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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Sugar Town Queens
Malla Nunn
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Living in a post-apartheid, South African shantytown, biracial Amandla, 15, has never met her White mother's relatives. Friends help her uncover family secrets and truths.
Malla Nunn
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Living in a post-apartheid, South African shantytown, biracial Amandla, 15, has never met her White mother's relatives. Friends help her uncover family secrets and truths.
Summer of Lost Letters, The
Hannah Reynolds
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
After receiving a box of love letters written to her grandmother, Abby Schoenberg, 17, spends the summer on Nantucket trying to solve the mystery of her family's past.
Hannah Reynolds
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
After receiving a box of love letters written to her grandmother, Abby Schoenberg, 17, spends the summer on Nantucket trying to solve the mystery of her family's past.
Sway with Me
Syed M. Masood
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Pakistani American Arsalan lives a cloistered existence with his 100-year-old great-grandfather. Then a tempestuous girl asks Arsalan to be her dancing partner, and his world opens up.
Syed M. Masood
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Pakistani American Arsalan lives a cloistered existence with his 100-year-old great-grandfather. Then a tempestuous girl asks Arsalan to be her dancing partner, and his world opens up.
Take Me With You When You Go
David Levithan and Jennifer Niven
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Bea disappears from home, leaving her brother an email address. In their correspondence, they begin to unpack the story and experience of their abusive home. Can they free themselves?
David Levithan and Jennifer Niven
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Bea disappears from home, leaving her brother an email address. In their correspondence, they begin to unpack the story and experience of their abusive home. Can they free themselves?
That Way Madness Lies: Fifteen of Shakespeare's Most Notable Works Reimagined
Dahlia Adler, Editor
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Tragedies and comedies are transformed by young adult authors into contemporary stories with a variety of diverse characters and settings. Backmatter.
Dahlia Adler, Editor
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Tragedies and comedies are transformed by young adult authors into contemporary stories with a variety of diverse characters and settings. Backmatter.
Things That Grow
Meredith Goldstein
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
High school senior Lori's grandmother/de facto parent dies, stipulating that her ashes should be scattered where things grow, which gives Lori the road trip of a lifetime.
Meredith Goldstein
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
High school senior Lori's grandmother/de facto parent dies, stipulating that her ashes should be scattered where things grow, which gives Lori the road trip of a lifetime.
Together: An Inspiring Response to the "Separate-but-Equal" Supreme Court Decision that Divided America
Amy Nathan
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Descendants of the opponents in the infamous Supreme Court decision that established racial segregation joined forces to teach the continuing impact of the historic Plessy v. Ferguson case. Archival photographs. Extensive back matter.
Amy Nathan
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Descendants of the opponents in the infamous Supreme Court decision that established racial segregation joined forces to teach the continuing impact of the historic Plessy v. Ferguson case. Archival photographs. Extensive back matter.
Tonight We Rule the World
Zack Smedley
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
After Owen, who has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is sexually assaulted, he hides the identity of the perpetrator to avoid losing his girlfriend Lily and his tightknit friend group
Zack Smedley
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
After Owen, who has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is sexually assaulted, he hides the identity of the perpetrator to avoid losing his girlfriend Lily and his tightknit friend group
Unearthed: A Jessica Cruz Story
Lilliam Rivera
Illustrator: Steph C., lettered by Gabriela Downie
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
In this contemporary Green Lantern comic, ancestral Aztec gods call Jessica Cruz to action after ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) arrests her father. Vibrant, tonal illustrations.
Lilliam Rivera
Illustrator: Steph C., lettered by Gabriela Downie
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
In this contemporary Green Lantern comic, ancestral Aztec gods call Jessica Cruz to action after ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) arrests her father. Vibrant, tonal illustrations.
Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts
Rebecca Hall
Illustrator: Hugo MartÃnez, lettered by Sarula Bao
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
The personal story of a historian, interwoven with the centuries-long - and still resonating - Transatlantic Slave Trade that she painstakingly researches. Stark black and white illustrations; sources.
Rebecca Hall
Illustrator: Hugo MartÃnez, lettered by Sarula Bao
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
The personal story of a historian, interwoven with the centuries-long - and still resonating - Transatlantic Slave Trade that she painstakingly researches. Stark black and white illustrations; sources.
Walking in Two Worlds
Wab Kinew
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
An Anishinaabe girl on a Canadian reservation with a superb reputation in the gaming world bonds with a Chinese Uyghur boy forced to flee his country.
Wab Kinew
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
An Anishinaabe girl on a Canadian reservation with a superb reputation in the gaming world bonds with a Chinese Uyghur boy forced to flee his country.
Walls
L.M. Elliott
Illustrator: archival photo essay by Megan Behm
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
In 1960 when Drew's father is deployed to divided Berlin, his mother connects with her German relatives in the Russian sector, putting both families in jeopardy. Interlaced photo essay of political and cultural events. Afterword.
L.M. Elliott
Illustrator: archival photo essay by Megan Behm
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
In 1960 when Drew's father is deployed to divided Berlin, his mother connects with her German relatives in the Russian sector, putting both families in jeopardy. Interlaced photo essay of political and cultural events. Afterword.
We Are Inevitable
Gayle Forman
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Nineteen-year-old Aaron struggles to keep his family's bookstore afloat after his brother overdoses and his mother leaves, but dire financial difficulties bring help from unexpected allies.
Gayle Forman
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Nineteen-year-old Aaron struggles to keep his family's bookstore afloat after his brother overdoses and his mother leaves, but dire financial difficulties bring help from unexpected allies.
We Can Be Heroes
Kyrie McCauley
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Beck, Vivian, and the ghost of Cassie, their beloved friend, seek revenge and justice after Cassie is shot by her abusive boyfriend, son of the town's powerful firearms manufacturer.
Kyrie McCauley
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Beck, Vivian, and the ghost of Cassie, their beloved friend, seek revenge and justice after Cassie is shot by her abusive boyfriend, son of the town's powerful firearms manufacturer.
We Hereby Refuse: Japanese American Resistance to Wartime Incarceration
Frank Abe and Tamiko Nimura
Illustrator: Ross Ishikawa and Matt Sasaki
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Three American citizens, at great personal cost, challenged having their rights unlawfully stripped solely on the basis of race. Dynamic, well-researched illustrations.
Frank Abe and Tamiko Nimura
Illustrator: Ross Ishikawa and Matt Sasaki
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Three American citizens, at great personal cost, challenged having their rights unlawfully stripped solely on the basis of race. Dynamic, well-researched illustrations.
We Run the Tides
Vendela Vida
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
In 1980s San Francisco, Eulabee and Maria's friendship ruptures when they disagree on whether they witnessed an indecent act. Then Maria goes missing. Was she kidnapped?
Vendela Vida
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
In 1980s San Francisco, Eulabee and Maria's friendship ruptures when they disagree on whether they witnessed an indecent act. Then Maria goes missing. Was she kidnapped?
What Beauty There Is
Cory Anderson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Jack, 17, is the only one who can prevent Child Protective Services from taking his younger brother. Themes of abandonment, survival, and brotherly love are movingly told in this thriller.
Cory Anderson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Jack, 17, is the only one who can prevent Child Protective Services from taking his younger brother. Themes of abandonment, survival, and brotherly love are movingly told in this thriller.
When Can We Go Back to America?: Voices of Japanese American Incarceration During WWII
Susan H. Kamei
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Exhaustively researched yet accessible history of the approximately 80,000 American citizens and their immigrant parents who were incarcerated without due process. First-person accounts, biographies, timeline, glossary.
Susan H. Kamei
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Exhaustively researched yet accessible history of the approximately 80,000 American citizens and their immigrant parents who were incarcerated without due process. First-person accounts, biographies, timeline, glossary.
When I Grow Up: the Lost Autobiographies of Six Yiddish Teenagers
Ken Krimstein
Illustrator: Ken Krimstein
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Life in Lithuania/Poland is described by contestants in a 1932 literary contest for Jewish teenagers. Filled with joy, romance, humor and tragedy. Pen and ink/pastel illustrations. Back matter.
Ken Krimstein
Illustrator: Ken Krimstein
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Life in Lithuania/Poland is described by contestants in a 1932 literary contest for Jewish teenagers. Filled with joy, romance, humor and tragedy. Pen and ink/pastel illustrations. Back matter.
When We Make It
Elisabet Velasquez
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Sarai, 14, struggles to overcome the problems of her single-parent family in gentrifying Brooklyn: poverty, housing insecurity, and mental illness. Written in verse by a Boricua author.
Elisabet Velasquez
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Sarai, 14, struggles to overcome the problems of her single-parent family in gentrifying Brooklyn: poverty, housing insecurity, and mental illness. Written in verse by a Boricua author.
When We Were Infinite
Kelly Loy Gilbert
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Beth fervently wants her friend group to stay intact through college, but fractures appear after she and Brandon see Jason's dad hit him. Asian-American cultural values explored.
Kelly Loy Gilbert
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Beth fervently wants her friend group to stay intact through college, but fractures appear after she and Brandon see Jason's dad hit him. Asian-American cultural values explored.
When You Look Like Us
Pamela N. Harris
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
When Jayson's sister goes missing, he assumes her drug-dealer boyfriend is responsible. Has his judgment been affected by stereotypes that others apply to his Black community?
Pamela N. Harris
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
When Jayson's sister goes missing, he assumes her drug-dealer boyfriend is responsible. Has his judgment been affected by stereotypes that others apply to his Black community?
Where I Belong
Marcia Argueta Mickelson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Millie, a Guatemalan-American, becomes part of the national debate on immigration and a reluctant activist when a senatorial candidate mentions her achievements.
Marcia Argueta Mickelson
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Millie, a Guatemalan-American, becomes part of the national debate on immigration and a reluctant activist when a senatorial candidate mentions her achievements.
Why Is Everybody Yelling?: Growing Up in My Immigrant Family
Marisabina Russo
Illustrator: Marisabina Russo
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
An author/illustrator chronicles growing up from 1957-67 in Queens, NY, coping with an overprotective mother, religious conflicts, and the usual childhood and adolescent issues. Detailed graphic panels.
Marisabina Russo
Illustrator: Marisabina Russo
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
An author/illustrator chronicles growing up from 1957-67 in Queens, NY, coping with an overprotective mother, religious conflicts, and the usual childhood and adolescent issues. Detailed graphic panels.
Why We Fly
Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal
Illustrator: Kimbeely Jones, Gilly Segal
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Senior year is full of challenges for Eleanor, White, and Chanel, Black, college-bound stars of their cheerleading squad. The political act of kneeling during the national anthem at a game brings serious consequences and threatens their futures.
Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal
Illustrator: Kimbeely Jones, Gilly Segal
Ages: 14+
Published: 2021
Senior year is full of challenges for Eleanor, White, and Chanel, Black, college-bound stars of their cheerleading squad. The political act of kneeling during the national anthem at a game brings serious consequences and threatens their futures.