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/.

How to Perform a Search and Save a List

Where the Watermelons Grow

by Cindy Baldwin

Ages: 12+

Published: 2018

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

ISBN: 978-0-06-266586-7

Keywords: Mental Illness, Farm Life, Community

Her mother's recurring schizophrenia forces 12-year-old Della to cope with overwhelming family responsibilities. A supportive, loving rural community help, but there are no easy solutions.