African American Books for Boys in Grades 2 & 3

Click on each book to find it in the library catalog. For more reading ideas, talk to a children’s librarian. Call 217/403 — 2030 or e-mail librarian@champaign.org.

The  Adventures of Sparrowboy book cover

The Adventures of Sparrowboy

(Picture Books/E/Pin) by Brian Pinkney.
He delivers papers. He saves birds. He flies!

From Slave to Soldier book cover

From Slave to Soldier: Based on a True Civil War Story

(Juvenile First Chapters/J/Hop) by Deborah Hopkinson.
The true story of a runaway slave who became a mule-team driver for the Union Army.

Jackson Jones book cover

Jackson Jones and the Curse of the Outlaw Rose

(Juvenile Fiction/J/Quattlebaum) by Mary Quattlebaum. Uh oh! They took a rose from the cemetery — a cursed rose!

Major Taylor Champion Cyclist book cover

Major Taylor Champion Cyclist

(Juvenile Biographies/J796.62/Taylor) by Lesa Cline-Ransom.
No one could beat him. He was the fastest man alive on a bicycle.

A Million Fish . . . More or Less book cover

A Million Fish . . . More or Less

(Paperback Picture Books/E/M) by Patricia McKissack.
Raccoons! Crocodiles! You‘d be amazed the trouble that Hugh Thomas runs into when he tries to bring home a million fish . . . more or less.

More Stories Julian Tells book cover

More Stories Julian Tells

(Juvenile First Chapters/J/Cam) by Ann Cameron.
Short stories about Julian‘s life continue, including a bet with his best friend, a secret project, and what happens when his brother decides to be Superboy.

Perfect Timing book cover

Perfect Timing: How Isaac Murphy Became one of the World's Greatest Jockeys

(Juvenile Biographies/J798.4/Murphy) by Patsi B. Trollinger.
The story of one of history‘s greatest athletes.

Speak to Me book cover

Speak to Me (And I Will Listen Between the Lines)

(Juvenile Nonfiction/J371/Eng) by Karen English.
Through poetry, six third-graders tell about their lives and day at school.

The Stories Huey Tells book cover

The Stories Huey Tells

(Juvenile First Chapters/J/Cam) by Ann Cameron.
It isn‘t easy being a younger brother but Huey proves that he is not just a little kid. He‘s an adventurer, a chef, a tracker, and a scout.

Wiley and the Hairy Man book cover

Wiley and the Hairy Man

(Juvenile Nonfiction/J398.20976/Sie) retold by Judy Sierra.
The Hairy Man is big, ugly, mean, and really stinky. He‘s also out to catch Wiley!