This remarkable picture book is a lyrical, inspirational exploration of growing up Black, written by award-winning illustrator Dapo Adeola, and brought to life by some of the most exciting Black artists of today. Remember to dream your own dreams Love your beautiful skin You always have a choice This book addresses--honestly, yet hopefully--the experiences Black children face growing up with systemic racism, as well as providing hope for the future and delivering a message of empowerment to a new generation of dreamers. It's a message that is both urgent and timeless--and offers a rich and rewarding reading experience for every child. To mirror the rich variety of the Black diaspora, this book showcases artwork from Dapo Adeola and eighteen more incredible Black illustrators in one remarkable and cohesive reading experience.

Gordon Miller is checking over the scores of the baseball games played the night before while reading his newspaper. He is on the bus heading to where he will be getting his colonoscopy, Gordon is a semi-retired sportswriter, divorced with two grown up children. He lives in a middle-class home with his beloved dog Costello. His life basically existing of an occasional ball game and attempting of an occasional ballgame and attempting to write a novel. His life is otherwise somewhat boring. Except for Friday evenings when he gets together with his friends and bowls. A sport which Gordon loves and is very good at. Although relatively happy with his life Gordon is searching. Julie Ryan is running down the sidewalk flagging down the bus #44 as it makes it way to clinic. Julie is 25 years old; she coaches the local college girls’ soccer team at St. John’s in Cleveland. She played for St. John’s for four years. She was a standout athlete at the school not in soccer but track and basketball as well. She lives in a dormitory, a place she knows at home since she was orphaned as a young girl. Her father was killed in a freak accident when Julie was very young something Julie has never accepted. Julie is going to the clinic for a routine mastectomy. Julie gets on the bus and sits down next to Gordon. And by chance a friendship and love affair would begin. The two would embark on an adventure together that will lead to an exciting, funny and loving story that will tug at your heart strings. Two people, one old, one young both searching for the same thing.

Includes sixteen poems about subjects ranging from the weather, to family, to food.

"Gripping from the first page until the last..." "Great story, great characters and a great read..." Love, betrayal and Hollywood... Like everyone, Will Miller has a dream. A dream of one day becoming the creator of his own TV show. But unlike most, Will is determined to transform his dream into a reality, even if that means going to the most extreme measures and having the most ambitious expectations. Ellie is a world-famous Hollywood actress, with her face on billboards and people screaming her name no matter where in the world she may find herself. Even though she loves to act, she loathes the fame that comes with it. All Ellie seeks is a normal life, a life where she can walk down the street in peace, without worrying about being chased by paparazzi. Purely by chance - and after a slightly dramatic incident involving tomato soup, these two opposites find friendship through forming the most unlikely of partnerships as they strive to take on Hollywood together.As love blossoms, trouble lurks on the horizon. Following false accusations that result in a police investigation, Will and Ellie are torn apart by society and face a series of challenges to be together once again...

“Verde’s unique style and simple yet increasingly important messages of peace, mindfulness, and community make her stories a must-share...A must-purchase.” —School Library Journal (starred review) “Walls do not just create barriers and divide spaces. They can be canvases for artmaking; opportunities to shape a community.” —The Horn Book “This story of urban renewal sends a welcome double message by Verde: neighbors and neighborhoods are more than the way they look, and ordinary people can band together to transform big things.” —Publishers Weekly A boy takes on a community art project in order to make his neighborhood more beautiful in this empowering and inspiring picture book by Susan Verde, stunningly illustrated by award-winning artist John Parra. One creative boy. One bare, abandoned wall. One BIG idea. There is a wall in Ángel’s neighborhood. Around it, the community bustles with life: music, dancing, laughing. Not the wall. It is bleak. One boy decides to change that. But he can’t do it alone. Told in elegant verse by Susan Verde and vibrantly illustrated by John Parra, this inspiring picture book celebrates the power of art to tell a story and bring a community together.

Various familiar animals model the kind of household chores children can help with.