Stronger Than by Nikki Grimes & Stacy Wells and E.B. Lewis - ADVISABLE

Stronger Than by Nikki Grimes & Stacy Wells and E.B. Lewis. PICTURE BOOK. Harper Collins, 2026. $14. 9780063264755

Content: PG (The Tulsa Race Massacre and the Trail of Tears are mentioned)

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SOME

Dante is an 8yo Afro-Indigenous boy who loves Choctaw Stickball but is plagued with nightmares. His mother comforts him after a nightmare and then tells Dante about his amazing ancestors. People from his heritage are both Native and Black American. They suffered through The Trail of Tears and The Tulsa Race Massacre. Will knowing his ancestor's stories help Dante with his nightmares?

Stronger Than would be a good read aloud to introduce two difficult times in American history. There are several paragraphs of text on each page. The watercolor illustrations look like beautiful paintings but are fairly serious in nature. It would be best suited for older grades in elementary.

Tracie, Elementary School Librarian 

Ode to Grapefruit: How James Earle Jones Found his Voice by Kari Lavelle, illustrated by Brian Collier. - ADVISABLE

Ode to Grapefruit: How James Earle Jones Found his Voice by Kari Lavelle, illustrated by Brian Collier. NON-FICTION PICTURE BOOK. Knopf (Random House), 2024. $20. 9780593372760

BUYING ADVISORY: EL - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SOME

Standing in front of the kids at school, the words never come to James. It isn’t until high school and with poetry that James is finally able to work through his stutter and start expressing himself to the world.

Lavelle takes time at the end to talk through what parts are exactly as presented and the few things she had to take some license with. Kids might not know him as the voice of Darth Vader, but his story will resonate with kids who have their own problems. I plan on sharing it with our speech therapist.

Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS