Multicultural Book List

The list below holds 10 multicultural novels that could be read with students 3rd-5th grade. The topics span topics of race, gender, age, homelessness, ability, socioeconomic status, family structure, and health. Reading these books as a whole class or in literature circles will provide students the opportunity to learn about cultures unlike their own.

1. A Whole New Ball Game- A Rip and Red Book by Phil Bildner; illustrated by Tim Probert: Rip and Red are best friends starting 5th grade. They have a new teacher with tattoos and unusual teaching methods. Red, who has autism, has to learn to cope with the changes with the help of his friend Rip.
2. Rules by Cynthia Lord: Twelve-year-old Catherine has a younger brother with autism. He often embarrasses her in public, so she tries to teach him rules to be “normal.” Throughout the story, Catherine comes to understand and accept her brother, as well as make some new friends with different abilities along the way.
3. Kevin Keeps Up by Ann Whitehead Nagda: Kevin has attention deficit disorder and has trouble focusing in class and sitting still. He struggles with teachers who make him work through recess, but other teachers help him gain coping strategies, and supportive friends help him stay on task. Kevin is able to keep up and accomplish his goals.
4. One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia: Delphine is like a mother to her two sisters. Their real mother left them seven years ago to go to California. The girls spend the summer visiting their mom in California, attending a day camp run by Black Panthers and learning about their family and their heritage.
5. The Parker Inheritance by Jan Carr: Candace finds a letter from her grandmother that tells her of a treasure. With the help of her neighbor, the two tweens try to hunt down the treasure. While on the hunt, they face prejudice based on their race and sexuality, as well as learn about the racism that Candace’s grandmother faced during the 1950s-60s. 
6. Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel: A Modern Retelling of Little Women by Rey Terciero with illustrations by Bre Indigo: The girls’ are part of a mixed race, blended family living in NYC. Their father is fighting overseas and they must take their part to support the family. The book deals with racism, women’s rights, and the differences in families.
7. Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan: Esperanza lives the first-class life in Mexico until disaster strikes her family. She is forced to move to America during the Great Depression and learn how to work. She battles with issues of class, health, age, and race. 
8. No Fixed Address by Susan Nielson: Thirteen-year-old Felix and his mother live in their van. It is a secret he hides from his friends and school, but the smart, trivia loving boy hopes to help his mother figure out a way out of homelessness. 
9. How Tia Lola Came to (Visit) Stay by Julia Alvariez: Miguel has to move to Vermont after his parents’ divorce, but his Tia Lola is able to come from the Dominican Republic to help his mom take care of him. Miguel explores this new family dynamic and what it is like to be a part of two cultures. 
10. The War with Grandpa by Robert Kimmel Smith: Peter’s Grandpa comes to live with him and moves into Peter’s old room. The two of them go to war over the room, ending in a great friendship between the two. 

Esperanza Rising- Diversity of all kinds

I read the book Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan both as a child and as an adult. Both times the book was captivating and appealing. In the novel, 10-year-old Esperanza is faced with many challenges and tragedies to overcome, one of which is moving from a privileged life in Mexico to an immigrant work camp in California. Esperanza goes from beautiful dresses and dolls to learning how to sweep and care for herself for the first time.

This book deals with race, social class, death, age, health, and much more. As the protagonist faces these difficulties, the reader is pulled into her story and roots for the younger girl's family.

This is a great novel for 3rd-5th graders to learn about various diverse topics. To find out more, watch the book trailer below.

Why is multicultural Literature important to you?

It is important to me because these books can make minority children feel recognized and inspired. It gives them a chance to see themselves in characters and authors and knows that they can be successful. Multicultural literature can also help my students with limited life experience view cultures unlike their own and open the opportunity for discussion on acceptance.

Below is a link to an article on Scholastic that shares 14 individuals' personal reasons on why diverse books are important to them. It speaks to how our differences give each of us a different point of view and how multicultural literature can help our children grow.

Click here to find inspiring reasons to include multicultural literature as part of your reading.