Summer will be here before we know it, and we are excited to present our NEW Diverse Summer Reading List to keep kids excited about reading over the break. Our list includes fiction and nonfiction, bilingual Spanish/English titles, and a diverse range of cultures—in other words, there’s a book for every reader! Check out our recommendations below, then download the entire list.
Grades PreK–2
Hand emerging readers any Confetti Kids book. Our popular early chapter book series follows five friends from diverse backgrounds learning to navigate common childhood challenges, new experiences, and the world around them. There are twelve titles to choose from in English and Spanish. In A Special Goodbye (and the Spanish version Un adíos especial), Mei’s friends help her cope with the closing of her parents’ flower shop.
Hand young sports fans looking for a new icon Marvelous Mabel: Figure Skating Superstar. They will be dismayed when Mabel is turned away at 1930s skating rinks that didn’t allow Black skaters on the ice. But then their jaws will drop when they see Mabel learn her first skating skills in a small homemade rink in her bedroom! Readers will be motivated by the determination and grit that led Mabel to become America’s first Black skating superstar.
Discover more summer reading choices for grades PreK–2!
Grades 3–5
Hand the young artists and dreamers Dream Carver / El tallador de sueños. Follow the story of a young artist in Oaxaca, Mexico, who carves wooden animals with his father and dreams of creating them in a vibrant new style. Despite being told to stick to the traditional way, Manuel shares his creations with the world and discovers that being true to himself is a great thing! Based on a real-life artisan Manuel Jiménez Ramírez, this colorful tale will inspire readers of all ages to follow their passion.
Hand young lucha libre and wrestling fans the exciting adventure book Maximilian & the Mystery of the Guardian Angel (Max’s Lucha Libre Adventures #1) / Maximilian y el misterio del Ángel de la Guarda. Max is a lucha libre superfan, especially of the wrestler the Guardian Angel. When he tumbles over the railing at a lucha libre match in San Antonio, the connection he makes turns the boring summer before 6th grade into a story straight out of Max’s beloved lucha libre movies! When they finish book one, have readers check out the other three titles in the bilingual English/Spanish Maximilian’s Lucha Libre Adventure Series!
Discover more summer reading choices for grades 3–5!
Grades 6–8
Hand young activists finding their voice Fight Back. After Aaliyah and her friends experience a terrorist attack at the concert of their favorite K-pop boy band, anti-Muslim rhetoric starts spreading throughout school and her community. Aaliyah decides she has to take a stand and wears a hijab for the first time. Readers will be right there with Aaliyah as she struggles with bullying and feeling alone, then cheer as allies and friends also experiencing difficulties stand with her to make a change.
Hand the next generation of detectives and Harriet the Spy fans Snitchers. When Nia Barnes’s community is devastated by a drive-by shooting, she and her two best friends want to do more than be sad and afraid. This isn’t the first time they’ve all been touched by violence, and they haven’t received the justice they seek. Teen readers will go on a mystery solving adventure with Nia and her friends as they look up police reports and follow suspects like their favorite teen detectives would, all the while finding that the search for truth isn’t straightforward.
Discover more summer reading choices for grades 6–8!
Grades 9–12
Hand readers who love complicated, beautiful, queer love stories Jaya and Rasa: A Love Story. Jaya Mehta is a trans teen from a wealthy Indian family full of secrets, who has depressive tendencies. Rasa Santos is a multiracial teen with a difficult home life, who believes sex is her only power until a violent pimp takes over her life. When love blooms between them after a chance encounter, can they escape the chaos of their pasts?
Hand fans of Elizabeth Acevedo and Angie Thomas The Moonlit Vine and its Spanish hardcover version Claro de luna. Readers will be wrapped up in the family lineage and legacy of the Taíno women who came before 14-year-old Taína, a confident and outspoken teen dealing with family difficulties, gangs in her neighborhood, and discrimination from a teacher at school. They will learn about the history of the Taíno people and cheer for Ty as she uses the power of her ancestors to bring her family and the community together.
Discover more summer reading choices for grades 9–12!
Download, print, and share the 2023 Diverse Summer Reading List Grades PreK-8 here.
