Books for 8 to 12 year olds on
Multiracial / Multicultural Issues

Included is a brief description of the book’s content and potential uses. 
These books are available to be borrowed through the NJ ARCH Library, free of charge. 
Simply click on the book icon to go to the online book request form. 
Books can be borrowed for up to 14 days.
(Special Note: Books valued at $50.00 or more will require submission of a credit card number. 
Charges will only be made to the account in the event a book is not returned by the due date.)

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
All Kinds of Families		Simon, Norma
Notes
Describes many different types of families: two parent, adoptive, single parent, sibling groups, divorced, grandparents, childless, etc. They may be different sizes or different ages, but a family is always part of you, a special part of your life.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Anthony's Surprise		Roz, Grace	1994
Notes
After getting teased on the way home from school because of his dark skin, Anthony discusses the incident with his Mom. To his surprise, his parents tell him that he is biracial (Birth mother: black, Birth father: white). He learns that it doesn't matter what others think.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Being Adopted		Rosenberg, Maxine B.
Notes
Through very expressive b&w photos, this picture book tells the true stories of several children adopted internationally & at older ages. Normalizes their experience & encourages their pride in their heritage & in their loving adoptive families.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Colors Come from God	…Just Like Me!	Forche, Carolyn A.
Notes
Dynamic, compelling, adventurous novel about TJ, a smart, talented, multi-racial adopted teen who faces the subtle and not so subtle racial discriminations of his world.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Edgar Allan		Neufeld, John
Notes
Edgar Allan is a book for readers of all ages. Written from the point of view of a twelve-year-old boy, it tells the story of what happens to a middle-class, suburban ---- and white-----family that decides to adopt a black child. It examines through the clear eyes of a boy about to become a man the failures and weaknesses of our society.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Great Books for African American Children		Toussaint, Pamela	1999
Notes
Provides creative ways for parents to get children interested in reading. Includes book recommendations for the following: very young children, children 4 to 8, children 8 to 11, preteens and young adults, as well as additional types of media such as videos, games, and magazines to help build youth self-esteem and development.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
If It Hadn't Been for Yoon Jun		Lee, Marie G.	1993
Notes
Alice, a 7th grader adopted as a baby from Korea, likes to consider herself only American. When an immigrant boy from Korea enrolls in her school, Alice has to face her conflict. In this novel of pre-teen friendships and fun, Alice becomes a better person.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Just Add One Chinese Sister		McMahon, Patricia & McCarthy, Conor Clarke
Notes
This is a story of joy and pain, of leaving behind a homeland and starting life in a different world as a new family is formed.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Katie -Bo	An Adoption Story	Fisher, Iris
Notes
Relates the adoption of a Korean baby girl into an American Family as seen through the eyes of her brother to be.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Kids Like Me in China		Fry, Ying Ying, with Klatzkin, Amy
Notes
Written by an eight-year-old girl adopted from China. Ying Ying returns to visit her orphanage, meets her caregivers, & discovers points of connection with the orphanage children. She makes other friends in their homes, playgrounds, and schools.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Living in Two Worlds		Rosenberg, Maxine B.
Notes
A photo essay about the special world of bi-racial children, who experience the advantages of two different cultures but sometimes face problems and prejudices.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Lucy's Family Tree		Schreck, Karen Halvorsen
Notes
When Lucy comes home from grade school with a family tree assignment, she is convinced it is too difficult because she is adopted from Mexico and is not like everyone else. As she talks to others, she finds out that every family has its own uniqueness.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Making a New Home In America		Rosenberg, Maxine B.
Notes
Leaving the country of one's birth to live in another is never easy. In this book the feelings of four children, new to America, are explored.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Our Baby From China		D'Antonio, Nancy
Notes
With simple texts & loving photographs, tells the true story of the adoption of Ariela. Her family travels to China to meet her; they see many wonderful sights, but the loveliest one of all is their new daughter. They bring her home to meet everyone

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Rain Forest Girl	More Than an Adoption Story	Miner, Chalise	1998
Notes
A true story for advanced readers or for parents to read to their children. Using lots of wonderful photographs, book shows Diane's early life with her birth family in a Brazilian rain forest and her later journey to be adopted by an American family.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Rodzina		Cushman, Karen	2000
Notes
Novel set in 1880s Chicago about a Polish orphan placed on the orphan train run by Children's Aid Society. Rodzina heads west, stopping at small towns facing humiliation of being sized up by farmers.  Would she ever find a home of her own?

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Tall Boy's Journey		Kraus, Joanna Halpert
Notes
Eight year old Kim Moo Young mourns the death of his mother in Korea, and he is given no choice about moving to America with his new adoptive parents. He bravely faces a new and strange life, and finally adjusts.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
We Don't Look Like Our Mom & Dad		Sobol, Harriet Langsam
Notes
The Levins are a family, and Joshua & Eric are adopted brothers., both are Korean born, though they are proud to be American Citizens. At times they feel different because they don't look like their parents.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Whale Talk		Crutcher, Chris
Notes
Dynamic, compelling, adventurous novel about TJ, a smart, talented, multi-racial adopted teen who faces the subtle and not so subtle racial discriminations of his world.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
When You Were Born in China		Dorow, Sara	1997
Notes
A must-have book for any child adopted from China. In simple language & with beautiful black and white photos, child will see her grand country, its people, its historic sites & poor countryside. Clear, loving explanation why parents place for adoption, orphanages, etc.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
When You Were Born in Korea	A Memory Book for Children Born in Korea	Boyd, Brian
Notes
Children adopted abroad often wonder what life was like before they came to America. Who took care of them? How did they come to leave their birth mother? What was daily life like at the orphanage? This book clearly answers a child's many questions

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
When You Were Born in Vietnam		Bartlett, Therese
Notes
Speaking directly to adopted children, book explains how Vietnamese children are placed for adoption. Covers the culture, the loving care at the orphanage, the journey thru to placement in a new, forever family. Adults will enjoy this book too.

Title	Subtitle	Author	Year
Youn Hee & Me		Adler, C.S.
Notes
Caitlin finds out that bringing her adopted Korean brother's eleven-year-old sister into their home requires patience and understanding, but gradually they become a real family.