Books like The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander

A classic poem about Santa Claus coming to life on Christmas Eve.

Josh and his twin brother Jordan navigate high school, basketball, and the changing bond between them through verses of rhyme and the thrill of the game.

Newbery Honor Book National Book Award Finalist

A gifted and rebellious runner is pulled onto a top middle‑school track squad, where he must confront personal and family challenges while discovering his true potential.

In a tense sixty seconds, a young boy faces a choice that will determine whether he seeks revenge for his brother’s death or walks away from violence.

In Harlem, Xiomara Batista learns to use her voice and verse to fight for herself and her dreams, turning lyrical poetry into her most powerful tool.

Poems for innocent and experienced travelers

Jade dreams of escape from her rough neighborhood and seizes a scholarship to a predominantly‑white private school, but faces the challenges of fitting in and navigating mentorship programs aimed at at‑risk Black girls.

Poet Marilyn Nelson shares fifty intimate poems that chronicle her growth as a young woman and artist in 1950s America, blending personal biography with the Civil Rights era’s turbulent history.

Twelve‑year‑old Chuck Bell spends a summer in 1988 with his grandparents in Washington, D.C., where he discovers the rhythms of jazz and the thrill of basketball while uncovering his family’s hidden history.

Elizabeth Alexander surveys contemporary African‑American artistic life, from classic writers like Gwendolyn Brooks, Langston Hughes, and Rita Dove to modern voices, while examining key cultural moments and figures in literature, visual art, and cinema.

Poems about the life of a forest at night.

Poems that trace the lives of African Americans bound by slavery, moving from Southern plantations to Northern homes, and woven together with quilting imagery and folk traditions.

A poetic exploration of the 20th-century Great Migration, where African Americans left the South for new opportunities in the North.

Presents the full range of Black American poetry, from slave songs to the present day. In addition, most poets are presented in depth.

It was February 1, 1960.They didn't need menus. Their order was simple.A doughnut and coffee, with cream on the side.This picture book is a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the momentous Woolworth's lunch counter sit-in, when four college students staged a peaceful protest that became a defining moment in the struggle for racial equality and the growing civil rights movement. Andrea Davis Pinkney uses poetic, powerful prose to tell the story of these four young men, who followed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s words of peaceful protest and dared to sit at the "whites only" Woolworth's lunch counter. Brian Pinkney embraces a new artistic style, creating expressive paintings filled with emotion that mirror the hope, strength, and determination that fueled the dreams of not only these four young men, but also countless others.

Through lyrical verse, Margarita Engle paints a moving portrait of Cuba’s enduring struggle for freedom, weaving history and poetry to confront the nation’s past and present.

A young girl expresses what she loves about life.

A story of African American resilience in the face of American slavery, spanning from a village in Africa to the South.

A poetic journey through the Underground Railroad and the pursuit of freedom for African Americans.