Books for Christmas 2016

It’s Christmas time again, and many of you may still be looking for that perfect Christmas gift to give to family, friends, teachers.... I am asking you to consider the gift of reading that can be inexpensive and have a lasting impact. 

This year, 2016, I have read thirty-seven books so far, and I am still reading.... If you are still looking for a gift idea, here is a list of the top ten books that I read this year. Now, I normally write a blog for every single book that I read, but I’ve been slipping. So, some of the books may have links to blogs about them and some of them may not. 

Here are ten of my favorite books of 2016:

#10 In Darkness by Nick Lake! I just loved how this book is a fictional story, set in Haiti, that goes back and forth between the Haitian earthquake of 2010 to some of Haiti’s greatest history which includes the great Toussaint L’Ouverture. There is so much to learn about Haiti from reading this book. Read the blog about it here.

#09 The Crossover by Kwame Alexander! This book is written in verse, and it is such a delight. I share it with students who have not found a book that they love yet. Read the blog about it here. 

#08 Brown Girl Dream by Jacqueline Woodson! I just love how Jacqueline tells the story of her coming of age and is able to intermingle her story with real life history. This book, like The Crossover, can also be read in one sitting, and it will give a person tons to think about and will also make a person’s heart happy. Read the blog about it here.

#07 The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller! This is a very important book that basically changed everything that I thought about teaching literature. This book helped me to fall madly in love all over again with teaching, literature, and children. Even if you are not a teacher, I think that you will enjoy this book. Read the blog about it here.

#06 Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain by Zaretta Hammond! This book is engaging, and just like The Book Whisperer, it made me rethink the way that I teach. If you want to understand how to teach children of color, READ THIS BOOK. Read the blog about it here.

#05 Life is Short by Wide by J. California Cooper! J. California Cooper is a master storyteller. The characters in this book will be with you long after you finish. I just love the love and care in which J. California Cooper writes about Black people. No blog for this one.

#04 As Brave as You by Jason Reynolds! This book caused me to laugh out loud. Being from the South, I could identify with these two African American boys from Brooklyn who had to spend a month in the backwoods of Virginia with their grandparents. DELIGHTFUL. No blog for this one. 

#03 Democracy in Black by Eddie Glaude Jr.! If you need a brief, engaging overview of systematic racism in this country, then this is the book for you. Read the blog about it here.

#02 The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore! This book has been out for awhile, and it took me awhile to get to it, but I am so happy that I did. This book is a great look at what can happen in America based on who you are born to and where you are born. Read the blog about it here.

#01 The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander! After reading this book, I will never look at an incarcerated or ex-incarcerated person the same. This is a book that I wish was not true, but I know that it is! Mass incarceration is real and intentional, My People. No blog for this one.

I am wishing every last one of you A MERRY CHRISTMAS and many years of good reading.

My reading list from 2015!
My reading list from 2014!