Browse all books

Books in Rainbow Reading My Body series

  • Zora Hurston & The Chinaberry Tree

    National Geographic Learning

    Paperback (National Geographic School Pub, Dec. 28, 2000)
    The true story of the famous writer, who as a young girl, learned about hope and strength from her mother. Zora is full of dreams. From the top of the chinaberry tree, she dreams of living in the cities beyond the horizon. Her father thinks she should wear dresses and leave dreaming and tree-climbing to boys. But her mother teaches Zora that like each new branch of the chinaberry tree, dreams are always within reach. Independent and full of spirit, Zora explores her hometown and listens to the stories of its people -- stories her mother makes her promise to remember. But it isn't until Zora is faced with her mother's death that she realizes the importance of her promise. Based on autobiographical writings of the renowned African American writer Zora Neale Hurston, this is a story that will appeal to all readers who, like Zora, believe in their dreams.
    M
  • Space Case

    Edward Marshall, James Marshall

    Paperback (Puffin Books, Sept. 1, 1992)
    Illustrated by the Caldecott Honor winner James Marshall, this Halloween story is sure to entertain!When the thing from outer space visits earth, it is taken first for a trick-or-treater and then for a robot in this hilarious picture book.
    J
  • Sunken Treasure

    Gail Gibbons

    Paperback (Collins, March 16, 1990)
    A rotting hull of a ship...lost gold...coins...gems...Sunken Treasure!Today treasure hunting is a big business. Searchers use metal detectors and sonar to locate treasure on the ocean floor. Divers use high-powered machinery to uncover objects buried in the sand and to raise them to the surface. And more than just treasures are discovered. A whole window into the past is opened up. A salvage can take months or even years. But it's worth it!
    P
  • The Gift of the Sacred Dog

    Paul Goble

    Paperback (Aladdin, Oct. 1, 1984)
    A brave boy goes into the hills and prays for help for his people. A rider on a magnificent animal comes to him and says: "This animal is called the Sacred Dog. He can do many things your dogs can do and also more...He is as the wind: gentle but sometimes frightening." The clouds close and suddenly one by one countless Sacred Dogs course down from the sky. And so the courage of one determined boy is rewarded by the Great Spirit: The horse, or Sacred Dog, is given to his tribe.
    N
  • If A Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks

    Faith Ringgold

    Paperback (Aladdin, Jan. 1, 2003)
    If a bus could talk, it would tell the story of a young African-American girl named Rosa who had to walk miles to her one-room schoolhouse in Alabama while white children rode to their school in a bus. It would tell how the adult Rosa rode to and from work on a segregated city bus and couldn't sit in the same row as a white person. It would tell of the fateful day when Rosa refused to give up her seat to a white man and how that act of courage inspired others around the world to stand up for freedom. In this book a bus does talk, and on her way to school a girl named Marcie learns why Rosa Parks is the mother of the Civil Rights movement. At the end of Marcie's magical ride, she meets Rosa Parks herself at a birthday party with several distinguished guests. Wait until she tells her class about this!
    N
  • Max

    Rachel Isadora

    Paperback (Aladdin, Aug. 1, 1984)
    ALA Notable Children's Book International Reading Association Classroom Choice A Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies Max is a crack baseball player. Saturday mornings he walks with his sister, Lisa, to her dancing school on his way to the park for his weekly game. One morning Max is early, and Lisa's teacher invites him to join the class. Max stretches at the barre. He struggles for a split. And before he knows it, he's having fun! Young ballplayers and ballet dancers will share Max's delight when he discovers that dance class is a great way to warm up for a home run.
    J
  • The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge

    Hildegarde H. Swift, Lynd Ward

    Paperback (HMH Books for Young Readers, April 1, 2003)
    Lighting up readers' hearts and imaginations since it was first published in 1942.
    L
  • Mama Provi and the Pot of Rice

    Sylvia Rosa-Casanova, Robert Roth

    Paperback (Aladdin, March 1, 2001)
    Mama Provi and her granddaughter Lucy live in the same tall apartment building -- Mama Provi on the first floor, Lucy on the eighth. When Lucy has the chicken pox and can't come down to visit, Mama Provi decides to make a trip upstairs with a big pot of her tasty arroz con pollo. But on her way up the seven flights of stairs, she meets a neighbor on every floor. En un dos por tres (in Spanish this means "lickedy-split"), the chicken and rice are joined by Mrs. Landers's crusty white bread, Señor Rivera's frijoles negros, Mrs. Woo's tea, and more...and Mama Provi arrives at Lucy's door with a tremendous feast!
    M
  • Crictor

    Tomi Ungerer

    Paperback (HarperCollins, July 14, 1983)
    ‘A highly diverting picture book about an agreeable pet boa constrictor that earns the affection and gratitude of a French village.’ —BL. ‘Children will love it.’ —H. Notable Children's Books of 1940–1959 (ALA)1959 Fanfare Honor List (The Horn Book)A Reading Rainbow Selection1958 Children's Spring Book Festival Prize (NY Herald Tribune)
    K
  • Maps and Globes

    Jack Knowlton, Harriet Barton

    Paperback (Collins, May 23, 1986)
    This comprehensive look at geography and the environment, Maps and Globes, can take you anywhere—to the top of the tallest mountain on earth or the bottom of the deepest ocean. Maps tell you about the world: where various countries are located, where the jungles and deserts are, even how to find your way around your own hometown. If you take a fancy to any place on earth, you can go there today and still be home in time for dinner. So open a map, spin a globe. The wide world awaits you.Supports the Common Core State Standards
    O
  • Just Us Women

    Jeannette Caines, Pat Cummings

    Paperback (HarperCollins, May 23, 1984)
    "No boys and no men-just us women," Aunt Martha tells her niece. And together they plan their trip to North Carolina in Aunt Martha's brand-new car. This is to be a very special outing-with no one to hurry them along, the two travelers can do exactly as they please.
    J
  • Alvin Ailey

    Andrea Pinkney, Brian Pinkney

    Paperback (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Sept. 5, 1995)
    "This markedly talented husband-and-wife team offers a warm profile of dancer and choreographer Alvin Ailey . . . intertwining Ailey's alleged thoughts and conversations with facts about his childhood, his introduction to the world of dance . . . and his founding of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1958."--"Publishers Weekly," starred review. Full color.
    P