Punk rock loving JJ Pankowski can't seem to fit in at his new school in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, as one of the only white kids. Pie Velez, a math and history geek by day and graffiti artist by night, is eager to follow in his idol Jean-Michel Basquiat's footsteps. The boys stumble into an unlikely friendship, swapping notes on their love of music and art, which sees them through a difficult semester at school and at home. But a run-in with the cops threatens to unravel it all. Moonwalking is a stunning exploration of class, cross-racial friendships, and two boys' search for belonging in a city that is as tumultuous and beautiful as their hearts.

Caldecott Honor Book Today Show Best Book for the Holidays ALA Notable Book for All Ages ALSC Notable Children's Book NCTE Notable Poetry Book Evanston Public Library's Top 100 Great Book for Kids Nerdy Award Winner for Single Poem Picture Book Bank Street Best Books of the Year In this powerful, affirming poem by award-winning author Zetta Elliott, a Black child explores his shifting emotions throughout the year. There is a place inside of me a space deep down inside of me where all my feelings hide. Summertime is filled with joy--skateboarding and playing basketball--until his community is deeply wounded by a police shooting. As fall turns to winter and then spring, fear grows into anger, then pride and peace. In her stunning debut, illustrator Noa Denmon articulates the depth and nuances of a child's experiences following a police shooting--through grief and protests, healing and community--with washes of color as vibrant as his words. Here is a groundbreaking narrative that can help all readers--children and adults alike--talk about the feelings hiding deep inside each of us.

The dragon's out of the bag in this diverse, young urban fantasy from an award-winning author--with two starred reviews!

When Jaxon is sent to spend the day with a mean old lady his mother calls Ma, he finds out she's not his grandmother--but she is a witch! She needs his help delivering baby dragons to a magical world where they'll be safe. There are two rules when it comes to the dragons: don't let them out of the bag and don't feed them anything sweet. Before he knows it, Jax and his friends Vikram and Kavita have broken both rules! Will Jax get the baby dragons delivered safe and sound? Or will they be lost in Brooklyn forever?

"Good, solid fantasy fun." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"A promising start to a new series." --School Library Journal, starred review

Getting three baby dragons back home was just the beginning. Now Jaxon is on a mission to help all magical creatures from Dragons in a Bag! But things in the magical realm are more complicated than they seem in the fourth book in the critically acclaimed series. With their new special abilities, Jaxon and his friends are not the ordinary kids they used to be. No longer destined to become a witch, Jax finds himself caught up in a secret plan involving the Guardian of Palmara's mysterious twin brother, Ol-Korrok. As the ambassador to the realm of magic, Jax must convince Sis that magical creatures should be free to return to the human world. But to reach Palmara, Jax and his friends must cross Ol-Korrok's enchanted bridge connecting the two realms. Is Ol-Korrok really the ally he pretends to be? Or has Jax set in motion a plan that will endanger both realms? It takes strength to build a bridge. But sometimes even the strongest bridges must be burned.

THE DEEP plunges readers into a dangerous, underground world policed by members of The League, a secret group of women and men who use their intuitive abilities to detect energy surges far below the earth's surface. In the deep, ancient sources of malevolent energy are bubbling up through the bedrock, and only members of The League know how to detect and seal the leaks that allow evil to enter the world. Nyla Evans knows nothing about the war being waged beneath the city. It has been almost a year since she moved from Ramstein Air Base in Germany to Brooklyn, and Nyla is still searching for a way to belong. It doesn't help that she has started to hallucinate while walking the city streets, but things get even stranger when a man named Osiris approaches her and offers to introduce Nyla to others who have similar "gifts." When Nyla refuses, her friend D is kidnapped and held in the deep until Nyla agrees to let Osiris guide her underground. There, miles beneath Brooklyn, Nyla meets Lada-the mother who abandoned her a decade ago. Furious that Nyla is being recruited by The League, Lada tries to prevent her daughter from following in her footsteps. But Nyla feels at home in the deep and her training begins at an accelerated pace when The League discovers an earthquake will soon hit Brooklyn, releasing unprecedented levels of malevolent energy into the city. THE DEEP is the companion book to SHIP OF SOULS (2012), a Booklist Top Ten Sci-Fi/Fantasy Title for Youth and finalist for the Phillis Wheatley Book Award.

More than anything, Nina Traymore wants stability in her life. After graduating from college, Nina returns to New York City determined to immerse herself in the struggle to revive impoverished communities. Her world is shattered, however, when she is brutally raped in her home by a male acquaintance. Traumatized by the violation but fearful of life outside the city's familiar limits, Nina accepts a teaching position in Brooklyn and moves there hoping to piece her life back together. At the Sojourner Center for Families and Youth, Nina meets Isaiah Edwards, an aspiring architect whose privileged upbringing saved him from many of the traps that have ensnared his childhood friends. Although he intends to detach himself from his inner-city roots, Isaiah soon finds himself caring for Nina, though she seems bound to the crumbling community. Torn between her love for Isaiah and her duty to the children she serves, Nina must decide whether her path to healing lies abroad or in the beautiful yet brutal city that has been her home for so many years.

girl/power: While in the custody of Child Protective Services, two underage girls compare their relationships with the men accused of exploiting them. Brotherhood: Upon his release from prison, Von returns to his foster mother's home hoping to build a new life with the remnants of his family. But with the house on the brink of foreclosure, Von must confront the forces of change that have transformed the world he left behind. Deluged: A young woman conducting research on lynching in Louisiana finds herself swept up in a hurricane and dropped onto a plantation off the Mississippi River. Men of All Work: Four black male celebrities meet in "the green room" and share the trials and triumphs they have encountered trying to "make it" in the entertainment industry.