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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Karthik Delivers
Sheela Chari
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Making deliveries for his family's struggling grocery store unexpectedly leads South Asian American Karthik to act in a play about Leonard Bernstein.
Sheela Chari
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Making deliveries for his family's struggling grocery store unexpectedly leads South Asian American Karthik to act in a play about Leonard Bernstein.
Lady and the Octopus, The: How Jeanne Villepreux-Power Invented Aquariums and Revolutionized Marine Biology
Danna Staaf
Illustrator: Danna Staaf
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In 19th-century France, when women weren't accepted as scientists, Villepreux-Power studied live marine creatures by building an aquarium. Elegant chapter opener illustrations. Photographs and archival images. Back matter. Extensive sourcing.
Danna Staaf
Illustrator: Danna Staaf
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In 19th-century France, when women weren't accepted as scientists, Villepreux-Power studied live marine creatures by building an aquarium. Elegant chapter opener illustrations. Photographs and archival images. Back matter. Extensive sourcing.
Lifeling
Kristy Applebaum
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
As a lifeling, 12 year old Lonny can revive dying animals and humans, but at irredeemable cost to himself. How long can this remain a secret?
Kristy Applebaum
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
As a lifeling, 12 year old Lonny can revive dying animals and humans, but at irredeemable cost to himself. How long can this remain a secret?
Lolo's Light
Liz Garton Scanlon
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
The tragic sudden death of a neighbor's infant for whom she had been the babysitter leaves Millie, 12, dealing with feelings of grief, loss, and guilt.
Liz Garton Scanlon
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
The tragic sudden death of a neighbor's infant for whom she had been the babysitter leaves Millie, 12, dealing with feelings of grief, loss, and guilt.
Lotus Bloom and the Afro Revolution
Sherri Winston
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Black 12-year-old Lotus Bloom, gifted violinist and normally a peace-loving free spirit, must summon the courage to fight against a racist dress code.
Sherri Winston
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Black 12-year-old Lotus Bloom, gifted violinist and normally a peace-loving free spirit, must summon the courage to fight against a racist dress code.
Louisa June and the Nazis in the Waves
L. M. Elliott
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
When a German submarine kills her older brother, Louisa June is determined to do what she can, from her Virginia home, to battle the Nazis.
L. M. Elliott
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
When a German submarine kills her older brother, Louisa June is determined to do what she can, from her Virginia home, to battle the Nazis.
Manatee Summer
Evan Griffith
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Peter's best friend is moving, and his grandfather with memory loss now requires care. An injured local manatee becomes a cathartic rescue project for them, their neighbors, and friends
Evan Griffith
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Peter's best friend is moving, and his grandfather with memory loss now requires care. An injured local manatee becomes a cathartic rescue project for them, their neighbors, and friends
Maybe An Artist: A Graphic Memoir
Liz Montague
Illustrator: Liz Montague
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
For a Black girl, growing up in predominantly white suburbs can be complicated. Could Montague be an athlete and an artist? Expressive illustrations with soft color palette.
Liz Montague
Illustrator: Liz Montague
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
For a Black girl, growing up in predominantly white suburbs can be complicated. Could Montague be an athlete and an artist? Expressive illustrations with soft color palette.
Medusa
Jessie Burton
Illustrator: Olivia Lomenech Gill
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Perseus—son of Zeus—must seek and behead beautiful Medusa, whose flowing hair was transformed into serpents by enraged Athena. Lush full-color illustrations.
Jessie Burton
Illustrator: Olivia Lomenech Gill
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Perseus—son of Zeus—must seek and behead beautiful Medusa, whose flowing hair was transformed into serpents by enraged Athena. Lush full-color illustrations.
Merci Suárez Plays It Cool
Meg Medina
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
A Cuban American eighth grader takes a few more steps toward adulthood, enduring changing friendships, unwanted responsibilities, and heart-breaking loss. Last volume of the trilogy.
Meg Medina
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
A Cuban American eighth grader takes a few more steps toward adulthood, enduring changing friendships, unwanted responsibilities, and heart-breaking loss. Last volume of the trilogy.
Moonflower
Kacen Callender
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Struggling with depression, Black. nonbinary Moon finds themself having to learn love and hope to protect the spirit world.
Kacen Callender
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Struggling with depression, Black. nonbinary Moon finds themself having to learn love and hope to protect the spirit world.
Moonwalking
Zetta Elliott and Lyn Miller-Lachmann
Illustrator: David Cooper
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
JJ, white, grandson of Polish immigrants, and Pierre, mixed-race straight-A student and secret graffiti artist, warily start a tentative friendship. Told in two voices. Various verse forms. Spot illustrations. Author's note and sources.
Zetta Elliott and Lyn Miller-Lachmann
Illustrator: David Cooper
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
JJ, white, grandson of Polish immigrants, and Pierre, mixed-race straight-A student and secret graffiti artist, warily start a tentative friendship. Told in two voices. Various verse forms. Spot illustrations. Author's note and sources.
Mordechai Anielewicz: No to Despair [They Said No series]
Rachel Hausfater
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In 1943, against all odds, Mordechai Anielewicz led a revolt in the Warsaw Ghetto from which the Nazis deported most of the nearly 400,000 Jews living there to concentration camps. Extensive back matter.
Rachel Hausfater
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In 1943, against all odds, Mordechai Anielewicz led a revolt in the Warsaw Ghetto from which the Nazis deported most of the nearly 400,000 Jews living there to concentration camps. Extensive back matter.
Northwind
Gary Paulsen
Illustrator: Joe Wilson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Told to head north after cholera strikes the fishing camp where he worked, Leif, 12, travels through Nordic fjords, struggling to survive. Occasional black-and-white illustrations.
Gary Paulsen
Illustrator: Joe Wilson
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Told to head north after cholera strikes the fishing camp where he worked, Leif, 12, travels through Nordic fjords, struggling to survive. Occasional black-and-white illustrations.
Not-So-Uniform Life of Holly-Mei, The
Christina Matula
Illustrator: Yao Xiao
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Moving from Canada to Hong Kong with her biracial, bicultural family challenges 12-year-old Holly. Balancing new friendships with her own goals is an adventure and growth opportunity. Black-and-white-illustrations.
Christina Matula
Illustrator: Yao Xiao
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Moving from Canada to Hong Kong with her biracial, bicultural family challenges 12-year-old Holly. Balancing new friendships with her own goals is an adventure and growth opportunity. Black-and-white-illustrations.
Nowhere Better Than Here
Sarah Guillory
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Forced to leave their tiny, flood-devasted town in Louisiana, Jillian, 13, and her friends are determined to preserve its history and the memories of their Cajun community, leading them to environmental activism.
Sarah Guillory
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Forced to leave their tiny, flood-devasted town in Louisiana, Jillian, 13, and her friends are determined to preserve its history and the memories of their Cajun community, leading them to environmental activism.
Ode to a Nobody
Caroline Brooks DuBois
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Eight grade underachiever Quinn suddenly finds her life completely leveled by a tornado. Will she use this trauma to build a different life? Free verse.
Caroline Brooks DuBois
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Eight grade underachiever Quinn suddenly finds her life completely leveled by a tornado. Will she use this trauma to build a different life? Free verse.
Ogress and the Orphans, The
Kelly Barnhill
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In a once-lovely town, a houseful of orphans teams up with a misunderstood ogress to reveal the mayor's perfidy and restore goodwill among the townspeople.
Kelly Barnhill
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In a once-lovely town, a houseful of orphans teams up with a misunderstood ogress to reveal the mayor's perfidy and restore goodwill among the townspeople.
Omar Rising
Aisha Saeed
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Omar, a seventh-year student, wins a scholarship to a famous Pakistani boarding school, but must fight hard to keep his place there.
Aisha Saeed
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Omar, a seventh-year student, wins a scholarship to a famous Pakistani boarding school, but must fight hard to keep his place there.
On the Move: Home Is Where You Find It
Michael Rosen
Illustrator: Quentin Blake
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
The Polish-Jewish poet explores his childhood in postwar London, his family's experiences of World War II, the fate of missing relatives, and migration today. Free verse. Blue-wash watercolor illustrations.
Michael Rosen
Illustrator: Quentin Blake
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
The Polish-Jewish poet explores his childhood in postwar London, his family's experiences of World War II, the fate of missing relatives, and migration today. Free verse. Blue-wash watercolor illustrations.
Operation Do-Over
Gordon Korman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Best friends Mason and Ty are estranged when they both crush on Ava. Then 17-year-old Mason wakes up as his 12-year-old self and changes history.
Gordon Korman
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Best friends Mason and Ty are estranged when they both crush on Ava. Then 17-year-old Mason wakes up as his 12-year-old self and changes history.
Patron Thief of Bread, The
Lindsay Eagar
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In medieval France, abandoned children pick pockets to survive. The youngest becomes a baker's apprentice to steal bread for her gang, and finds herself torn between her two lives.
Lindsay Eagar
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In medieval France, abandoned children pick pockets to survive. The youngest becomes a baker's apprentice to steal bread for her gang, and finds herself torn between her two lives.
Peace Is a Chain Reaction: How World War II Japanese Balloon Bombs Brought People of Two Nations Together
Tanya Lee Stone
Illustrator: Yumeno Furukawa
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Through “truth and transparency,” Yuzuru John Takeshita was instrumental in healing two communities touched by war. Black-and-white illustrations. Archival photos and images. Abundant back matter.
Tanya Lee Stone
Illustrator: Yumeno Furukawa
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Through “truth and transparency,” Yuzuru John Takeshita was instrumental in healing two communities touched by war. Black-and-white illustrations. Archival photos and images. Abundant back matter.
Race of the Century, The: The Battle to Break the Four-Minute Mile
Neal Bascomb
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In the 1950s, three men competed to achieve the impossible: run the four-minute mile. Original interviews inform the gripping narrative. Meticulous sourcing.
Neal Bascomb
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
In the 1950s, three men competed to achieve the impossible: run the four-minute mile. Original interviews inform the gripping narrative. Meticulous sourcing.
Rain Rising
Courtne Comrie
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Black 13-year-old Rain struggles with low self esteem, but when her beloved brother is beaten in a racial assault, she discovers her own worth. Free verse.
Courtne Comrie
Ages: 12+
Published: 2022
Black 13-year-old Rain struggles with low self esteem, but when her beloved brother is beaten in a racial assault, she discovers her own worth. Free verse.