Building Bridges

Frederick County Public Libraries supports self-education, community open dialogue, and civic engagement to cultivate meaningful relationships and foster a vibrant and strong community. On this page are excellent resources on diversity and inclusion, and we encourage you to explore them.

Recommended Reading: Children

We Dream a World by Yolanda Renee King
We Dream a World by Yolanda Renee King
Simone by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Simone by Viet Thanh Nguyen
Mama's Library Summers by Melvina Noel
Mama's Library Summers by Melvina Noel
Danté Plays his Blues by Allen R. Wells
Danté Plays his Blues by Allen R. Wells
I Heard: An American Journey by Jahah Nailah Avery
I Heard: An American Journey by Jahah Nailah Avery
The Boy Who Found His Voice by Tyler Gordon
The Boy Who Found His Voice by Tyler Gordon
Before the Ships: the Birth of Black Excellence by Maisha Oso
Before the Ships: the Birth of Black Excellence by Maisha Oso
Be, Black Girl, Be by Taylor Darks
Be, Black Girl, Be by Taylor Darks
The Rock in my Throat by Kao Kailia Yang
The Rock in my Throat by Kao Kailia Yang
The Day Madear Voted by Wade Hudson
The Day Madear Voted by Wade Hudson
La Mariachi by Isabel Estrada
La Mariachi by Isabel Estrada
Just like Grandma by Kim Rogers
Just like Grandma by Kim Rogers
How to speak in Spanglish by Mónica Mancillas
How to speak in Spanglish by Mónica Mancillas
Heart Berry Bling by Jenny Kay Dupuis
Heart Berry Bling by Jenny Kay Dupuis
Cloud Babies by Eoin Colfer
Cloud Babies by Eoin Colfer
Cape by Kevin Johnson
Cape by Kevin Johnson
Boyogi : How a Wounded Family Learned to Heal by David Barclay Moore
Boyogi : How a Wounded Family Learned to Heal by David Barclay Moore
Âmî osâwâpikones = Dear dandelion by SJ Okemow
Âmî osâwâpikones = Dear dandelion by SJ Okemow
Abuela's Super Capa by Ana Siqueira
Abuela's Super Capa by Ana Siqueira
9 Kilometers by Claudio Aguilera
9 Kilometers by Claudio Aguilera
Come Closer, Tatita by Imapla
Come Closer, Tatita by Imapla
Rock your Mocs by Laurel Goodluck
Rock your Mocs by Laurel Goodluck
Empanadas for Everyone by Jackie Azua Kramer
Empanadas for Everyone by Jackie Azua Kramer
Marley's Pride by Jolle Retener
Marley's Pride by Jolle Retener
The Last Stand by Entwan Eady
The Last Stand by Entwan Eady
I Am Both by Kerisa Greene
I Am Both by Kerisa Greene
Circle of Love by Monique Gray Smith
Circle of Love by Monique Gray Smith
Butterfly on the Wind by Adam Pottle
Butterfly on the Wind by Adam Pottle
Bros by Carole Boston Weatherford
Bros by Carole Boston Weatherford
A Child Like You by Na'íma bint Robert
A Child Like You by Na'íma bint Robert
Why Do We Sing by Sam Tsui
Why Do We Sing by Sam Tsui
Summer is Here by Renee Watson
Summer is Here by Renee Watson
Zandi's Song by Zandile Ndhlovu
Zandi's Song by Zandile Ndhlovu
The Perfect Place by Matt de le Pena
The Perfect Place by Matt de le Pena
The ABCs of Queer History by Seema Yasmin
The ABCs of Queer History by Seema Yasmin
The Truth About Dragons by Julie Leung
The Truth About Dragons by Julie Leung
Chinese Menu: the history, myths, and legends behind your favorite foods by Grace Lin
Chinese Menu: the history, myths, and legends behind your favorite foods by Grace Lin
A is for Ambitious by Meena Harris
A is for Ambitious by Meena Harris
Henry, Like Always by Jenn Bailey
Henry, Like Always by Jenn Bailey
My Brain is Magic : a sensory-seeking celebration by Prasha Sooful
My Brain is Magic: a sensory-seeking celebration by Prasha Sooful
How to Write a Poem by Kwame Alexander
How to Write a Poem by Kwame Alexander
The Babka Sisters by Leslea Newman
The Babka Sisters by Leslea Newman
Eyes that Weave the World's Wonders by Joanna Ho
Eyes that Weave the World's Wonders by Joanna Ho
See us bloom : poems on compassion, acceptance, and bravery by Kyunghee Kim
See us bloom : poems on compassion, acceptance, and bravery by Kyunghee Kim
Remember by Joy Harjo
Remember by Joy Harjo

MORE

Recommended Reading: Tween

Coretta : the Autobiography of Mrs. Coretta Scott King by Coretta Scott King
Coretta : the Autobiography of Mrs. Coretta Scott King by Coretta Scott King
Barracoon by Zora Neale Hurston
Barracoon by Zora Neale Hurston
Warrior on the Mound by Sandra W. Headen
Warrior on the Mound by Sandra W. Headen
Deer Run Home by Ann Clare LeZotte
Deer Run Home by Ann Clare LeZotte
Paige Not Found by Jen Wilde
Paige Not Found by Jen Wilde
Make Your Mark, Make a Difference : a Kid's Guide to Standing Up for People, Animals, and the Planet by Joan Marie Galat
Make Your Mark, Make a Difference : a Kid's Guide to Standing Up for People, Animals, and the Planet by Joan Marie Galat
The Reckoning by Wade Hudson
The Reckoning by Wade Hudson
Black Star by Kwame Alexander
Black Star by Kwame Alexander
One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome
One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome
And Then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps
And Then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps
Asking for a Friend by Ronnie Riley
Asking for a Friend by Ronnie Riley
Red Bird Danced by Dawn Quigley
Red Bird Danced by Dawn Quigley
Buzzing by Samuel Sattin
Buzzing by Samuel Sattin
Shiny Misfits by Zayid Maysoon
Shiny Misfits by Zayid Maysoon
The Lumbering Giants of Windy Pines by Gabe Netz
The Lumbering Giants of Windy Pines by Gabe Netz
Gut Reaction by Kirby Lawson
Gut Reaction by Kirby Lawson
The Secret Library by Kekla Magoon
The Secret Library by Kekla Magoon
Vega's Piece of the Sky by Jennifer Torres
Vega's Piece of the Sky by Jennifer Torres
The Cursed Moon by Angela Cervantes
The Cursed Moon by Angela Cervantes
Two Tribes by Emily BowenCohen
Two Tribes by Emily BowenCohen
Elle Campbell Wins Their Weekend by Ben Kahn
Elle Campbell Wins Their Weekend by Ben Kahn
The Beautiful Something Else by Ash Van Otterloo
The Beautiful Something Else by Ash Van Otterloo
Just Shy of Ordinary by A. J. Sass
Just Shy of Ordinary by A. J. Sass
Emma and the Love Spell by Meredith Ireland
Emma and the Love Spell by Meredith Ireland
Mascot by Charles Waters and Traci Sorell
Summer at Squee by Andrea Wang
Summer at Squee by Andrea Wang
The Door Is Open: Stories of Celebration and Community by 11 Desi Voices
The Door Is Open: Stories of Celebration and Community by 11 Desi Voices by 11 Desi Voices
Camp Quiltbag by Nicole Melleby
Camp Quiltbag by Nicole Melleby
Joy, to the World by Kai Shappley
The Circuit: Graphic Novel by Andrew Rostan
The Circuit: Graphic Novel by Andrew Rostan
Abeni's Song by P. Djèlí Clark
Abeni's Song by P. Djèlí Clark
Calling the Moon: 16 Period Stories from BIPOC Authors
Calling the Moon: 16 Period Stories from BIPOC Authors by Chaunte Lowe
Boundless by Chaunte Lowe
Boundless by Chaunte Lowe
Code Red by Joy McCullough
Code Red by Joy McCullough
Global Warning by Steven Frank
Global Warning by Steven Frank
Clouds Over California by Karyn Parsons
Clouds Over California by Karyn Parsons
Barely Floating by Lilliam Rivera
Barely Floating by Lilliam Rivera
Aniana Del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Méndez
Aniana Del Mar Jumps In by Jasminne Méndez
Rosa Parks & Claudette Colvin: Civil Rights Heroes by Tracey Baptiste
Rosa Parks & Claudette Colvin: Civil Rights Heroes by Tracey Baptiste
Living ghosts and mischievous monsters: chilling American Indian stories by Dan C. Jones
Living ghosts and mischievous monsters: chilling American Indian stories by Dan C. Jones
Undercover Latina by Aya De Leon
Undercover Latina by Aya De Leon
Si Se Puede: The Latino Heroes who Saved the United States by Julio Ante
Si Se Puede: The Latino Heroes who Saved the United States by Julio Ante
Indigenous Ingenuity: a Celebration of Traditional North American Knowledge by Deidre Havrelock
Indigenous Ingenuity: a Celebration of Traditional North American Knowledge by Deidre Havrelock
The Second Chance of Benjamin Waterfalls by James Bird
The Second Chance of Benjamin Waterfalls by James Bird
She Holds Up the Stars by Anna Rose Johnson
The Star that Always Stays by Anna Rose Johnson

MORE

Recommended Reading: Teen

All You Have to Do by Autumn Allen
All you Have to Do by Autumn Allen
For Lamb by Lesa Cline-Ransome
For Lamb by Lesa Cline-Ransome
Poemhood by Amber McBride, editor
Poemhood, our Black Revival: History, Folklore, & the black experience: A young adult poetry anthology by Amber McBride, editor
African Town by Irene Latham
African Town: Inspired by the true story of the last American Slave ship by Irene Latham
Sun Keep Rising by Kristen R. Lee
Sun Keep Rising by Kristen R. Lee
Whose Right Is It? by Hana Baramovic
Whose Right is it? The fourteenth amendment and the fight for equality by Hana Baramovic
Born a Girl: It Takes Courage by Alice Dussutour
Born a Girl: It Takes Courage by Alice Dussutour
Shuna's Journy by Hayao Miyazaki
Shuna's Journey by Hayao Miyazaki
Freedom of Speech by Bradley Steffens
Freedom of Speech: Should there be limits? by Bradley Steffens
Gather by Kenneth Cadow
Gather by Kenneth Cadow
The Native American Experience by Stuart A. Kallen
The Native American Experience by Stuart A. Kallen
There Goes the Neighborhood by Jade Adia
There Goes the Neighborhood by Jade Adia
Arana and Spider-Man 2099: Dark Tomorrow by Alex Segura
Arana and Spider-Man 2099: Dark Tomorrow by Alex Segura
A Fox in my Brain by Lou Lubie
A Fox in my Brain by Lou Lubie
Harvest House by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Harvest House by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Killing the Wittigo by Suzanne Methot
Killing the Wittigo by Suzanne Methot
Crashing into You by Rocky Callen
Crashing Into You by Rocky Callen
Flawless Girls by Anna-Marie McLemore
Flawless Girls by Anna-Marie McLemore
Don't Be A Drag by Skye Quinlan
Don't Be a Drag by Skye Quinlan
This is Me Trying by Racquel Marie
This is Me Trying by Racquel Marie
The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso
The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso
Firebird by Sunmi
Firebird by Sunmi
Simon & Louise by Max de Radigues
Simon & Louise by Max de Radigues
Best Vacation Ever by Jessica Cunsolo
Best Vacation Ever by Jessica Cunsolo
I Like Me Better by Robby Weber
I Like Me Better by Robby Weber
Loveboat Forever by Abigail Hing Wen
Loveboat Forever by Abigail Hing Wen
Caught in a Bad Fauxmance by Elle Gonzalez Rose
Caught in a Bad Fauxmance by Elle Gonzalez Rose
The Dos and Donuts of Love by Adiba Jaigirdar
The Dos and Donuts of Love by Adiba Jaigirdar
You Bet Your Heart by Danielle Parker
You Bet Your Heart by Danielle Parker
Imogen, Obviously by Becky Albertalli
Imogen, Obviously by Becky Albertalli
The Women who Built Hollywood: 12 trailblazers in front of and behind the camera by Susan Goldman Rubin
The Women who Built Hollywood: 12 trailblazers in front of and behind the camera by Susan Goldman Rubin
The Dark Descent by Kalyn Josephson
This Dark Descent by Kalyn Josephson
The Queens of New York by E.L. Shen
The Queens of New York by E.L. Shen
The Boy You Always Wanted by Michelle Quach
The Boy you Always Wanted by Michelle Quach
This is the Way the World Ends by Jen Wilde
This is the Way the World Ends by Jen Wilde
Something More by Jackie Khalilieh
Something More by Jackie Khalilieh
The Second Death of Edie and Violet Bond by Amanda Glaze
The Second Death of Edie and Violet Bond by Amanda Glaze
These are the Words by Nikita Gill
These are the Words by Nikita Gill
Disappearing Act: A true story by Jiordan Castle
Disappearing Act: A true story by Jiordan Castle
My name is Jason. Mine too: Our story, our way by Jason Reynolds
My name is Jason. Mine too: Our story, our way by Jason Reynolds
The Awakening of Malcolm X by Ilyasah Shabazz
The Awakening of Malcolm X by Ilyasah Shabazz
Global Citizenship: Engage in the Politics of a Changing World by Julie Knutson
Global Citizenship: Engage in the Politics of a Changing World by Julie Knutson
Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party's Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party's Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
The Chosen One: A First-Generation Ivy League Odyssey by Echo Brown
The Chosen One: A First-Generation Ivy League Odyssey by Echo Brown
We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds
We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds
Pocho by Matt de la Pena
Pocho by Matt de la Pena

MORE

Recommended Reading: Adult

Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond
Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond
My Side of the River: A Memoir by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez
My Side of the River: A Memoir by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez
Crazy as Hell: The Best Little Guide to Black History by Hoke S. Glover III
Crazy as Hell: The Best Little Guide to Black History by Hoke S. Glover III
Class: A Memoir by Stephanie Land
Class: A Memoir by Stephanie Land
Blackbirds Singing: Inspiring Black Women's Speeches from the Civil War to the Twenty-First Century by Janet Dewart Bell, PHD
Blackbirds Singing: Inspiring Black Women's Speeches from the Civil War to the Twenty-First Century by Janet Dewart Bell, PHD
The Ballad of Jacquotte Delahaye by Briony Cameron
The Ballad of Jacquotte Delahaye by Briony Cameron
The Anti-Ableist Manifesto: Smashing Stereotypes, Forging Change, and Building a Disability-Inclusive World by Tiffany Yu
The Anti-Ableist Manifesto: Smashing Stereotypes, Forging Change, and Building a Disability-Inclusive World by Tiffany Yu
American Imam: From Pop Stardom to Prison Abolition by Taymullah Abdur-Rahman
American Imam: From Pop Stardom to Prison Abolition by Taymullah Abdur-Rahman
54 Miles by Leonard Pitts, Jr.
54 Miles by Leonard Pitts, Jr.
10/7: 100 Human Stories by Lee Yaron
10/7: 100 Human Stories by Lee Yaron
But How Are You, Really by Ella Dawson
But How Are You, Really by Ella Dawson
Fire Exit by Morgan Talty
Fire Exit by Morgan Talty
Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange
The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History by Ned Blackhawk
The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History by Ned Blackhawk
Native Nations: A Millennium in North America by Kathleen DuVal
Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton
The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro
Control by Omar Tyree
Carmen and Grace by Melissa Coss Aquino
Accordion Eulogies: A Memoir of Music, Migration, and Mexico by Noé Álvarez
Never Forget our People Were Always Free: A Parable of American Healing by Ben Jealous
Thunder Song: Essays by Sasha taqwseblu LaPointe
I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition by Lucy Sante
The Best That You Can Do: Stories by Amina Gautier
The American Daughters by Maurice Carlos Ruffin
Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings
Gaytheist: Coming Out of My Orthodox Childhood by Lonnie Mann
At Her Service by Amy Spalding
Zora Books Her Happy Ever After by Taj McCoy
The Six: The Untold Story of America's First Women Astronauts by Loren Grush
Waiting to Be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet's Memoir of China's Genocide by Tahir Hamut Izgil
Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant: A Memoir by Curtis Chin
Confrontations by Simone Atangana Bekono
The American Queen by Vanessa Miller
Strong Female Character by Fern Brady
Daughter of the Dragon: Anna May Wong's Rendezvous with American History by Yunte Huang
The Book of (More) Delights by Ross Gay
They Called Us Exceptional: And Other Lies That Raised Us by Prachi Gupta
The Golden Screen by Jeff Yang
How Far to the Promised Land: One Black Family's Story of Hope and Survival in the American South by Esau McCaulley
How Far to the Promised Land: One Black Family's Story of Hope and Survival in the American South by Esau McCaulley
Evil Eye by Etaf Rum
Evil Eye by Etaf Rum
Don't Cry for Me by Daniel Black
Don't Cry for Me by Daniel Black
Insurrection by Hawa Allen
Insurrection by Hawa Allen
Getting Me Cheap: How Low-wage Work Traps Women and Girls in Poverty by Amanda Freeman
Getting Me Cheap: How Low-wage Work Traps Women and Girls in Poverty by Amanda Freeman
Unequal Cities: Overcoming Anti-urban Bias to Reduce Inequality in the United States by Richard McGahey
Unequal Cities: Overcoming Anti-urban Bias to Reduce Inequality in the United States by Richard McGahey

MORE

Local and Regional

Bound for the Promised Land: Harriet Tubman, portrait of an American hero by Kate Clifford Larson
The Lines Between Us Two Families and a Quest to Cross Baltimore's Racial Divide by Lawrence Lanahan
The Henry Louis Gates, Jr. reader by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Not in My Neighborhood: How Bigotry Shaped a Great American city by Antero Pietila
LGBT Baltimore by Louise Parker Kelley
Letters from Black America by Pamela Newkirk
Black Men Built the Capital: hidden contributions of African Americans in and around Washington, D.C. by Jesse J. Holland
Hands up, don't shoot: why the protests in Ferguson and Baltimore matter and how they changed America by Jennifer Cobbina
They Can't Kill us All (Ferguson, Baltimore, and a New Era in America's Racial Justice Movement) by Wesley Lowery
From Slave Ship to Harvard: Yarrow Mamout and the History of an African American Family by James H. Johnston
Frederick Douglass in Washington D.C. the Lion of Anacostia by John Muller
Finding Otho: The Search for our Enslaved Williams Ancestors by Kathy Lynne Marshall
The Cooking Gene: A Journey Through African-American Culinary History in the Old South by Michael W. Twitty
The 2015 Baltimore Uprising: A Teen Epistolary by Various
Stolen: Five Free Boys Kidnapped Into Slavery and Their Astonsihing Odyssey Home by Richard Bell
Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley
Nature & History in the Potomac country: From Hunter-Gatherers to the Age of Jefferson by James D. Rice
Listening to Deafness: An Old Song Sung Differently by David Morris Denton
Young Frederick Douglass: The Maryland years by Dickson J. Preston
We're Crossin' Over One by One by Cecelia Summers
The Original Black Elite: Daniel Murray and the Story of a Forgotten Era by Elizabeth Dowling Taylor
We're Better Than This: My Fight for the Future of our Democracy by Elijah Cummings
Up from the Meadows by Christopher E Haugh
Up from the Meadows by Christopher E Haugh
Memories of Frederick by Joy Hall Onley
Memories of Frederick by Joy Hall Onley
Living Treasures Cookbook by African American Resource Cultural and Heritage Society
Living Treasures Cookbook by African American Resource Cultural and Heritage Society
Honoring Their Paths by Deborah A. Lee
Honoring Their Paths by Deborah A. Lee
Dear old faithful Lincoln by Joy Hall Onley
Dear old faithful Lincoln : a time to reflect on the cherished memories of our school days by Joy Hall Onley
Bill Lee remembers by William O. Lee, Jr.
Bill Lee Remembers: a chronicle of black life in Frederick in the 20th century by William O. Lee, Jr.

MORE

Resources for Parents