña
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
A Mexican American worker on a luxury cruise liner shares his observations about class, new vistas, and romance as he gains a larger view of the world following a disaster.
The Lost Kingdom
by Matthew J. Kirby
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Billy Bartram joins his botanist father John in an expedition in a giant airship to search for the Welsh prince Medoc in the colonial wilderness.
by Matthew J. Kirby
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Billy Bartram joins his botanist father John in an expedition in a giant airship to search for the Welsh prince Medoc in the colonial wilderness.
The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo & Juliet
by William Shakespeare
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The bard's tragedy, set in Venice in the 1600s, is made visual with graphic illustrations that effectively show gestures and expressions.
by William Shakespeare
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The bard's tragedy, set in Venice in the 1600s, is made visual with graphic illustrations that effectively show gestures and expressions.
The Neptune Project
by Polly Holyoke
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In a future world, altered teens learn to survive under the ocean with each team member bringing talents to the group's mission.
by Polly Holyoke
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In a future world, altered teens learn to survive under the ocean with each team member bringing talents to the group's mission.
The President Has Been Shot!
by James L. Swanson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The events from the triumphal trip to Dallas to the murder of President Kennedy and the killing of Lee Harvey Oswald are described. Black-and-white archival photographs.
by James L. Swanson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The events from the triumphal trip to Dallas to the murder of President Kennedy and the killing of Lee Harvey Oswald are described. Black-and-white archival photographs.
The Real Boy
by Anne Ursu
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Eleven-year-old Oscar, an orphan, struggles to understand and express himself while working as an apothecary's assistant in a town experiencing strange illnesses.
by Anne Ursu
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Eleven-year-old Oscar, an orphan, struggles to understand and express himself while working as an apothecary's assistant in a town experiencing strange illnesses.
The Rules for Disappearing
by Ashley Elston
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Being in the witness protection program makes life difficult for high school student, Meg, who must move often and change identities--until she moves to Louisiana.
by Ashley Elston
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Being in the witness protection program makes life difficult for high school student, Meg, who must move often and change identities--until she moves to Louisiana.
The Summer Prince
by Alaya Dawn Johnson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Set in a futuristic Brazilian city, June and best friend, Gil, both fall for charismatic Enki, this cycle's summer king who will be sacrificed.
by Alaya Dawn Johnson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Set in a futuristic Brazilian city, June and best friend, Gil, both fall for charismatic Enki, this cycle's summer king who will be sacrificed.
The Tell-Tale Heart
by Edgar Allan Poe
Illustrator: Dennis Calero
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The tale of paranoid obsession is retold in expressive graphic format with a simple, dark palette and striking, scary pictures. Includes study guide and glossary.
by Edgar Allan Poe
Illustrator: Dennis Calero
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The tale of paranoid obsession is retold in expressive graphic format with a simple, dark palette and striking, scary pictures. Includes study guide and glossary.
The Testing
by Joelle Charbonneau
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Sixteen-year-old Cia faces moral and intellectual challenges when she participates in the tests that will determine her future in society.
by Joelle Charbonneau
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Sixteen-year-old Cia faces moral and intellectual challenges when she participates in the tests that will determine her future in society.
The Tragedy Paper
by Elizabeth Laban
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In two consecutive years, prep school seniors Tim and Duncan relate the tale of romantic relationships and tragedy--against the background of the school's famous assignment.
by Elizabeth Laban
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In two consecutive years, prep school seniors Tim and Duncan relate the tale of romantic relationships and tragedy--against the background of the school's famous assignment.
Through the Skylight
by Ian Baucom
Illustrator: Justin Gerard
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Three siblings find themselves in a magical Venice where stone lions fly and creatures walk out of paintings. Pencil drawings.
by Ian Baucom
Illustrator: Justin Gerard
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Three siblings find themselves in a magical Venice where stone lions fly and creatures walk out of paintings. Pencil drawings.
Tides
by Betsy Cornwell
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Eighteen-year-old Noah and his sister confront the meaning of identity when they discover their grandmother's relationship with a selkie woman.
by Betsy Cornwell
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Eighteen-year-old Noah and his sister confront the meaning of identity when they discover their grandmother's relationship with a selkie woman.
Under Shifting Glass
by Nicky Singer
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
An antique desk left to Jess by her beloved aunt reveals secrets that comfort and challenge her as she copes with her infant twin brothers' health crisis.
by Nicky Singer
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
An antique desk left to Jess by her beloved aunt reveals secrets that comfort and challenge her as she copes with her infant twin brothers' health crisis.
Unremembered
by Jessica Brody
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Rescued from the wreckage of a plane, a young girl struggles to discover her forgotten past in this fast-paced thriller.
by Jessica Brody
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Rescued from the wreckage of a plane, a young girl struggles to discover her forgotten past in this fast-paced thriller.
Victoria Rebels
by Carolyn Meyer
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
From the time she was young, the future queen had strong opinions and she continued to have them throughout her life. Fiction based on actual diaries.
by Carolyn Meyer
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
From the time she was young, the future queen had strong opinions and she continued to have them throughout her life. Fiction based on actual diaries.
What If?
by Eric Marcus
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Many young people have questions about their sexual identity. This book is reassuring and informative.
by Eric Marcus
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
Many young people have questions about their sexual identity. This book is reassuring and informative.
With a Mighty Hand
adapted by Amy Ehrlich
Illustrator: Daniel Nevins
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The five books of the Torah are beautifully adapted in free verse. Oil on wood paintings. Well referenced.
adapted by Amy Ehrlich
Illustrator: Daniel Nevins
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
The five books of the Torah are beautifully adapted in free verse. Oil on wood paintings. Well referenced.
Written in Stone
by Rosanne Parry
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In the 1920s, an orphaned girl in a Pacific Northwest Native American tribe struggles to preserve the traditions of her people. Extensive author's notes.
by Rosanne Parry
Ages: 12+
Published: 2013
In the 1920s, an orphaned girl in a Pacific Northwest Native American tribe struggles to preserve the traditions of her people. Extensive author's notes.