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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Disappearing Act: A True Story
Jiordan Castle
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Jiordan needs a safe space to be herself after her father's incarceration, but her family's drastic change and the hatred between her new boyfriend and her best friend leaves her reeling. In verse.
Jiordan Castle
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Jiordan needs a safe space to be herself after her father's incarceration, but her family's drastic change and the hatred between her new boyfriend and her best friend leaves her reeling. In verse.
Discovering Life's Story: Biology's Beginnings
Joy Hakim
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
An engrossing, informative, well-researched history of the discoveries of our biological existence and their impact on human society. Fascinating archival source material.
Joy Hakim
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
An engrossing, informative, well-researched history of the discoveries of our biological existence and their impact on human society. Fascinating archival source material.
Doomed: Sacco, Vanzetti, and the End of the American Dream
John Florio and Ouisie Shapiro
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
In post-World War I Boston, amid anti-immigrant hostility and fears of communism, two Italian self-proclaimed anarchists were wrongfully convicted and executed for murder, raising protests throughout the world. Archival photos.
John Florio and Ouisie Shapiro
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
In post-World War I Boston, amid anti-immigrant hostility and fears of communism, two Italian self-proclaimed anarchists were wrongfully convicted and executed for murder, raising protests throughout the world. Archival photos.
Door in the Dark, A
Scott Reintgen
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Ren is a talented scholarship student at an exclusive wizarding school. A spell goes awry, trapping her and five others in unknown territory. Ren's survival depends on trusting them.
Scott Reintgen
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Ren is a talented scholarship student at an exclusive wizarding school. A spell goes awry, trapping her and five others in unknown territory. Ren's survival depends on trusting them.
Drawn to Change the World Graphic Novel Collection: 16 Youth Climate Activists, 16 Artists
Emma Reynolds
Illustrator: various artists
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Meet Autumn Peltier, Tokata, and 14 other young activists dedicated to averting climate catastrophe, and be inspired and motivated to join their efforts. Full-color graphic art.
Emma Reynolds
Illustrator: various artists
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Meet Autumn Peltier, Tokata, and 14 other young activists dedicated to averting climate catastrophe, and be inspired and motivated to join their efforts. Full-color graphic art.
Echo in the City, An
K. X. Song
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
As she protests against a proposed Chinese extradition bill in Hong Kong in 2019, Phoenix questions both her romance with Kai and her parents' dream that she attend college in the United States.
K. X. Song
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
As she protests against a proposed Chinese extradition bill in Hong Kong in 2019, Phoenix questions both her romance with Kai and her parents' dream that she attend college in the United States.
Edelweiss Pirates, The: Teenage Rebels in Nazi Germany
Dirk Reinhardt, introduction by Michael Rosen
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Unorganized groups of teenagers, mostly around Cologne, Germany, who refused to participate in the Hitler Youth, eventually become resistance fighters against the Nazi regime. Historical notes, glossary.
Dirk Reinhardt, introduction by Michael Rosen
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Unorganized groups of teenagers, mostly around Cologne, Germany, who refused to participate in the Hitler Youth, eventually become resistance fighters against the Nazi regime. Historical notes, glossary.
Enter the Body
Joy McCullough
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
In the trap room beneath the stage, three Shakespearean characters—Juliet, Ophelia, and Cordelia—recount their stories, revising them as they wish they'd been told. Mature content
Joy McCullough
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
In the trap room beneath the stage, three Shakespearean characters—Juliet, Ophelia, and Cordelia—recount their stories, revising them as they wish they'd been told. Mature content
Fake Dates and Mooncakes
Sher Lee
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Grieving the loss of his mom, 17-year-old Dylan meets Theo, an upper-class first love, while trying to win the mooncake competition to save his aunt's beleaguered Singaporean Chinese take-out restaurant.
Sher Lee
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Grieving the loss of his mom, 17-year-old Dylan meets Theo, an upper-class first love, while trying to win the mooncake competition to save his aunt's beleaguered Singaporean Chinese take-out restaurant.
Family Fortuna, The
Lindsay Eagar
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
A rollicking tale of a circus family, starring Avita, a girl with a beak, razor teeth, and feathers, whose act astounds her audience. But is a circus performer all she is?
Lindsay Eagar
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
A rollicking tale of a circus family, starring Avita, a girl with a beak, razor teeth, and feathers, whose act astounds her audience. But is a circus performer all she is?
Family Style: Memories of an American from Vietnam
Thien Pham
Illustrator: Thien Pham
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
A Vietnamese refugee recalls his family's journey to the United States through the different foods they experienced along the way. Colorful, emotionally vivid artwork.
Thien Pham
Illustrator: Thien Pham
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
A Vietnamese refugee recalls his family's journey to the United States through the different foods they experienced along the way. Colorful, emotionally vivid artwork.
Fire from the Sky
Moa Backe Åstot
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Ánte, a Sámi reindeer herder in Northern Sweden, finds it increasingly hard to fight his feelings for his friend Erik. Can he overcome cultural prejudice and find happiness?
Moa Backe Åstot
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Ánte, a Sámi reindeer herder in Northern Sweden, finds it increasingly hard to fight his feelings for his friend Erik. Can he overcome cultural prejudice and find happiness?
Flowerheart
Catherine Bakewell
Illustrator: Yejin Park
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Clara must learn to control dangerous magic to save her father and, with her childhood friend, find an antidote to the potion afflicting their community. Graceful black-and-white spot art.
Catherine Bakewell
Illustrator: Yejin Park
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Clara must learn to control dangerous magic to save her father and, with her childhood friend, find an antidote to the potion afflicting their community. Graceful black-and-white spot art.
Forever Is Now
Mariama J. Lockington
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Sadie, a Black teen struggling with anxiety, witnesses a violent false arrest. She spirals into agoraphobia, but an online community of activists helps her find her voice. Back matter.
Mariama J. Lockington
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Sadie, a Black teen struggling with anxiety, witnesses a violent false arrest. She spirals into agoraphobia, but an online community of activists helps her find her voice. Back matter.
For Lamb
Lesa Cline-Ransome
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Multiple narrators tell the heart-wrenching story of a Black family in 1930s Jackson, Mississippi, where an interracial friendship leads to tragic consequences. Mature content
Lesa Cline-Ransome
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Multiple narrators tell the heart-wrenching story of a Black family in 1930s Jackson, Mississippi, where an interracial friendship leads to tragic consequences. Mature content
From Here
Luma Mufleh
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
The author traces her journey as a privileged child of a wealthy, prominent Jordanian family on her search for asylum in the United States due to her sexuality.
Luma Mufleh
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
The author traces her journey as a privileged child of a wealthy, prominent Jordanian family on her search for asylum in the United States due to her sexuality.
Gather
Kenneth M. Cadow
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Tenth-grader Ian deals with his mother's addiction while trying to fix up and hold on to his family's dilapidated home and to keep the dog he's not supposed to have. Mature content
Kenneth M. Cadow
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Tenth-grader Ian deals with his mother's addiction while trying to fix up and hold on to his family's dilapidated home and to keep the dog he's not supposed to have. Mature content
Girl I Am, Was, and Never Will Be, The: A Speculative Memoir of Transracial Adoption
Shannon Gibney
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
In this blended autobiography/fantasy, Shannon, a teen transracial adoptee, finds her birth mother, but not her Black birth father, already deceased. Archival photographs and documents. Resource list.
Shannon Gibney
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
In this blended autobiography/fantasy, Shannon, a teen transracial adoptee, finds her birth mother, but not her Black birth father, already deceased. Archival photographs and documents. Resource list.
Give Me a Sign
Anna Sortino
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Can a job at a summer camp for deaf and blind kids help Lilah, 17, fully accept her own severe deafness and find a place in the Deaf community?
Anna Sortino
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Can a job at a summer camp for deaf and blind kids help Lilah, 17, fully accept her own severe deafness and find a place in the Deaf community?
Gone Wolf
Amber McBride
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Imogen, a Black girl, lives in two worlds and two times—or does she? Solving the puzzle might help her heal. Does human freedom hang in the balance?
Amber McBride
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Imogen, a Black girl, lives in two worlds and two times—or does she? Solving the puzzle might help her heal. Does human freedom hang in the balance?
Her Good Side
Rebekah Weatherspoon
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
African American Bethany and Korean American Jacob agree to practice dating each other so they'll be ready for the real thing when it comes. But what's really real? Told in alternating voices.
Rebekah Weatherspoon
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
African American Bethany and Korean American Jacob agree to practice dating each other so they'll be ready for the real thing when it comes. But what's really real? Told in alternating voices.
Hidden Systems: Water, Electricity, the Internet, and the Secrets behind the Systems We Use Every Day
Dan Nott
Illustrator: Dan Nott
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Graphic blueprint-style cartoon art frames the history, societal inequities, and planet-wide impact of human-made systems and encourages readers to work toward improving them.
Dan Nott
Illustrator: Dan Nott
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Graphic blueprint-style cartoon art frames the history, societal inequities, and planet-wide impact of human-made systems and encourages readers to work toward improving them.
Hopeless in Hope
Wanda John-Kehewin
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
When her grandmother is hospitalized, 14-year-old Eva, a Cree girl from British Columbia, winds up in a group home, separated from her four-year-old brother, alcoholic mother, and beloved cat.
Wanda John-Kehewin
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
When her grandmother is hospitalized, 14-year-old Eva, a Cree girl from British Columbia, winds up in a group home, separated from her four-year-old brother, alcoholic mother, and beloved cat.
Hungry Ghost
Victoria Ying
Illustrator: Victoria Ying, colors by Lynette Wong
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Valerie Chu internalizes her mother's perfectionism and weight obsession. Val's friends and crush are unaware of her bulimia until a crisis forces her to seek help. Graceful digital pastel panels. Resources. Mature content
Victoria Ying
Illustrator: Victoria Ying, colors by Lynette Wong
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Valerie Chu internalizes her mother's perfectionism and weight obsession. Val's friends and crush are unaware of her bulimia until a crisis forces her to seek help. Graceful digital pastel panels. Resources. Mature content
I Am Not Alone
Francisco X. Stork
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Alberto, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, has a mental illness, which makes him a suspect in a killing. But he finds an immediate and powerful connection and mutual support with a teen from a vastly different world.
Francisco X. Stork
Ages: 14+
Published: 2023
Alberto, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, has a mental illness, which makes him a suspect in a killing. But he finds an immediate and powerful connection and mutual support with a teen from a vastly different world.