It’s time for more books! I get so excited every month when new picture books come out and this month, there are quite a few! Check out these new January picture books that were released in 2024.
I’m sharing all of these books on video as well! Check out the New Books: January 2024 on my Youtube channel.
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Too Much: My Great Big Native Family by Laurel Goodluck
A little boy wants a chance to shine on his own but discovers that being apart from his large and lively Native family isn’t necessarily better in this heartwarming and humorous picture book.
When Russell gets a part in the school play, he lights up like a shining star—and he can’t wait to tell his big, boisterous Native family the exciting news. But catching their attention when they all get together feels impossible; no matter where they go, they seem to be too noisy, too many, and just too much!
Russell decides to keep his big debut to himself and fly solo for once…but being alone may not be the answer. After all, there’s no such thing as too much love, and when he needs them most, his great big family knows how to be just enough.
Tree of Life by Elisa Boxer
During World War Two, in the concentration camp Terezin, a group of Jewish children and their devoted teacher planted and nurtured a smuggled-in sapling. When the war finally ended and the prisoners were freed, the sapling had grown into a strong five-foot-tall maple.
Nearly eighty years later the tree’s 600 descendants around the world are thriving . . . including one that was planted at New York City’s Museum of Jewish Heritage in 2021. Students will continue to care for it for generations to come, and the world will remember the brave teacher and children who never gave up nurturing a brighter future.
The Last Stand by Antwan Eady
An intergenerational story inspired by Eady’s childhood in the rural south. Here’s a farm stand that represents the importance of family, community, and hope.
Saturday is for harvesting. And one little boy is excited to work alongside his Papa as they collect eggs, plums, peppers and pumpkins to sell at their stand in the farmer’s market. Of course, it’s more than a farmer’s market. Papa knows each customer’s order, from Ms. Rosa’s pumpkins to Mr. Johnny’s peppers. And when Papa can’t make it to the stand, his community gathers around him, with dishes made of his own produce.
Buffalo Fluffalo by Bess Kalb
Buffalo Fluffalo arrives on the scene puffed up with self-importance. Stomping around and raising billows of dust, Buffalo Fluffalo proclaims his superiority to the other creatures—the ram, the prairie dog, and the crow—who just want to be his friend. So Buffalo Fluffalo, who has had enuffalo, heads off to grumble to himself.
Suddenly, a rain shower pours down from the clouds and—what’s this? All of his fluffalo is a soggy mess! There Fluffalo stands, a drenched pip-squeak without his disguise. The other animals, who could see through Fluffalo’s bravado from the start, circle around to comfort him. As prairie dog says with a smile in his eyes,
You’re great how you are, no matter your size
Coretta: The Autobiography of Ms. Coretta Scott King by Coretta Scott King
Adapted from her adult memoir, this is the autobiography of Coretta Scott King––wife of Martin Luther King, Jr., founder of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (the King Center), and twentieth-century American civil and human rights activist.
Dear Ruby, Hear Our Hearts by Ruby Bridges
National civil rights activist and icon Ruby Bridges responds to letters from thoughtful and concerned young students from across America.
Dear Ruby, Hear Our Hearts is a compilation of letters from concerned young students about today’s issues, including bullying, climate change, gun violence, and racism. Reading Ruby’s intuitive and inspirational responses, young readers will embrace the courage to be brave, bold, and confident.
Like So by Ruth Forman
A lyrical and vibrant picture book honoring the love that exists between family and child even in difficult times.
Told from Nana’s point of view, this simple and comforting read-aloud shows how every family’s love is natural and connected to the world around us. Just as the sun loves the day, the moon loves the waves, and the night sky loves the star glow…so is our love for each other: innate, wondrous, and infinite.
When I Wrap My Hair by Shauntay Grant
This inspiring and beautiful picture book celebrates how hair wrapping ties together past and present. When I Wrap My Hair is both an act of joyful recognition and a demonstration of how knowledge is passed through generations.
I am a Masterpiece! An Empowering Story about Inclusivity and Growing Up with Down Syndrome by Mia Armstrong
Tween actress Mia Armstrong celebrates her fun, funny, beautiful childhood living with Down syndrome in this debut picture book.
Mia likes many of the things other people like–going to the beach, the color blue, drawing. But she doesn’t like when strangers stare at her because she looks different from them.
Down syndrome allows Mia to see and understand the world in a way that may not make sense to others. She considers it her superpower–and instead of it making her strange, she considers herself a masterpiece. As we all are.
Ellie Mae Dreams Big! by Kristina McMorris
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
At the teacher’s all-important question, Ellie Mae’s mind swirls with ideas. An astronaut or a chef? Better yet, why not an astronaut-chef? Since the moon is made of cheese, her galactic grilled-cheese sandwiches could be known throughout the universe! Or . . . she could be a ‘ballerina-painter,’ creating masterpieces while leaping across the stage.
In the end, there are so many options, Ellie Mae fears she can’t possibly pick―until the answer dawns on her. What she chooses will surprise her classmates as much as the reader!
Eyes that Weave the World’s Wonders by Joanna Ho
A young girl who is a transracial adoptee learns to love her Asian eyes and finds familial connection and meaning through them, even though they look different from her parents’.
Her family bond is deep and their connection is filled with love. She wonders about her birth mom, and comes to appreciate both her birth culture and her adopted family’s culture, for even though they may seem very different, they are both a part of her, and that is what makes her beautiful. She learns to appreciate the differences in her family and celebrate them. A powerful companion picture book about adoption and family.
Jose Feeds the World by David Unger
When a terrible earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, chef José Andrés knew he needed to help. Within a few hours of the disaster, he had gathered friends, they flew to the island, and they began cooking rice and beans for the hungry locals. This trip changed the life of the successful chef and led him to found World Central Kitchen, a disaster-relief organization that has fed more than 200 million people affected by natural disasters, the COVID pandemic, and war.
This beautifully illustrated book tells the story of a passionate chef who uses the power of food to nurture people in need, one plate at a time.
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