Director's choice

Director’s Choice features a glimpse of ever-changing favorite picture books…

Stop by The Lion and Lamb Peace Arts Center to check out these and other books for children.

cover image of "Puppies for Sale" children's book

"Puppies for Sale" by Dan Clark

"That puppy is worth just as much as all the others." - abilities and disabilities

cover image of "Here We Are: Notes for living on planet earth" children's book

"Here We Are: Notes for living on planet earth" by Oliver Jeffers

"You're never alone on earth." - a glimpse of earth and the bonds that unite us together.

cover image of "All Are Welcome" children's book

"All Are Welcome" by Alexandra Penfold

"We're part of a community. Our strength is our diversity." - diverse classroom of students and families

cover image of "The Undefeated" children's book

"The Undefeated" by Kwame Alexander

"This is for the ones who survived America by any means necessary. And the ones who didn't." - honoring African Americans

cover image of "What If the Zebras Lost Their Stripes?" children's book

"What If the Zebras Lost Their Stripes?" by John Reitano

“ ... and some lost black and some lost white?” - ponder the concept of race and humanity

cover image of "Different Just Like Me" children's book

"Different Just Like Me" by Lori Mitchell

“I’m glad everyone is different... just like me!” - noticing and appreciating similarities and differences

cover image of "Come With Me" children's book

"Come With Me" by Holly McGhee

“One step at a time, they understood what they could do to make the world a better place.” - your part matters

cover image of "A family is a family is a family" children's book

"A Family is a Family is a Family" by Sara O'Leary

“My family is not like everybody else’s.” - a whimsical glimpse of many types of families

cover image of "I Like, I Don't Like" children's book

"I Like, I Don't Like" by Anna Baccalliere

“...bricks ...popcorn ...soccer balls ...rugs ...” - different perspectives reflected by children experiencing poverty and child labor

cover image of "No Water No Bread" children's book

"No Water No Bread" by Luis Amavisca Guridi

"Why are our parents like this?" - children’s perspectives of borders, limited resources and parents’ attitudes

cover image of "What We Wear: Dressing up around the world" children's book

"What We Wear: Dressing up around the world" by Maya Ajmera

“Dressing up means celebrating who we are...” - a global glimpse of people and clothing

cover image of "A Small Thing... But Big" children's book

"A Small Thing... But Big" by Tony Johnson

“Before today, I was afraid of dogs.” - courage and confidence to do tough things

cover image of "I'm New Here" children's book

"I'm New Here" by Anne Sibley O'Brien

“Here there are new beginnings.” - immigration, classroom experiences of three new students

cover image of "If Nathan Were Here" children's book

"If Nathan Were Here" by Mary Bahr

“But Nathan’s not here. And nobody’s laughing.” - child’s perspective of loss and grief

"Teammates" by Peter Golenbock

“I want a man with the courage not to fight back.” - Jackie Robinson’s early baseball experience

cover image of "For Every Child, A Better World" children's book

"For Every Child, A Better World" by Louise Gikow, Ellen Weiss

“Every child needs... but sometimes...” - a global glimpse of resources and belonging

cover image of "A Chance to Shine" children's book

"A Chance to Shine" by Steven Seskin & Allen Shamblin

“Every heart needs a chance to shine” - music CD included, new perspective on stereotypes

cover image of "New Kid in Town" children's book

"New Kid in Town" by Claire Freedman

“This is a very friendly place...
but beware of the horrible wolf” - dispelling stereotypes and first impressions

cover image of "Riding the Tiger" children's book

"Riding the Tiger" by Eve Bunting

“Why don’t you hop on my back and we’ll take a ride.” - consequences of making poor decisions

cover image of "Dear Willie Rudd" children's book

"Dear Willie Rudd" by Moore Gray

“Most of all, I’m writing to say I wish you could come see me once again.” - new understanding of early childhood experiences and racial inequality

cover image of "We're All Wonders" children's book

"We're All Wonders" by R.J. Palacio

“I can’t change the way I look but just maybe, people can change the way they see.” - appreciating differences

cover image of "Voices in the Park" children's book

"Voices in the Park" by Anthony Browne

"Four people enter a park, and through their eyes we see four different visions." - first impressions, stereotypes from different perspectives

cover image of "I am Enough" children's book

"I am Enough" by Grace Byers

“Like the winner, I’m here to win, and if I don’t, get up again.” - loving yourself, respecting others and being kind to everyone

cover image of "Be Kind" children's book

"Be Kind" by Pat Zietlow Miller

“Maybe I can only do small things. But...” - being kind isn’t always easy but it’s important

cover image of "A Special Trade" children's book

"A Special Trade" by Sally Wittman

“Now it’s my turn...” - a changing friendship with older friend as child grows up

cover image of "Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge" children's book

"Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge" by Mem Fox

“Poor old thing... she’s lost her memory.” - friendship between young boy and elderly friends

cover image of "A Terrible Thing Happened" children's book

"A Terrible Thing Happened" by Margaret M. Holmes

“Sherman Smith saw the most terrible thing.” - resource for children who have witnessed traumatic incidents

cover image of "We Are All Different" children's book

"We Are All Different" by Rebecca Rissman

“Our difference make us special.” - disabilities and differences

cover image of "Willy & Max; a holocaust story" children's book

"Willy & Max: a Holocaust story" by Amy Littlesugar

“Some things are as precious as friends.”
-unlikely friendship, returning stolen property to Jewish families

cover image of "Snow in Jerusalem" children's book

"Snow in Jerusalem" by Deborah da Costa

“You can’t prove it!” - unlikely friendship

cover image of "Pink and Say" children's book

"Pink and Say" by Patricia Polocco

"Four people enter a park, and through their eyes we see four different visions." - Unlikely friendship during the Civil War

cover image of "I Call My Hand Gentle" children's book

"I Call My Hand Gentle" by Amanda Haan

“It can’t do things without me. It does what I want it to do.”

cover image of "Can you Say Peace" children's book

"Can you Say Peace" by Karen Katz

“No matter how we say it, we all want peace.” - peace in many languages and homelands

cover image of "Boxes for Katje" children's book

"Boxes for Katje" by Candace Fleming

“You have brought us a miracle!” - care packages from America after World War II

"People" by Peter Spicer

“People everywhere. And all different.” - celebration of uniqueness and similarities

cover image of "The barefoot book of children" children's book

"The Barefoot Book Children" by Tessa Strickland

“It’s easier to understand someone when you know their story.” - recognizing similarities, differences and all the possibilities

cover image of "William's Doll" children's book

"William's Doll" by Charlotte Zolotow

“... so that when he’s a father like you, he knows how to take care of a baby...” - addressing gender norms

cover image of "Hey, Little Ant" children's book

"Hey, Little Ant" by Phillip & Hannah Hoose

“If you were me and I were you,
what would you want me to do?” - addresses power and vulnerability

cover image of "The Story of Ruby Bridges" children's book

"The Story of Ruby Bridges" by Robert Coles

“Then Ruby stopped talking and walked into the school.” - true experience of desegregating schools in 1960

cover image of "Feathers and fools" children's book

"Feathers and Fools" by Mem Fox

“... not one remained alive. Silence hung over the gardens..." - fable about fearing differences

cover image of "Enemy Pie" children's book

"Enemy Pie" by Derek Munson

“What kind of things - disgusting things - would I put into a pie for an enemy?” - a wise Dad provides an opportunity for friendship

cover image of "Cups Held Out" children's book

"Cups Held Out" by Judith L. Roth

“[Dad] wants me to know the poor are part of this world.” - a child’s glimpse of poverty

cover image of "Don't Laugh at Me" children's book

"Don't Laugh at Me" by Steve Seskin & Allen Shamblin

“Don’t get your pleasure from my pain.” - song on CD accompanies book with characters asking for tolerance, stops short of acceptance

civer image of "The Other Side" children's book

"The Other Side" by Jacqueline Woodson

“A fence like this was made for sitting on.” - racial segregation from a child’s perspective

cover image of "Each Kindness" children's book

"Each Kindness" by Jacqueline Woodson

“...my throat filled with all the things I wished I would have said to Maya.” - kindness matters

cover image of "One World, One Day" children's book

"One World, One Day" by Barbara Kerley

“Recess rocks! And so does lunch.” - a global glimpse of a day in the life of children

cover image of "Unspoken: a story from the Underground Railroad" children's book

"Unspoken: a story from the Underground Railroad" by Henry Cole

- wordless story, unspoken gifts unite girl and runaway slave

cover image of "Wangari’s Trees of Peace: a true story from Africa" children's book

"Wangari’s Trees of Peace: a true story from Africa" by Jeanette Winter

“The earth was naked. For me, the mission was to try to cover it with green.” - environmentalist’s determination inspires great change

cover image of "Across the Alley" children's book

"Across the Alley" by Richard Michelson

“I take a break to practice my windup
so I pass my violin out the window to Willie.” - unlikely friendship

cover image of "Tear Soup: A Recipe for Healing After Loss" children's book

"Tear Soup: A Recipe for Healing After Loss" by Pat Schwiebert & Chuck DeKlyen

"[Grandy] suffered a big loss in her life. Pops, her husband suffered the same loss, but in his own way." - helpful resource for loss and grief

cover image of "A Pen Pal for Max" children's book

"A Pen Pal for Max" by Gloria Rand

“These are all addressed to you and your classmates.” - children’s compassionate response to an earthquake in Chile

cover image of "One Green Apple" children's book

"One Green Apple" by Eve Bunting

“The students know each other but they don’t know me and I don’t know them.” - an empathetic glimpse at cultural differences

cover image of "I Walk with Vanessa: a story about a simple act of kindness" children's book

"I Walk with Vanessa: a story about a simple act of kindness" by Kerascoet

- wordless story how one person inspires an entire community

cover image of "Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed" children's book

"Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed" by Emily Pearson

“... love was sent to every person everywhere.” - one good deed is multiplied by others

cover image of "Lend a Hand" children's book

"Lend a Hand" by John Frank

“... but the spread of warmth should have no bounds.” - poems about giving

cover image of "Amazing Faces" children's book

"Amazing Faces" by Lee Bennett Hopkins

“You made my unhappy thoughts scamper away.” - poems about relationships

"I Am Not a Number" by Jenny Kay Dupuis and Kathy Kacer

“We don’t use names here. All students are known by numbers.” - Native American history, mandatory removal of Native children from their families to attend residential school

cover image of "All the Lost Things" children's book

"All the Lost Things" by Kelly Canby

“... so that anyone who may have lost it might find it once again.” - a child’s search for hope

cover image of "Susan Laughs" children's book

"Susan Laughs" by Jeanne Willis

“That is Susan Through and through – just like me, just like you.” - focus on abilities rather than dis-abilities

cover image of "The Enemy: a book about peace" children's book

"The Enemy: a book about peace" by Davide Cali and Serge Bloch

“I wasn’t expecting him to have a family.” - reflects the pointlessness of war

cover image of "Cory & the Seventh Story" children's book

"Cory & the Seventh Story" by Brian D. McLaren

“But the truth is, there is no them. We are all part of one great big beautiful wonderful us.” - an alternate view of power, greed, oppression, control over others and our global community

cover image of "Ruthie and the (Not So) Teeny Tine Line" children's book

"Ruthie and the (Not So) Teeny Tine Line" by Laura Rankin

“I have something to tell you...” - a lesson in telling the truth

"Stolen Words" by Melanie Florence

“... where they took all of us away from home and laughter and soft words.” - Native experience as a result of boarding schools

"Cheyenne Again" by Eve Bunting

“No more Cheyenne, they say. You’ve lost nothing of value. Now you will be like us.” - Native experience of boarding school

"A Fair Deal: Shopping for Social Justice" by Kari Jones

“Fair trade is about bringing justice to people around the world: people need to protect their environment, their families and their homes.”

"Poverty and Hunger" by Louise Spilsbury

“Poverty and hunger are caused by many things, which are often outside of people’s control.” - offers information, understanding and suggestions for action

"Not So Different: what you really want to ask about having a disability" by Shane Burcaw

“Go ahead and ask me!” - personal experience informs others

"What does it mean to be Kind?" by Rana DiOrio

“... seeing the best in people even when they are struggling to be their best.” - nurtures understanding and empathy

"Where Are You From?" by Yamile Saied Mendes

“I ask Abuelo because he knows everything, and like me, he looks like he doesn’t belong.” - embracing one’s rich heritage and culture

"The Errant Knight" by Ann Tompert

“The knight truly tried but always there was someone who needed his help.” - helping others as an act of faithful service

"The Tower" by Richard Paul Evans

“Now everyone must look up to me. I am the greatest man in the land.” - a lesson in humility and generosity

"Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson saved Apollo 13" by Melanie Becker

“You can count on my, she said.” - integrity, dedication and compassion

"The Youngest Marcher: The Story of Audrey Faye Hendricks" by Cynthia Levinson”

“If grown-ups won’t do it, fill the jails with children!” - a nine-year old civil rights activist

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