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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Windswept
Margi Preus
Illustrator: Armando Veve
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Despite her parents' objections, Tag is determined to find her sisters, who have been swept away in a storm. A modern tale based on ancient Norwegian folklore. Finely detailed black-and-white spot illustrations.
Margi Preus
Illustrator: Armando Veve
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Despite her parents' objections, Tag is determined to find her sisters, who have been swept away in a storm. A modern tale based on ancient Norwegian folklore. Finely detailed black-and-white spot illustrations.
Witchlings (Witchlings series)
Claribel A. Ortega
Illustrator: Lissy Marlin
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Can three 12-year-old Spare Witchlings, unlikely companions, avoid being turned into toads forever by working together to defeat the dreaded Nightbeast and completing the impossible task? Black-and-white spot illustrations.
Claribel A. Ortega
Illustrator: Lissy Marlin
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Can three 12-year-old Spare Witchlings, unlikely companions, avoid being turned into toads forever by working together to defeat the dreaded Nightbeast and completing the impossible task? Black-and-white spot illustrations.
Witch, the Sword, and the Cursed Knights, The
Alexandria Rogers
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
A misunderstood, underappreciated witch, and a boy from Wisconsin, mourning his friend's death, are recruited to break the curse that felled the legendary kingdom of Camelot.
Alexandria Rogers
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
A misunderstood, underappreciated witch, and a boy from Wisconsin, mourning his friend's death, are recruited to break the curse that felled the legendary kingdom of Camelot.
Wolf Suit, The
Sid Sharp
Illustrator: Sid Sharp
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Looking for a way to move freely in the forest, a sheep crafts and dons a wolf costume. Colorful, emotive illustrations.
Sid Sharp
Illustrator: Sid Sharp
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Looking for a way to move freely in the forest, a sheep crafts and dons a wolf costume. Colorful, emotive illustrations.
Wreck at Ada's Reef (The Swallowtail Legacy series)
Michael D. Beil
Illustrator: Torborg Davern
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Hired for the summer by her mother's best friend, 12-year-old Lark works on solving the mystery of a 75-year-old boating accident. Black and white illustrations. Maps
Michael D. Beil
Illustrator: Torborg Davern
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
Hired for the summer by her mother's best friend, 12-year-old Lark works on solving the mystery of a 75-year-old boating accident. Black and white illustrations. Maps
Yellow Dog Blues
Alice Faye Duncan
Illustrator: Chris Raschka
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
A Black boy searches for the classic blues song. Joyful language. Illustrations created with fabric paint and embroidery on canvas. Back matter.
Alice Faye Duncan
Illustrator: Chris Raschka
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
A Black boy searches for the classic blues song. Joyful language. Illustrations created with fabric paint and embroidery on canvas. Back matter.
Yonder
Ali Standish
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
In 1943, after his abused friend Jack disappears, Danny Timmons, 13, tries to figure out where he went, using the only clue he has—a place called Yonder.
Ali Standish
Ages: 9+
Published: 2022
In 1943, after his abused friend Jack disappears, Danny Timmons, 13, tries to figure out where he went, using the only clue he has—a place called Yonder.
1619 Project, The: Born on the Water
Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson
Illustrator: Nikkolas Smith
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
When a young Black girl comes home upset over a school assignment, her grandmother teachs her 400 years of her history, beginning in 1619. Free verse, expressive illustrations.
Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renée Watson
Illustrator: Nikkolas Smith
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
When a young Black girl comes home upset over a school assignment, her grandmother teachs her 400 years of her history, beginning in 1619. Free verse, expressive illustrations.
37 Days at Sea aboard the M.S. St. Louis, 1939
Barbara Krasner
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Ruthie, 12, recounts in emotive blank verse, how she, her family, and 937 other Jews bound for Cuba to escape the Nazis were denied admittance. Notes, timeline, bibliography.
Barbara Krasner
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Ruthie, 12, recounts in emotive blank verse, how she, her family, and 937 other Jews bound for Cuba to escape the Nazis were denied admittance. Notes, timeline, bibliography.
Accidental Apprentice, The (Wilderlore)
Amanda Foody
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Dullshire is the only home Barclay has ever known. Having accidentally used magic in the woods, will he be driven away and sent into the wilderness?
Amanda Foody
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Dullshire is the only home Barclay has ever known. Having accidentally used magic in the woods, will he be driven away and sent into the wilderness?
Across the Desert
Dusti Bowling
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Jolene is the only person who knows that a 12-year-old pilot has crashed in the desert. With a mother struggling with opioid addiction, Jolene tackles this life-or-death situation alone.
Dusti Bowling
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Jolene is the only person who knows that a 12-year-old pilot has crashed in the desert. With a mother struggling with opioid addiction, Jolene tackles this life-or-death situation alone.
Across the Rainbow Bridge: Stories of Norse Gods and Humans
Kevin Crossley-Holland
Illustrator: Jeffrey Alan Love
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Fallible, capricious, and enigmatic, these gods of the Scandinavian peoples interact with humans when the mood takes them, with unpredictable results. Haunting limited-palette illustrations.
Kevin Crossley-Holland
Illustrator: Jeffrey Alan Love
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Fallible, capricious, and enigmatic, these gods of the Scandinavian peoples interact with humans when the mood takes them, with unpredictable results. Haunting limited-palette illustrations.
Adventure is Now, The
Jess Redman
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Shipped to remote Lone Island to spend the summer with his uncle, Milton P. Greene needs to find fanciful flora and fauna to save the island.
Jess Redman
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Shipped to remote Lone Island to spend the summer with his uncle, Milton P. Greene needs to find fanciful flora and fauna to save the island.
Allergic
Megan Wagner Lloyd
Illustrator: Michelle Mee Nutter
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Longing for a dog but thwarted by allergies, ten-year-old Maggie searches for a suitable pet with the help of her new friend. Warm, clear art.
Megan Wagner Lloyd
Illustrator: Michelle Mee Nutter
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Longing for a dog but thwarted by allergies, ten-year-old Maggie searches for a suitable pet with the help of her new friend. Warm, clear art.
Amazing Treasures: 100+ Objects and Places That Will Boggle Your Mind
David Long
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
From sunken treasure to architectural and natural wonders, each of 25 topics is filled with pages of colorful illustrations and short explanatory texts. Glosssary. Sources.
David Long
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
From sunken treasure to architectural and natural wonders, each of 25 topics is filled with pages of colorful illustrations and short explanatory texts. Glosssary. Sources.
Amina's Song
Hena Kham
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
A visit to Lahore is transformative for Pakistani-American Amina, but her friends back home don't seem interested. How can she share her love for Pakistan?
Hena Kham
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
A visit to Lahore is transformative for Pakistani-American Amina, but her friends back home don't seem interested. How can she share her love for Pakistan?
Amira and Hamza: The War to Save the Worlds
Samira Ahmed
Illustrator: Kim Ekdahl
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Siblings Amira, 12, and Hamza, 10, accidentally enter a parallel world, filled with characters from Islamic folklore, where they have been chosen to prevent evil forces from taking over Earth. (map, glossary)
Samira Ahmed
Illustrator: Kim Ekdahl
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Siblings Amira, 12, and Hamza, 10, accidentally enter a parallel world, filled with characters from Islamic folklore, where they have been chosen to prevent evil forces from taking over Earth. (map, glossary)
Animals to the Rescue!: Amazing True Stories from around the World (Sandra Markle's Science Discoveries series)
Sandra Markle
Illustrator: stock photography
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Photographs and descriptive anecdotes, tell the stories of how animals including dogs, whales, cats, and rhinoceros rescued people and other animals in distress.
Sandra Markle
Illustrator: stock photography
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Photographs and descriptive anecdotes, tell the stories of how animals including dogs, whales, cats, and rhinoceros rescued people and other animals in distress.
Annie Lumsden, the Girl from the Sea
David Almond
Illustrator: Beatrice Alemagna
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
A mother's love and imaginative story telling embolden a girl with disabilities to embrace her uniqueness. Muted watercolor illustrations.
David Almond
Illustrator: Beatrice Alemagna
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
A mother's love and imaginative story telling embolden a girl with disabilities to embrace her uniqueness. Muted watercolor illustrations.
Aquí era el paraíso: Selección de poemas de Humberto Ak'abal/ Here Was Paradise: Selected Poems of Humberto Ak'abal
Edited by Patricia Aldana
Illustrator: Amelia Lau Carling
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Ak'abal's poetry, originally written in K'iche and translated into Spanish by the Mayan poet, in an attractive, bilingual edition, illustrated with vibrant mixed media images.
Edited by Patricia Aldana
Illustrator: Amelia Lau Carling
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Ak'abal's poetry, originally written in K'iche and translated into Spanish by the Mayan poet, in an attractive, bilingual edition, illustrated with vibrant mixed media images.
Atlantis: The Accidental Invasion
Gregory Mone
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Twelve-year-old Lewis, his eccentric, scientist father, and his father's genius assistant collide deep underwater with 14-year-old Kaya, an inhabitant of the secret world of Atlantis.
Gregory Mone
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Twelve-year-old Lewis, his eccentric, scientist father, and his father's genius assistant collide deep underwater with 14-year-old Kaya, an inhabitant of the secret world of Atlantis.
Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna
Alda P. Dobbs
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
In 1913, Petra and her family flee their Mexican village to escape military forces and travel across the desert to the United States. Author's note and timeline. (27)
Alda P. Dobbs
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
In 1913, Petra and her family flee their Mexican village to escape military forces and travel across the desert to the United States. Author's note and timeline. (27)
Beatryce Prophecy, The
Kate DiCamillo
Illustrator: Sophie Blackall
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Hunted, a girl, assisted by a goat, a boy and a monk, fights evil forces to find her rightful place as royalty in this fairytale/medieval epic. Stylized illustrations.
Kate DiCamillo
Illustrator: Sophie Blackall
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Hunted, a girl, assisted by a goat, a boy and a monk, fights evil forces to find her rightful place as royalty in this fairytale/medieval epic. Stylized illustrations.
Being Clem (Finding Langston Trilogy, #3)
Lesa Cline-Ransome
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
After his father dies in an infamous disaster during WWII, Clem, a brilliant student, grapples with his own fears until he meets Langston, who helps him regain balance.
Lesa Cline-Ransome
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
After his father dies in an infamous disaster during WWII, Clem, a brilliant student, grapples with his own fears until he meets Langston, who helps him regain balance.
Ben Yokoyama and the Cookie of Doom (Cookie Chronicles, Vol. 1)
Matthew Swanson
Illustrator: Robbi Behr
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Ben's fortune cookie advises him to live each day as if it were his last. What can he cram in? Digital and hand-painted illustrations convey the ensuing manic hilarity.
Matthew Swanson
Illustrator: Robbi Behr
Ages: 9+
Published: 2021
Ben's fortune cookie advises him to live each day as if it were his last. What can he cram in? Digital and hand-painted illustrations convey the ensuing manic hilarity.