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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Mathemagic!:
by Lynda Colgan
Illustrator: Jane Kurisu
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Clever “magic tricks” illustrate the uses of ancient and modern number systems.
by Lynda Colgan
Illustrator: Jane Kurisu
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Clever “magic tricks” illustrate the uses of ancient and modern number systems.
May
by Kathryn Lasky
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
After her fifteenth birthday, May discovers that she is a mermaid. Should she return to the sea or continue to live on land?
by Kathryn Lasky
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
After her fifteenth birthday, May discovers that she is a mermaid. Should she return to the sea or continue to live on land?
Memento Nora
by Angie Smibert
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Teenagers Nora, Micah, and Winter start an underground magazine to rebel against the literally mind-numbing establishment.
by Angie Smibert
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Teenagers Nora, Micah, and Winter start an underground magazine to rebel against the literally mind-numbing establishment.
Moonglass
by Jessi Kirby
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When her father's job requires that they move to the Pacific beach town where her mother drowned, Anna's relationship with him is threatened.
by Jessi Kirby
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When her father's job requires that they move to the Pacific beach town where her mother drowned, Anna's relationship with him is threatened.
Music Was It
by Susan Goldman Rubin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Although his father disapproved of his goal of a career in music, Leonard followed his passion and triumphed in his chosen profession. Wonderful photographs.
by Susan Goldman Rubin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Although his father disapproved of his goal of a career in music, Leonard followed his passion and triumphed in his chosen profession. Wonderful photographs.
Mysterious Bones: The Story of Kennewick Man
by Katherine Kirkpatrick
Illustrator: Emma Stevenson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When ancient bones are found, they stir up an old controversy between Native Americans and archaeologists. Glossary, bibliography, and notes.
by Katherine Kirkpatrick
Illustrator: Emma Stevenson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When ancient bones are found, they stir up an old controversy between Native Americans and archaeologists. Glossary, bibliography, and notes.
No god but God
by Reza Aslan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Learn about the origins and traditions of the Islamic faith, including its connections to Judaism and Christianity. Includes chronology, glossary, and sources.
by Reza Aslan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Learn about the origins and traditions of the Islamic faith, including its connections to Judaism and Christianity. Includes chronology, glossary, and sources.
Now is the time for Running
by Michael Williams
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
As fourteen-year-old Deo and his handicapped brother flee to escape violence in their Zimbabwe village, they encounter increased violence and xenophobia, but soccer is a saving grace.
by Michael Williams
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
As fourteen-year-old Deo and his handicapped brother flee to escape violence in their Zimbabwe village, they encounter increased violence and xenophobia, but soccer is a saving grace.
Okay for Now
by Gary D. Schmidt
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When fourteen-year-old Doug moves to a new town, he finds inspiration and strength in surprising places, despite some serious family problems.
by Gary D. Schmidt
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When fourteen-year-old Doug moves to a new town, he finds inspiration and strength in surprising places, despite some serious family problems.
Orchards
by Holly Thompson
Illustrator: Grady McFerrin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Sent to spend the summer with her mother's family in Japan, Kana reflects on her complicity in the events that led to a classmate's suicide at home. Told in free verse.
by Holly Thompson
Illustrator: Grady McFerrin
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Sent to spend the summer with her mother's family in Japan, Kana reflects on her complicity in the events that led to a classmate's suicide at home. Told in free verse.
Out of the Box
by Michelle Mulder
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
New friends, a budding passion, and an unexpected discovery fill Ellie's summer with her free-spirited aunt and empower her to face her disfunctional parents.
by Michelle Mulder
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
New friends, a budding passion, and an unexpected discovery fill Ellie's summer with her free-spirited aunt and empower her to face her disfunctional parents.
Owl Ninja
by Sandy Fussell
Illustrator: Rhian Nest James
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Six Samurai kids overcome a variety of handicaps and demonstrate their special talents under the teaching of Ki-Yage, their teacher. Black and white illustrations.
by Sandy Fussell
Illustrator: Rhian Nest James
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Six Samurai kids overcome a variety of handicaps and demonstrate their special talents under the teaching of Ki-Yage, their teacher. Black and white illustrations.
Phantoms in the Snow
by Kathleen Benner Duble
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Once a pacifist, fifteen-year-old Noah learns that sometimes good people have to do bad things.
by Kathleen Benner Duble
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Once a pacifist, fifteen-year-old Noah learns that sometimes good people have to do bad things.
Pick-Up Game
edited by Marc Aronson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Nine interwoven stories, poems, and photographs portray street basketball players and their fans.
edited by Marc Aronson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Nine interwoven stories, poems, and photographs portray street basketball players and their fans.
Promise the Night
by Michaela Maccoll
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
ARC This fictional account of Beryl Markham's childhood imagines what might have inspired the spunk and determination that led to her trans-Atlantic flight.
by Michaela Maccoll
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
ARC This fictional account of Beryl Markham's childhood imagines what might have inspired the spunk and determination that led to her trans-Atlantic flight.
Raggin' Jazzin' Rockin'
by Susan VanHecke
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Who was the most famous drummer in the United States? Which piano maker changed his name? Find answers to these questions and more in this well-researched and informative history. Archival photographs.
by Susan VanHecke
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Who was the most famous drummer in the United States? Which piano maker changed his name? Find answers to these questions and more in this well-researched and informative history. Archival photographs.
Requiem
by Paul B. Janeczko
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
The horrific experiences in the Terezin Ghetto are recreated through the voices of inmates and German officers in powerful verse and stark artwork.
by Paul B. Janeczko
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
The horrific experiences in the Terezin Ghetto are recreated through the voices of inmates and German officers in powerful verse and stark artwork.
Rival
by Sara Bennett Wealer
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Through their junior and senior high school years, Brooke and Kathryn compete for friends and music scholarships--as misunderstandings undermine their friendships.
by Sara Bennett Wealer
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Through their junior and senior high school years, Brooke and Kathryn compete for friends and music scholarships--as misunderstandings undermine their friendships.
Ruby Red
by Kerstin Gier
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
At sixteen, Gwen likes being a regular girl, but when she discovers she can travel through time and is part of a secret society, everything changes.
by Kerstin Gier
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
At sixteen, Gwen likes being a regular girl, but when she discovers she can travel through time and is part of a secret society, everything changes.
Second Fiddle
by Rosanne Parry
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Three young musicians from U.S. military families in Berlin in 1990 save an Estonian soldier's life and spend a weekend in Paris.
by Rosanne Parry
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Three young musicians from U.S. military families in Berlin in 1990 save an Estonian soldier's life and spend a weekend in Paris.
See What I See
by Gloria Whelan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
An aspiring artist reconnects with her estranged father, a famous painter, now ill and impoverished.
by Gloria Whelan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
An aspiring artist reconnects with her estranged father, a famous painter, now ill and impoverished.
Siren's Storm
by Lisa Papademetriou
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Seventeen-year-old Matthew encounters mermaids, legends, and myths as he deals with his brother's death and his friend's sleepwalking.
by Lisa Papademetriou
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
Seventeen-year-old Matthew encounters mermaids, legends, and myths as he deals with his brother's death and his friend's sleepwalking.
Small Acts of Amazing Courage
by Gloria Whelan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
In India after World War I, when Rosalind becomes interested in Gandhi's teachings, her family sends her to England to a home and family she does not know.
by Gloria Whelan
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
In India after World War I, when Rosalind becomes interested in Gandhi's teachings, her family sends her to England to a home and family she does not know.
Sparrow Road
by Sheila O'Connor
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When her mother takes a job as housekeeper in a former orphanage turned summer artists' colony, Raine faces a lonely summer away from friends and her beloved grandpa--but she makes some surprising discoveries.
by Sheila O'Connor
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
When her mother takes a job as housekeeper in a former orphanage turned summer artists' colony, Raine faces a lonely summer away from friends and her beloved grandpa--but she makes some surprising discoveries.
Stay
by Deb Caletti
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
To escape Christian, her abusive boyfriend, Clara and her father move to a remote town in Washington state--but Christian finds them.
by Deb Caletti
Ages: 12+
Published: 2011
To escape Christian, her abusive boyfriend, Clara and her father move to a remote town in Washington state--but Christian finds them.