Black History Preview: 2011.
Wilkinson, Joanne (author).
First published December 15, 2011 (Booklist).

For those readers anxious to get a head start planning Black History Month activities or ordering relevant titles, we are offering our thirteenth annual Black History Preview. It is intended to provide an overview of some of the books by and about African Americans to be published in upcoming months. The titles are based on lists submitted to us by both adult and youth publishers. Because we have not seen many of these titles yet, we can’t offer recommendations at this point, but we will be considering them for review as galleys arrive in the office in the coming weeks. Think of this Preview as part 1 of our Black History Month coverage.

 

Books for Youth

Nonfiction

Athletes. By Adam Sutherland. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448866403).

Black Indians: A Hidden Heritage. By William Loren Katz. Jan. 2012. 272p. Atheneum, $19.99 (9781442446366).

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind. By William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer. Jan. 2012. 32p. Dial, $16.99 (9780803735118).

Carmelo Anthony. By Sloan MacRae. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448861606).

Chad Ochocinco. By Sloan MacRae. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448861620).

Ciara. By Maeve Griffin. Mar. 2012. 32p. Gareth Stevens, $25.25 (9781433966002).

Civil-Rights Activists. By Debbie Foy. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448866830).

Condoleezza Rice: A Memoir of My Extraordinary, Ordinary Family and Me. By Condoleezza Rice. Jan. 2012. 336p. Ember, paper, $8.99 (9780385738804).

Coretta Scott King. By Maria Nelson. Dec. 2011. 24p. Gareth Stevens, $22.60 (9781433956782).

Drake. By Robert Kennedy. Mar. 2012. 32p. Gareth Stevens, $25.25 (9781433966040).

Etched in Clay: The Life of Dave, Enslaved Potter and Poet. By Andrea Cheng. May 2012. 144p. Lee & Low, $17.95 (9781600604515).

Frederick Douglass for Kids. By Nancy Sanders. June 2012. 144p. Chicago Review, paper, $16.95 (9781569767177).

Freedom Song: The Story of Henry “Box” Brown. By Sally M. Walker. Jan. 2012. 40p. HarperCollins, $17.99 (9780060583101).

Freedom’s a-Callin’ Me. By Ntozake Shange. Jan. 2012. 32p. HarperCollins/Amistad, $16.99 (9780061337413).

Heart of a Champion: The Dominique Dawes Story. By Kim Washburn. May 2012. 128p. Zonderkidz, paper, $6.99 (9780310722687).

It Jes’ Happened: When Bill Traylor Started to Draw. By Don Tate. Apr. 2012. 32p. Lee & Low, $17.95 (9781600602603).

Jaden Smith. By Gillian Gosman. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448861910).

Jay-Z: Hip-Hop Icon. By Jessica Gunderson. Jan. 2012. 32p. Capstone, $21.99 (9781429660174).

Jesse Jackson. By Barbara Linde. Dec. 2011. 24p. Gareth Stevens, $22.60 (9781433956829).

Just as Good: How Larry Doby Changed America’s Game. By Chris Crowe. Jan. 2012. 32p. Candlewick, $16.99 (9780763650261).

Kamakwie: Finding Peace, Love and Injustice in Sierra Leone. By Kathleen Martin. Jan. 2012. 176p. Red Deer, paper, $19.95 (9780889954724).

Kanye West. By Ethan Grucella. Mar. 2012. 32p. Gareth Stevens, $25.25 (9781433966125).

Kevin Durant: Basketball Superstar. By Matt Doeden. Jan. 2012. 24p. Capstone, $17.99 (9781429676823).

King of Pop: The Story of Michael Jackson. By Terry Collins. Jan. 2012. 32p. Capstone, $21.99 (9781429660150).

Making a Splash: The Cullen Jones Story. By Natalie Davis Miller. May 2012. 128p. Zonderkidz, paper, $6.99 (9780310726333).

Malcolm X. By Barbara Linde. Dec. 2011. 24p. Gareth Stevens, $22.60 (9781433956867).

Martin Luther King Jr. By Barbara Linde. Dec. 2011. 24p. Gareth Stevens, $22.60 (9781433956904).

Maya Moore. By Jeff Savage. Mar. 2012. 32p. Lerner, lib. ed., $25.26 (9780761386377).

Musicians. By Debbie Foy. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448866373).

My Beautiful Daughter: What It Means to Be Loved by God. By Tasha L. Douglas. Apr. 2012. 176p. Zonderkidz, paper, $8.99 (9780310726432).

My First Biography: Abraham Lincoln. By Marion Dane Bauer. Illus. by Liz Boulet Dubois. Jan. 2012. 32p. Scholastic, paper, $3.99 (9780545342940)

Political Leaders. By Adam Sutherland. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448866397).

Praise Song for the Day: A Poem for Barack Obama’s Presidential Inauguration. By Elizabeth Alexander. Feb. 2012. 32p. HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen, $16.99 (9780061926631).

Prince Fielder. By Jeff Savage. Mar. 2012. 32p. Lerner, lib. ed., $25.26 (9780761386681).

Queen Latifah: From Jersey Girl to Superstar. By Amy Ruth Allen. May 2012. 112p. Twenty-First Century, lib. ed., $33.26 (9780761342342).

Rajon Rondo. By Sloan MacRae. Mar. 2012. 24p. Rosen, $21.25 (9781448861651).

Rosa Parks. By Barbara Linde. Dec. 2011. 24p. Gareth Stevens, $22.60 (9781433956942).

Russell Simmons: From Def Jam to Super Rich. By Carrie Golus. May 2012. 112p. Twenty-First Century, lib. ed., $33.26 (9780761381570).

Snoop Dogg. By Kevin Pearce Shea. Mar. 2012. 32p. Gareth Stevens, $25.25 (9781433966200).

Stars in the Shadows: The Negro League All-Star Game of 1934. By Charles R. Smith. Illus. by Frank Morrison. Jan. 2012. 112p. Atheneum, $14.99 (9780689866388).

Thurgood Marshall. By Barbara Linde. Dec. 2011. 24p. Gareth Stevens, $22.60 (9781433956980).

To the Mountaintop: My Journey through the Civil Rights Movement. By Charlayne Hunter-Gault. Jan. 2012. 208p. Roaring Brook/Macmillan Children’s, $22.99 (9781596436053).

Touch the Sky: Alice Coachman, Olympic High Jumper. By Ann Malaspina. Jan. 2012. 32p. Albert Whitman, $16.99 (9780807580356).

Twice as Good: The Story of William Powell and Clearview, the Only Golf Course Designed, Built, and Owned by an African American. By Richard Michelson. Jan. 2012. 32p. Sleeping Bear, $16.95 (9781585364664).

We March. By Shane W. Evans. Jan. 2012. 32p. Roaring Brook/Macmillan Children’s, $16.99 (9781596435391).

We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March. By Cynthia Y. Levinson. Feb. 2012. 192p. Peachtree, $18.95 (9781561456277).

What Color Is My World? The Lost History of African-American Inventors. By Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Jan. 2012. 44p. Candlewick, $17.99 (9780763645649).

When I Get Older: The Story behind “Wavin’ Flag.” By K’NAAN. Illus. by Rudy Gutierrez. Apr. 2012. 32p. Tundra, $17.95 (9781770493025).

When Jackie and Hank Met. By Cathy Goldberg Fishman. Mar. 2012. 40p. Marshall Cavendish, $17.99 (9780761461401).

Words Set Me Free: The Story of Young Frederick Douglass. By Lesa Cline-Ransome. Jan. 2012. 32p. Paula Wiseman, $16.99 (9781416959038).

 

Fiction

African-American Classics: Graphic Classics, v.24. Ed. by Tom Pomplun and Lance Tooks. Dec. 2011. 144p. Eureka, paper, $17.95 (9780982563069).

Black Boy White School. By Brian F. Walker. Jan. 2012. 256p. HarperTeen, $17.99 (9780061914836).

Baby Flo. By Alan Schroeder. Apr. 2012. 40p. Lee & Low, $18.95 (9781600604102).

Bluford High #11: The Fallen. By Paul Langan. Jan. 2012. 144p. Scholastic, paper, $5.99 (9780545391146).

Bluford High #12: Shattered. By Paul Langan. Jan. 2012. 128p. Scholastic, paper, $5.99 (9780545342940).

Brave Music of a Distant Drum. By Manu Herbstein. Feb. 2012. 192p. Red Deer, paper, $12.95 (9780889954700).

Cali Boys. By Kelli London. Apr. 2012. 256p. KTeen/Dafina, paper, $9.95 (9780758261298).

Creeping with the Enemy. By Kimberly Reid. May 2012. 256p. KTeen/Dafina, paper, $9.95 (9780758267412).

Don’t Think about Tomorrow. By Anne Schraff. Jan. 2012. 198p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616516642).

Edge of Ready. By L. B. Tillit. Feb. 2012. 192p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616517786).

Ellen’s Broom. By Kelly Starling Lyons. Jan. 2012. 32p. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399250033).

Ellray Jakes Walks the Plank! By Sally Warner. Mar. 2012. 128p. Viking, $14.99 (9780670063062).

Glory Be. By Augusta Scattergood. Jan. 2012. 224p. Scholastic, $16.99 (9780545331807).

Holding Back. By Jada Jones. Feb. 2012. 129p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616517755).

I Lay My Stitches Down. By Cynthia Grady. Illus. by Michele Wood. Jan. 2012. 34p. Eerdmans, $17 (9780802853868).

Jazz Age Josephine: Dancer, Singer—Who’s That, Who? Why, That’s MISS Josephine Baker, to You! By Jonah Winter. Jan. 2012. 40p. Atheneum, $16.99 (9781416961239).

Jimmy the Greatest. By Jairo Buitrago. May 2012. 52p. Groundwood, $18.95 (9781554981786).

Just as Good: How Larry Doby Changed America’s Game. By Chris Crow. Illus. by Mike Benny. Jan. 2012. 32p. Candlewick, $32 (9780763650261).

Keepin’ Her Man. By Shay Jackson. Feb. 2012. 114p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616517748).

King of the Mound: My Summer with Satchel Paige. By Wes Tooke. Feb. 2012. 160p. Simon & Schuster, $15.99 (9781442433465).

Letters to Missy Violet. By Barbara Hathaway. Jan. 2012. 112p. Houghton, $15.99 (9780547677750).

The Lions of Little Rock. By Kristin Levine. Jan. 2012. 304p. Putnam, $16.99 (9780399256448).

Living Violet. By Jaime Reed. Jan. 2012. 320p. KTeen/Dafina, paper, $9.95 (9780758269249).

The Mighty Miss Malone. By Christopher Paul Curtis. Jan. 2012. 224p. Random/Wendy Lamb, $15.99 (9780385734912).

My Heart Will Not Sit Down. By Mara Rockliff. Illus. by Ann Tanksley. Jan. 2012. 40p. Knopf, $17.99 (9780375845697).

No Crystal Stair. By Vaunda Micheaux Nelson. Feb. 2012. 208p. Carolrhoda Lab, $17.95 (9780761361695).

On the Flip Side. By Nikki Carter. Mar. 2012. 256p. KTeen/Dafina, paper, $9.95 (9780758272690).

Out of Love for You. By Anne Schraff. Jan. 2012. 202p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616516659).

The Outcasts. By Anne Schraff. Jan. 2012. 201p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616516628).

The Rescuers. By Anne Schraff. Jan. 2012. 200p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616516666).

Riding on Duke’s Train. By Mick Carlon. Jan. 2012. 172p. Leapfrog, paper, $9.95 (9781935248064).

See No Evil. By Anne Schraff. Jan. 2012. 202p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616516635).

2 Days. By L. B. Tillit. Feb. 2012. 198p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616517939).

Unchained. By L. B. Tillit. Feb. 2012. 197p. Saddleback Educational, paper, $8.95 (9781616517922).

Under the Baobob Tree. By Julie Stiegemeyer. May 2012. 32p. Zonderkidz, $16.99 (9780310725619).

What Color Is My World? The Lost History of African-American Inventors. By Raymond Obstfeld. Illus. by Ben Boos and A. G. Ford. Jan. 2012. 44p. Candlewick, $17.99 (9780763645649).

When Grandmama Sings. By Margaree King Mitchell. Jan. 2012. 40p. Amistad, $16.99 (9780688175634).

 

Youth Video

The Other Side. By Jacqueline Woodson. Illus. by E. B Lewis. Jan. 2012. Weston Woods, DVD $59.95 (9780545447546); book/CD, $29.95 (9780545448116).

 

Youth Audio

Stealing Freedom. By Elisa Carbone. Read by Robin Miles. Feb. 2012. AudioGO, CD, $59.95 (9781935430582).