The winter is the perfect time to cozy up to a little local lit with your kiddos by one of the following authors who hails from our home state. From the familiar Pete the Cat to the lesser known Listening Me, these books are awesome, no matter where you’re reading them. We just think it’s really cool that the authors have spent their fair share of time traveling Peachtree. Keep reading for our favorite children’s books by local authors, below.
Lift as You Climb by Patricia Hruby Powell & R Gregory Christie
Caldecott Honor winner—and Atlantan—R. Gregory Christie’s powerful pictures pair with the narrative of Patricia Hruby Powell in this children's book about the civil rights activist Ella Baker. Long before the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s, Ella Baker worked to lift others up by fighting racial injustice and empowering poor African Americans to stand up for their rights. Her dedication and grassroots work in many communities made her a valuable ally for leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and she has been ranked as one of the most influential women in the civil rights movement. In the 1960s she worked to register voters and organize sit-ins, and she became a teacher and mentor to many young activists.
Available for $11.79 on Amazon.
Holiday! by Natalie Nelson
Have you ever thought how it must feel to be the day that follows a holiday? Atlantan Natalie Nelson’s ingenious characterizations of the days of the week will delight readers in this story that pokes fun at how set in our ways we can be and how we might instead choose to be open to change and embrace the unexpected.
Available for $15.80 on Amazon.
Dog Days: The Carver Chronicles by Karen English and Laura Freeman
Originally from New York but currently living in Atlanta, illustrator Laura Freeman knows a thing or two about moves, and making new friends, and learning how new places work—just like the main character in The Carver Chronicles. This series starts as a young boy moves to a new school, where everything that could possibly go wrong seems to do just that.
Available for $6.99 on Amazon.
Thread of Love by Kabir and Surishtha Sehgal
This mother-son duo collaborate to bring colorful stories about from India alive on the pages of children's books. In Thread of Love, readers learn about the Indian festival of Raksha Bandhan—a celebration of the special lifelong relationship between brothers and sisters—in a literary reinterpretation of the song Frère Jacques (Are You Sleeping).
Available for $10.39 on Amazon.
Hands Up! by Breanna J. McDaniel
This picture book by Atlanta author McDaniel celebrates Black joy by reclaiming a charged phrase and showing readers how resistance can be part of their everyday lives. In it, a young Black girl lifts her baby hands up to greet the sun, reaches her hands up for a book on a high shelf, and raises her hands up in praise at a church service. She stretches her hands up high like a plane’s wings and whizzes down a hill so fast on her bike with her hands way up. As she grows, she lives through everyday moments of joy, love, and sadness. And when she gets a little older, she joins together with her family and her community in a protest march, where they lift their hands up together in resistance and strength.
Available for $8.89 on Amazon.
Bilal Cooks Daal by Aisha Saeed
What six-year-old doesn't wrestle with patience and sharing? This Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of 2019 and Asian/Pacific American Award Winner for Literature Honor Book in 2019 explores patience, teamwork, community, and sharing through the eyes of six-year-old Bilal. He's excited to help his dad make his favorite food of all-time—daal—but the slow-cooked lentil dish from South Asia requires lots of ingredients and a whole lot of waiting.
Available for $17.69 on Amazon.
The King of Too Many Things by Laurel Snyder
When you can have everything you want, it's easy to get lost in what you have. This story about a young King Jasper who can order his wizard to conjure up anything at all is a modern fairy tale that shows how always wanting more can ultimately lead to less...happiness, that is.
Available for $12.98 on Amazon.
Featured image via iStock.
—Shelley Massey
