Tolerance

Don't Laugh at Me (Reading Rainbow Book)

Don't Laugh at Me

Steve Seskin and Allen Shamblin / Illustrations by Glin Dibley

Afterword by Peter Yarrow

I'm fat, I'm thin. I'm short, I'm tall. I'm deaf, I'm blind.

Hey, aren't we all?

With these words the chart-topping song of the same name has percolated through schools and camps across North America with its unforgettable message of acceptance and pride. The Don't Laugh at Me Project, inspired by the text of this book, asks kids to raise their voices to create ridicule-free environments. Those voices are now brought into full-color harmony through rich, emotionally engaging illustrations.

Legions of children are eager to learn a new language and stop the cycle of teasing. Hey, aren't we all?

Old Turtle and the Broken Truth

From the author of the award-winning legend of peace, Old Turtle, comes a soulful new tale about the wise old turtle who advocates listening to the "language of breezes...learning lessons from stones and animals and trees and stars." In this story, a truth falls from the stars, breaking in half when it lands. Crow, Fox, Coyote, and Raccoon, each pick up this piece of truth but discard it because of its rough edges and broken nature. But when a human being finds it, noting the words "You Are Loved" written on it, he and his people cherish it as their most important possession. Time passes, and jealousy, fear, and anger rise up in the people who hold this Great Truth, as well as in those who do not have it. The world begins to suffer. Finally, it's up to a little girl to seek understanding and a solution to the woes of the world.

Old Turtle and the Broken Truth's new age allegory is exquisitely wrought, in word and in picture. Douglas Wood's prose is the timeless language of fables, meshing perfectly with Jon Muth 's radiant watercolors for an experience anyone seven to one hundred and seven can appreciate. (All ages) --Emilie Coulter

Sheetzucacapoopoo: My Kind of Dog

Comedian and talk-show host Joy Behar has teamed up with illustrator Gene Barretta to create a feisty, lovable character in this cheerful, funny picture book. When Max the mixed-breed meets a pack of snobby purebred dogs in the dog run, he can't understand why they don't want to play with him and his mongrel friends. Determined to get everyone to play together, brainy Max—who is part poodle, after all—comes up with a way to break the ice between the mixed-breeds and the purebreds. America's current obsession with designer dogs makes this book as timely as it is lively.

Accept And Value Each Person (Learning to Get Along)

The world is becoming more diverse, and so are the daily lives of our children. Accepting and valuing people and groups who are different from oneself and one's immediate family is a critical social skill. This book introduces diversity and related concepts: respecting differences, being inclusive, and appreciating people just the way they are. Includes questions, activities, and games that reinforce the ideas being taught.

Dad, Jackie, And Me

IT IS THE SUMMER OF 1947 and a highly charged baseball season is underway in New York. Jackie Robinson is the new first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers--and the first black player in Major League Baseball. A young boy shares the excitement of Robinson's rookie season with his deaf father. Each day he listens eagerly to the Brooklyn Dodgers games on the radio. When his father arrives home from work, the boy uses sign language to tell him about the Dodgers. His father begins to keep a scrapbook, clipping photos and articles about Jackie. Finally one day the father delivers some big news: they are going to Ebbets Field to watch Jackie play in person! Author Myron Uhlberg offers a nostalgic look back at 1947, and pays tribute to Jackie Robinson, the legendary athlete and hero who brought a father and son--and an entire New York community--together for one magical summer. Illustrator Colin Bootman's realistic, full-color illustrations capture the details of the period and the excitement of an entire city as Robinson helps the Dodgers win the long-awaited pennant.

Skin Again

The skin I'm in is just a covering.It cannot tell my story.The skin I'm in is just a covering.If you want to know who i amYou have got to come insideAnd open your heart way wide. Celebrating all that makes us unique and different, Skin Again offers new ways to talk about race and identity. Race matters, but only so much-what's most important is who we are on the inside. Looking beyond skin, going straight to the heart, we find in each other the treasures stored down deep. Learning to cherish those treasures, to be all we imagine ourselves to be, makes us free. Skin Again celebrates this freedom.

Fade to Black

The victim: After his windshield was shattered with a baseball bat, HIV-positive Alex Crusan ducked under the steering wheel. But he knows what he saw. Now he must decide what he wants to tell.

The witness: Daria Bickell never lies. So if she told the police she saw Clinton Cole do it, she must have. But did she really?

The suspect: Clinton was seen in the vicinity of the crime that morning. And sure, he has problems with Alex. But he'd never do something like this. Would he?

Quaking

DonÂ’t call her Matilda. Her name is Matt. And donÂ’t even think about getting close to her. She doesnÂ’t need anyone. CanÂ’t you tell by looking at her, dressed all in black with a spider painted on her face and her ice-cold stare? But most of all, do not bully her. She has been through it all already.

But everything changes for fourteen-year-old Matt when she moves in with peaceful Quakers Sam and Jessica Fox, who are active in the movement against the war in the Middle East. Soon, conflict arises in town over the war, and suddenly, no one is safe. Matt fears for her safety and the safety of her new family. Could the boy who terrorizes her at school be behind it all? And how can she save the family she is actually growing to love when her fear always leaves her quaking?

Scribbleville

Welcome to Scribbleville, where everything is made entirely of wiggles, squiggles, and scribbles. Straight lines are nowhere to be found, and the people of Scribbleville like it that way! Until the day an odd-looking stranger arrives . . . He is as straight as a stick. He builds a square house with a pointed roof.Wherever he goes, people stare and think: Someone should tell him he doesn't belong! And perhaps he doesn't. Until one child looks beyond the edges and sees what others cannot.

Peter Holwitz's simple fable and childlike illustrations speak equally to children and adults about the beauty inherent in differences. Share it with that special scribbler in your life.

Araboolies of Liberty Street