New Releases by Fredrick Mckissack

Traces the history of baseball in the Negro Leagues and its great heroes, including Monte Irwin, Buck Leonard, and Cool Papa Bell.

Examines the civilizations of the Western Sudan which flourished from 700 to 1700 A.D., acquiring such vast wealth that they became centers of trade and culture for a continent.

The year is 1859, and it''s Christmastime on a Virginia Plantation. The slaves are cleaning and setting up the Big House--where their masters live--for the festivities. The Big House is filled with warmth, colorful decorations, and yummy food...but there is talk of war and a sense that times may be changing. In the quarters--where the slaves live--conditions are poor, dirty, and cold, but the slaves are filled with hope for better times ahead, and they sing songs of freedom.Moving deftly between two worlds, this beautifully illustrated book is a historical tale as well as a holiday treat.

Presents stories of remarkable men and women who have produced inventions that made major contributions to a wide range of fields.

Examines the lives and achievements of African-American scientists from colonial days to the present, including Benjamin Banneker, George Washington Carver, and several black astronauts.

Born a slave in the State of New York, Sojourner Truth escaped to freedom in 1826 and then traveled throughout the Northeast, preaching in a tireless fight against slavery and the oppression of women. Give your readers a powerful story to remember.

Don''t wait for opportunities to come...get up and make them, said Madam C. J. Walker. She rose from laundry woman to become America''s first black woman millionaire. Born in poverty, Walker set her sights on a better life and made her fortune by developing hair care and beauty products specially formulated for African Americans. As her wealth and influence grew, she also channeled her energies into working for civil rights and social change. This real-life rags-to-riches story is presented here in an engaging narrative by the McKissacks.

Zora Neale Hurston, an anthropologist and storyteller, was an active writer during the Harlem Renaissance. In recent years her work has received renewed attention recently due to the efforts of the writer Alice Walker. Give your readers a compelling look at this talent.

Satchel Paige was forty-two years old when he became the first African-American pitcher in the American League. His achievements ultimately won him a place in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

One of the most celebrated writers of the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes incorporated the rhythms, sounds, and language of Harlem into his poems. Give your readers a fascinating introduction to this talent.

This excellent beginning-to-read series will score easily with early readers.

From the beginning of Reconstruction to the present, traces the struggle of blacks to gain their civil rights in America, with a brief comparison of their problems to those of other minorities.

An educator and social reformer, Mary Church Terrell was the first president of the National Association of Colored Women and was an advocate for the right of women to vote. Introduce your readers to this important civic leader.

Traces the life of the African American educator and leader, focusing on his stewardship of Tuskegee Institute.

Recounts the life of the author and civil rights leader who blazed a trail for racial equality and human rights through his songs, poems, speeches, and other writings.

Discusses, in simple text and illustrations, the meaning of life and death and God''s promise of eternal life.

A chronicle of the first black-controlled union, made up of Pullman porters, who after years of unfair labor practices staged a battle against a corporate giant resulting in a "David and Goliath" ending.

Messy Bessey learns a lesson about sharing when she cleans out her closet.

Simple text and illustrations of a variety of insects introduce the numbers one through five.

An easy-to-read retelling of the fairy tale about three clever goats and a nasty troll.

The story of Jesus birth.

An easy-to-read retelling of the fairy tale in which an ugly duckling spends an unhappy year ostracized by other animals before he grows into a beautiful swan.

An easy-to-read retelling of the traditional tale about the little red hen and her lazy friends.

An easy-to-read retelling of the well-known fable about two mice and the discovery they make.