Books with author Patricia McKissack

Illus. in full color."Mirandy is sure she'll win the cake walk if she can catch Brother Wind for her partner, but he eludes all the tricks her friends advise. This gets a high score for plot, pace, and characterization. Mirandy sparkles with energy and determination. Multi-hued watercolors fill the pages with patterned ferment. A treat to pass on to new generations."--(starred) Bulletin, Center for Children's Books. Cassette running time: 20 min.

Through moving prose and beautiful watercolors, award-winning author-illustrator duo collaborate to tell the poignant tale of a spirited young girl who comes face to face with segregation in her southern town.There’s a place in this 1950s southern town where all are welcome, no matter what their skin color…and ’Tricia Ann knows exactly how to get there. To her, it’s someplace special and she’s bursting to go by herself. When her grandmother sees that she’s ready to take such a big step, ’Tricia Ann hurries to catch the bus heading downtown. But unlike the white passengers, she must sit in the back behind the Jim Crow sign and wonder why life's so unfair. Still, for each hurtful sign seen and painful comment heard, there’s a friend around the corner reminding ’Tricia Ann that she’s not alone. And even her grandmother’s words—"You are somebody, a human being—no better, no worse than anybody else in this world”—echo in her head, lifting her spirits and pushing her forward.

In the year 2170 an underground abolitionist movement fights for the freedom of cyborgs and clones, who are treated no better than slavesThe Cyborg Wars are over and Earth has peacefully prospered for more than one hundred years. Yet sometimes history must repeat itself until humanity learns from its mistakes. In the year 2170, despite technological and political advances, cyborgs and clones are treated no better than slaves, and an underground abolitionist movement is fighting for freedom. Thirteen-year-old Leanna's entire life is thrown into chaos when The World Federation of Nations discovers her mom is part of the radical Liberty Bell Movement.

MOTHER AND DAUGHTER, grandmother and granddaughter, aunt and niece, friend and friend. For a hundred years, generations of women from Gee’s Bend have quilted together, sharing stories, trading recipes, singing hymns—all the while stitchin’ and pullin’ thread through cloth. Every day Baby Girl listens, watches, and waits, until she’s called to sit at the quilting frame. Piece by piece, she puzzles her quilt together—telling not just her story, but the story of her family, the story of Gee’s Bend, and the story of her ancestors’ struggle for freedom.

Illus. in full color. In an original yarn of the Louisiana bayou, McKissack honors the tradition of bragging about the one that got away. Hugh Thomas hears that strange things happen on the Bayou Clapateaux, but he's skeptical--until he invents a fish story of his own. "McKissack understands the elements of a good story, and includes just enough detail to make it work. Uninhibited splashes of vivid colors fill the pages and elicit a joyous emotional response to the dynamic human figures. A radiant debut for a talented illustrator."--(starred) School Library Journal.