Heading YA religion
Recommended YA Titles* with Diverse Religious & Spiritual Representation
Religion kidlit gallery
Crescent Moons and Pointed Minarets
Picture Book - EBook
Toddler book of shapes and Islamic traditions: From a crescent moon to a square garden to an octagonal fountain, this breathtaking picture book celebrates the shapes-and traditions-of the Muslim world.
The Passover Guest
Picture Book
Muriel assumes her family is too poor to hold a Passover Seder this year-- but an act of kindness and a mysterious magician change everything.
Eight Winter Nights
Moishe's Miracle author Laura Krauss Melmed and illustrator Elisabeth Schlossberg celebrate Hanukkahin joyful action rhymes, festive poems, and exuberant scenes of family life. From traditional holiday foods to the story of the Maccabees, they capture the warm sights, sounds, and tastes of this wintertime festival.
Under My Hijab
Picture Book
Grandma's hijab clasps under her chin. Auntie pins hers up with a whimsical brooch. Jenna puts a sun hat over hers when she hikes. Iman wears a sports hijab for tae kwon do. As a young girl observes the women in her life and how each covers her hair a different way, she dreams of the possibilities in her own future and how she might express her personality through her hijab.
Recipe for Disaster
Grades 3-7
In this heartfelt middle school drama, Hannah's schemes for throwing her own bat mitzvah unleash family secrets, create rivalries with best friends, and ultimately teach Hannah what being Jewish is all about.
Once upon an Eid
Grades 4-7
A joyous short story collection by and about Muslims, edited by New York Times bestselling author Aisha Saeed and Morris finalist S. K. Ali Once Upon an Eid is a collection of short stories that showcases the most brilliant Muslim voices writing today, all about the most joyful holiday of the year: Eid!
Yo Soy Muslim
Picture Book
From Muslim and Latino poet Mark Gonzales comes a touching and lyrical picture book about a parent who encourages their child to find joy and pride in all aspects of their multicultural identity.
A Month of Sundays
When Garnet's mother decides it's time for a change, she drops off her daughter at her aunt June's house in Black Rock, Virginia, while she goes to Florida to find a job. Garnet has never met her Aunt June, so she feels angry and abandoned. But Aunt June thinks Garnet is there for a reason. Each week, Garnet and June visit a different religious service as Aunt June, who has cancer, tries to find God.
The People Remember
The People Remember tells the journey of African descendants in America by connecting their history to the seven principles of Kwanzaa. Sumptuously illustrated, this is an important book to read as a family--a story young readers can visit over and over again to deepen their understanding of African American history in relation to their own lives and current social justice movements.
Disclaimer
* What does "recommended" mean?
The titles included in this page have been selected by the SCF Librarians based on literary merit, accuracy and authenticity of treatment of the culture portrayed, and age appropriateness. They are books mostly written by "own voices": authors and illustrators belonging to the cultural group portrayed.
* About the age and reading level categories:
The books in this page can be read by people of all ages! They vary in reading level. We do not assign AR or Lexile levels, because we want you to read a book because you like it, not because of a school-assigned level.
Those classified as "picture books" are suitable for independent reading or for an adult to read to and with children, while showing the "pictures".
Those classified as "children" are best suited to be read by children in grades as recommended. Some are short books, chapter books, or novels, with or without illustrations. They can also be graphic novels.
* Books for ALL children:
The titles recommended in this page represent mirrors for all children in our community, windows to see experiences different from their own, and sliding doors to enter other worlds and discover commonalities and differences (Bishop, 1990).
We recognize that the experiences portrayed in these books do not reflect each kid's experience, but we strive to include representations of as many experiences as possible. We invite parents, caregivers, and teachers to explore these books with their children and discuss what their children have in common (or not) with the children in these stories.
Bishop, R. S. (1990). "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors". Perspectives 6(3). https://scenicregional.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Mirrors-Windows-and-Sliding-Glass-Doors.pdf