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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Sea of Gold, A: A Ukrainian Family's Story Through the Generations
Patricia Polacco
Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
From the years before independence to the days of the current war, a Ukrainian family grows and then must emigrate to the United States. Vibrant emotive mixed-media, illustrations show traditional customs. Back matter.
Patricia Polacco
Illustrator: Patricia Polacco
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
From the years before independence to the days of the current war, a Ukrainian family grows and then must emigrate to the United States. Vibrant emotive mixed-media, illustrations show traditional customs. Back matter.
Secret Language of Birds, The
Lynne Kelly
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Thirteen-year-old Nina is thrilled that her parents are letting her attend her aunt's summer camp. Nature and wildlife beckon as well as a group of girls called the Oddballs.
Lynne Kelly
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Thirteen-year-old Nina is thrilled that her parents are letting her attend her aunt's summer camp. Nature and wildlife beckon as well as a group of girls called the Oddballs.
Selkie's Daughter, The
Linda Crotta Brennan
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Can Brigit, whose mom is a magical creature, save her parents and their Nova Scotia village from a curse inflicted by the wrongdoing of some in the community?
Linda Crotta Brennan
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Can Brigit, whose mom is a magical creature, save her parents and their Nova Scotia village from a curse inflicted by the wrongdoing of some in the community?
She'll Be the Sky: Poems by Women and Girls
edited by Ella Risbridger
Illustrator: Anna Shepeta
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Identity, emotions, nature, family, activism, and daily rituals are among the themes of these poems. Colorful illustrations. Engaging introduction.
edited by Ella Risbridger
Illustrator: Anna Shepeta
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Identity, emotions, nature, family, activism, and daily rituals are among the themes of these poems. Colorful illustrations. Engaging introduction.
Sherlock Society, The (Sherlock Society series)
James Ponti
Illustrator: map by Yaoyao Ma Van As
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Summer vaccation in Miami leads four friends to investigate rumors of Al Capone's buried treasure, but they discover a toxic waste dump hat could lead to environmental disaster. Map.
James Ponti
Illustrator: map by Yaoyao Ma Van As
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Summer vaccation in Miami leads four friends to investigate rumors of Al Capone's buried treasure, but they discover a toxic waste dump hat could lead to environmental disaster. Map.
Sick!: The Twists and Turns Behind Animal Germs
Heather L. Montgomery
Illustrator: Lindsey Leigh
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
International scientists explore how different animals cope with pathogens and parasites, and what humans can learn from them. Humorous cartoon-style color illustrations. Sources. Index.
Heather L. Montgomery
Illustrator: Lindsey Leigh
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
International scientists explore how different animals cope with pathogens and parasites, and what humans can learn from them. Humorous cartoon-style color illustrations. Sources. Index.
Signs of Hope: The Revolutionary Art of Sister Corita Kent
Mara Rockliff
Illustrator: Melissa Sweet
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Inspiring quotations from the "pop art" nun who changed the art world in the 1960s. Vbrant mixed-media illustrations with messages of peace, love, and hope. Technique instructions. Back matter.
Mara Rockliff
Illustrator: Melissa Sweet
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Inspiring quotations from the "pop art" nun who changed the art world in the 1960s. Vbrant mixed-media illustrations with messages of peace, love, and hope. Technique instructions. Back matter.
Slugfest
Gordon Korman
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Although a super athlete and a reasonably good student, Yash can't graduate from middle school without taking a state-mandated class (physical education equivalency), in summer school. Can he salvage the summer?
Gordon Korman
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Although a super athlete and a reasonably good student, Yash can't graduate from middle school without taking a state-mandated class (physical education equivalency), in summer school. Can he salvage the summer?
Soldier's Friend, The: Walt Whitman's Extraordinary Service in the American Civil War
Gary Golio
Illustrator: E. B. Lewis
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
After locating his wounded brother hospitalized in Virginia, a future beloved poet provided care and comfort for over 10,000 Civil War soldiers in the nation's capital. Evocative painterly illustrations. Back matter.
Gary Golio
Illustrator: E. B. Lewis
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
After locating his wounded brother hospitalized in Virginia, a future beloved poet provided care and comfort for over 10,000 Civil War soldiers in the nation's capital. Evocative painterly illustrations. Back matter.
Spotting Dottie
Gail Anderson-Dargatz
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Charlotte uses her new gift drone to search for the lake monster. Her film sets off a media flurry and challenges her environmental values.
Gail Anderson-Dargatz
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Charlotte uses her new gift drone to search for the lake monster. Her film sets off a media flurry and challenges her environmental values.
Spying on Spies: How Elizebeth Smith Friedman Broke the Nazis' Secret Codes
Marissa Moss
Illustrator: Marissa Moss
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
A remarkable woman cryptographer worked tirelessly from World War I to her death in 1980 to decipher the messages of criminals and spies. Greyscale graphic-novel style illustrations. Archival photos. Extensive back matter.
Marissa Moss
Illustrator: Marissa Moss
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
A remarkable woman cryptographer worked tirelessly from World War I to her death in 1980 to decipher the messages of criminals and spies. Greyscale graphic-novel style illustrations. Archival photos. Extensive back matter.
Spy Ring
Sarah Beth Durst
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
An inscription on a ring supposedly belonging to Revolutionary War spy Anna Smith Strong inspires two 11-year-olds to try solving her mysterious message. Extensive back matter.
Sarah Beth Durst
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
An inscription on a ring supposedly belonging to Revolutionary War spy Anna Smith Strong inspires two 11-year-olds to try solving her mysterious message. Extensive back matter.
Summer Vamp
Violet Chan Karim
Illustrator: Violet Chan Karim
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Maya, accidentally sent to a (benevolent) vampire camp, unexpectedly makes friends with campers who are very different from her and has a better summer than she anticipated. Bold, colorful panels.
Violet Chan Karim
Illustrator: Violet Chan Karim
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Maya, accidentally sent to a (benevolent) vampire camp, unexpectedly makes friends with campers who are very different from her and has a better summer than she anticipated. Bold, colorful panels.
Telephone of the Tree
Alison McGhee
Illustrator: Danah Kim
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Spare, striking language depicts the grief process of an 11-year-old girl as she moves from magical thinking to acceptance. Heartbreakingly beautiful. Delicate, greyscale spot art.
Alison McGhee
Illustrator: Danah Kim
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Spare, striking language depicts the grief process of an 11-year-old girl as she moves from magical thinking to acceptance. Heartbreakingly beautiful. Delicate, greyscale spot art.
Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman, The
Gennifer Choldenko
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
After his single mother disappears, 11-year-old Hank and his three-year-old sister find themselves at the mercy of friends and the foster care system. Both heartbreaking and heartwarming.
Gennifer Choldenko
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
After his single mother disappears, 11-year-old Hank and his three-year-old sister find themselves at the mercy of friends and the foster care system. Both heartbreaking and heartwarming.
That Curious Thing
Chris Raschka
Illustrator: Chris Raschka
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
When Cleo searches for her pet cat, Muffin, at their Manhattan apartment building, she discovers a secret warring cat spy world and a plan to hold pet dogs for ransom. Whimsical black-and-white spot illustrations.
Chris Raschka
Illustrator: Chris Raschka
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
When Cleo searches for her pet cat, Muffin, at their Manhattan apartment building, she discovers a secret warring cat spy world and a plan to hold pet dogs for ransom. Whimsical black-and-white spot illustrations.
They Call Me No Sam!
Drew Daywalt
Illustrator: Mike Lowery
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
What child hasn't thought that his first name is No? Sam, the dog, is no different! This is his diary of his misadventures. Humorous digital illustrations.
Drew Daywalt
Illustrator: Mike Lowery
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
What child hasn't thought that his first name is No? Sam, the dog, is no different! This is his diary of his misadventures. Humorous digital illustrations.
They Saved the Stallions (World War II Close Up series)
Deborah Hopkinson
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
A riveting chronicle of the heroic efforts to protect the Lipizzaner horses of Vienna during World War II. Archival photos. Extensive back matter.
Deborah Hopkinson
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
A riveting chronicle of the heroic efforts to protect the Lipizzaner horses of Vienna during World War II. Archival photos. Extensive back matter.
This Book Is Full of Holes: From Underground to Outer Space and Everywhere In Between
Nora Nickum
Illustrator: Robert Meganck
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
The causes, functions, locations, and origins of a staggering array of empty spaces, natural and man-made, are depicted through colorful, playful double-page spreads offering contrasting examples. Back matter.
Nora Nickum
Illustrator: Robert Meganck
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
The causes, functions, locations, and origins of a staggering array of empty spaces, natural and man-made, are depicted through colorful, playful double-page spreads offering contrasting examples. Back matter.
Tig
Heather Smith
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Abandoned by her alcoholic mother, Tig, age 11, is rescued by her loving uncle and his partner, but struggles mightily with the abuse she has suffered.
Heather Smith
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Abandoned by her alcoholic mother, Tig, age 11, is rescued by her loving uncle and his partner, but struggles mightily with the abuse she has suffered.
Toypurina: Japchivit Leader, Medicine Woman, Tongva Rebel
Cheyenne M. Stone and Glenda Armand
Illustrator: Katie Dorame
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
In 1785 Toypurina led an unsuccessful rebellion against the Spanish, who encouraged her people to join the San Gabriel mission and then mistreated them. Strong, detailed illustrations. Back matter.
Cheyenne M. Stone and Glenda Armand
Illustrator: Katie Dorame
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
In 1785 Toypurina led an unsuccessful rebellion against the Spanish, who encouraged her people to join the San Gabriel mission and then mistreated them. Strong, detailed illustrations. Back matter.
Tree of Life, The: How a Holocaust Sapling Inspired the World
Elisa Boxer
Illustrator: Alianna Rozentsveig
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Against the odds, a seedling maple, smuggled into a Nazi concentration camp and tended by children and their teacher, survived to propagate hundreds of offspring around the world. Digital illustrations in a muted palette.
Elisa Boxer
Illustrator: Alianna Rozentsveig
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Against the odds, a seedling maple, smuggled into a Nazi concentration camp and tended by children and their teacher, survived to propagate hundreds of offspring around the world. Digital illustrations in a muted palette.
Tree. Table. Book.
Lois Lowry
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
In an effort to help her 87-year-old friend remain in her own home, Sophie, 11, uses cognitive tools to improve her friend's memory, eliciting unexpected and deeply affecting responses.
Lois Lowry
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
In an effort to help her 87-year-old friend remain in her own home, Sophie, 11, uses cognitive tools to improve her friend's memory, eliciting unexpected and deeply affecting responses.
Tryouts (The Brinkley Yearbooks series)
Sarah Sax
Illustrator: Sarah Sax
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
When immensely athletic Al ages out of Little League, she wants to continue playing baseball. Is her new coach jeopardizing the team's success by bringing attention to Al's gender? Bold, colorful art.
Sarah Sax
Illustrator: Sarah Sax
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
When immensely athletic Al ages out of Little League, she wants to continue playing baseball. Is her new coach jeopardizing the team's success by bringing attention to Al's gender? Bold, colorful art.
Turning Twelve
Kathryn Ormsbee
Illustrator: Molly Brooks, colors by Marta Todeschini
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Homeschooled Katie is looking forward to seventh grade and being in the musical Annie, but life gets complicated when she develops a crush on Grace. Set in 2004. Expressive, full-color art.
Kathryn Ormsbee
Illustrator: Molly Brooks, colors by Marta Todeschini
Ages: 9+
Published: 2024
Homeschooled Katie is looking forward to seventh grade and being in the musical Annie, but life gets complicated when she develops a crush on Grace. Set in 2004. Expressive, full-color art.