Happy 4th of July

Great All-American Classics

This year, the holiday might feel a bit different than usual but we still wanted to highlight a few books to help celebrate. In between a plate (or two) of barbecue, check out this list of All-American classics. Some are older and traditional, while some are newer and more out-of-the box, either way we hope you enjoy them. 

Little Women
By Louisa May Alcott
eBook|Audiobook
The Testaments
By Margaret Atwood
eBook|Audiobook
1984
By George Orwell
eBook|Audiobook
The Color Purple
By Alice Walker
eBook|Book

Black Lives Matter: Community Reads on Overdrive

Push the conversation on antiracism, race relations, and social justice even further with eBooks on Overdrive. Here’s a quick selection of books that are available to download with no wait. 

This New York Times bestseller published in January 2020 is based on the viral #meandwhitesupremacy Instagram challenge and provides a framework for readers to dismantle the privilege within themselves.

The New Jim Crow
By Michelle Alexander
Audiobook|eBook

Named one of the Most Influential Books of the Last 20 Years by the Chronicle of Higher Education and winner of the NAACP Image Award for Nonfiction, Alexander’s critically acclaimed book examines racial disparities through the lens of mass incarceration.

The Hate U Give
By Angie Thomas
Audiobook|eBook

This bestselling young adult novel follows Starr, a Black teenager caught between the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these two worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her unarmed best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer.

Adult Summer Challenge Reviews, Imagine Your Story Part 1

Valerie S. on Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler: Another delicious helping of contemporary life in Baltimore — just before coronavirus — that ended too quickly and left me wanting more. Tyler’s main characters are usually funny and fallible. This novel is no exception. A perfect summer read.

Redhead by the Side of the Road
Anne Tyler
Book|eBook|Audiobook

Michael M. on Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo: Evaristo opened my eyes with this gorgeous semi-prose book. Identity can be an obstacle, but it can also be a fountain of joy when fully realized. Many characters fall into unhealthy relationships with an imbalance of power. Past trauma, mistreatment, or marginalization leads the characters to trust and rely on people who ultimately take advantage of them. It’s a compelling and crucial read with as broad a range of emotions as possible.

Girl, Woman, Other
Bernardine Evaristo
Book|eBook

Ashley S. on The Conscious Parent by Shefali Tsabary: This is a must-read for every parent who is interested in helping their children blossom and grow.

The Conscious Parent
Shefali Tsabary
Book

Rachel P. on A Summer in Sonoma by Robyn Carr: A book about friends whose ideals about love and marriage are tested and true friendships and true love are shown to hold up when communication and trust are a part of the recipe. A fun read!

A Summer in Sonoma
Robyn Carr
eBook|Audiobook

Stephanie H. on My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite: A fast-paced and immersive read. Fun use of language and first-person narrative.

My Sister, the Serial Killer
Oyinkan Braithwait
Book|eBook|Audiobook

Yana C. on White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo: …Truly required reading for every white person in America. She does a great job of clearly explaining concepts like prejudice, discrimination, racism, white privilege, white supremacy, and of course, white fragility. Straightforward yet will really challenge your views and get you out of your comfort zones, both for those who do not understand their role in the system but also for those white progressives who feel “woke.:”

White Fragility
Robin DiAngelo
Book|eBook|Audiobook

Join the fun! For a chance to win fabulous prizes in the Adult Summer Challenge, create a free Beanstack account and log each book you finish between June 17 and August 12.

Gay Pride and Black Lives

By Emily Sachs, African American Department

Each year in June, Baltimore and other cities across the U.S. host Gay Pride parades and festivals.  These events celebrate LGBTQ+ lives and commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, a protest against police brutality that catalyzed the modern Gay Rights Movement. 

Sister Outsider
By Audre Lorde
Book|eBook|Audio

Unapologetic
By Charlene A. Carruthers

Book|eBook|Audio

This year the 50th anniversary of the first Pride march is different, with many large, in-person Pride events cancelled.  The country is reeling under a historic pandemic that has disproportionately affected Black people and communities of color.  The health crisis is also occurring amidst a backdrop of ongoing protests focused on ending the killing of Black people by police, confronting systemic racism, and dismantling white supremacy.  

The Truth that Never Hurts
By Barbara Smith

Book

How We Fight for our Lives
By Saeed Jones

Book|eBook

Pride month has brought increased public discussion around the intersection of the LGBTQ+ and Black Lives Matter movements.    We see it acknowledged, at least aesthetically, by organizations who this year have opted to display Pride flags that include black and brown stripes, an acknowledgement of the unique inequities experienced by Black and Brown LGBTQ+ people.  We see it on the cover of Time Magazine, where Baltimore photographer Devin Allen captured a scene from a recent march against police brutality organized by the Black transgender community in Baltimore.  We see it in interviews with The Pride Center of Maryland (the host of Baltimore Pride) that discuss this year’s realignment of Baltimore Pride with Black Lives Matter.

Don’t Call Us Dead
By Danez Smith

Book|eBook|Audio
Black on Both Sides
By C. Riley Snorton

Book|eBook

With Baltimore Pride cancelled this year, Pratt Library staff will miss seeing you in the streets and talking to you in Druid Hill Park.  Instead we invite you to check out our books and movies to learn more about the intersections of race, gender, sexual orientation, and other social identities.

In addition to our books, eBooks and Audio books, below you’ll find a few film titles from the Kanopy catalog, but we have many more.  Write to us on Facebook or Twitter to share your own recommendations we’d love to hear from you. 

The New Black: LGBT Rights in African American Communities
Watch film
The Watermelon Woman
Watch film
Passing – Profiling the Lives of Young Transmen of Color
Watch film
Naz & Maalik
Watch film

Diverse Reads for Middle Schoolers

Just in time for summer break! Here’s a look at a few diverse books, perfect for middle school students.


For Black Girls Like Me
By Mariama Lockington

Makeda June Kirkland is eleven-years-old, adopted, and black. Her parents and big sister are white, and even though she loves her family very much, Makeda often feels left out. When Makeda’s family moves from Maryland to New Mexico, she leaves behind her best friend, Lena- the only other adopted black girl she knows- for a new life.

Book | eBook | eAudio

Harbor Me
By Jacqueline Woodson

When the six students start meeting together weekly, they can express the feelings and fears they have to hide from the rest of the world. And together, they can grow braver and more ready for the rest of their lives.

Book | eBook

Infinite Hope
By Ashley Bryan

From celebrated author and illustrator Ashley Bryan comes a deeply moving picture book memoir about serving in the segregated army during World War II, and how love and the pursuit of art sustained him.

Book | eBook

Finding Langston
By Lesa Cline Ransome

When eleven-year-old Langston’s father moves them from their home in Alabama to Chicago’s Bronzeville district, it feels like he’s giving up everything he loves. Until he finds the Chicago Public Library welcomes everyone. There, Langston discovers another Langston—a poet whom he learns inspired his mother enough to name her only son after him.

Book | eBook | eAudio

The Season of Styx Malone
By Kekla Magoon

Meet Caleb and Bobby Gene, two brothers embarking on a madcap, heartwarming, one-thing-leads-to-another adventure in which friendships are forged, loyalties are tested . . . and miracles just might happen.

Book | eBook | eAudio

Brave. Black. First.
By Cheryl Hudson

Published in collaboration with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, discover over fifty remarkable African American women whose unique skills and contributions paved the way for the next generation of young people.

Book | eBook


For more Diverse Reads check out these titles.

A Good Kind of Trouble
By Lisa Moore Ramée
Book | eBook
Black Brother, Black Brother
By Jewell Parker Rhodes
Book | eBook
Clean Getaway
By Nic Stone
Book | eBook

From the Desk of Zoe Washington
By Janae Marks
Book | eBook

Ghost Boys
By Jewell Parker Rhodes
Book | eBook
Look Both Ways
By Jason Reynolds
Book | eBook
Pathfinders
By Tonya Bolden
Book | eBook
The Only Black Girls in Town
By Brandy Colbert
Book | ebook
The Stars Beneath Our Feet
By David Barclay Moore
Book | eBook

Looking for more diverse books to read? Check out the Pratt’s collection of Diverse Reads for Middle Schoolers.