Staff Picks
Read All About It: Sharon Draper
- Caitlin B.
- Friday, September 25, 2020
Collection
Sharon Draper (born 1948) grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, where she majored in English at Pepperdine University then earned her Masters of Arts in English at Miami University of Ohio. Always an avid reader, Draper taught at Cincinnati public schools.
She began writing short stories in 1990 after being challenged by a student to “write something.” Upon winning a five thousand dollar reward and publication of her short story, “One Small Torch,” in Ebony magazine, Draper left the classroom and turned to writing full-time in 2000.
She writes for young readers, tweens, and teens, and her books are largely realistic fiction.
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Blended
Published in 2018
Eleven-year-old Isabella's blended family is more divided than ever in this "timely but genuine" ( Publishers Weekly ) story about divorce and racial identity from the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Out of My Mind , Sharon M. Draper. Eleven-year-old Isabella's parents are divorced, so she has to switch lives every week: One week she's Isabella with her dad, his girlfriend Anastasia, and her son Darren living in a fancy house where they are one of the only black families in the neighborhood. The next week she's Izzy with her mom and her boyfriend John-Mark in a small, not-so-fancy house that she loves. Because of this, Isabella has always felt pulled between two worlds. And now that her parents are divorced, it seems their fights are even worse, and they're always about HER. Isabella feels completely stuck in the middle, split and divided between them more than ever. And she is beginning to realize that being split between Mom and Dad involves more than switching houses, switching nicknames, switching backpacks: it's also about switching identities. Her dad is black, her mom is white, and strangers are always commenting: "You're so exotic!" "You look so unusual." "But what are you really?" She knows what they're really saying: "You don't look like your parents." "You're different." "What race are you really?" And when her parents, who both get engaged at the same time, get in their biggest fight ever, Isabella doesn't just feel divided, she feels ripped in two. What does it mean to be half white or half black? To belong to half mom and half dad? And if you're only seen as half of this and half of that, how can you ever feel whole? It seems like nothing can bring Isabella's family together again?until the worst thing happens. Isabella and Darren are stopped by the police. A cell phone is mistaken for a gun. And shots are fired.
Blended
Published in 2018
Eleven-year-old Isabella's blended family is more divided than ever in this thoughtful story about divorce and racial identity from the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Out of My Mind , Sharon M. Draper. Eleven-year-old Isabella's parents are divorced, so she has to switch lives every week: One week she's Isabella with her dad, his girlfriend Anastasia, and her son Darren living in a fancy house where they are one of the only black families in the neighborhood. The next week she's Izzy with her mom and her boyfriend John-Mark in a small, not-so-fancy house that she loves. Because of this, Isabella has always felt pulled between two worlds. And now that her parents are divorced, it seems their fights are even worse, and they're always about HER. Isabella feels even more stuck in the middle, split and divided between them than ever. And she's is beginning to realize that being split between Mom and Dad is more than switching houses, switching nicknames, switching backpacks: it's also about switching identities. Her dad is black, her mom is white, and strangers are always commenting: "You're so exotic!" "You look so unusual." "But what are you really?" She knows what they're really saying: "You don't look like your parents." "You're different." "What race are you really?" And when her parents, who both get engaged at the same time, get in their biggest fight ever, Isabella doesn't just feel divided, she feels ripped in two. What does it mean to be half white or half black? To belong to half mom and half dad? And if you're only seen as half of this and half of that, how can you ever feel whole? It seems like nothing can bring Isabella's family together again?until the worst happens. Isabella and Darren are stopped by the police. A cell phone is mistaken for a gun. And shots are fired.
Copper Sun
Published in 2012
Stolen from her village, sold to the highest bidder, fifteen-year-old Amari has only one thing left of her own -- hope. Amari's life was once perfect. Engaged to the handsomest man in her tribe, adored by her family, and living in a beautiful village, she could not have imagined everything could be taken away from her in an instant. But when slave traders invade her village and brutally murder her entire family, Amari finds herself dragged away to a slave ship headed to the Carolinas, where she is bought by a plantation owner and given to his son as a birthday present. Survival seems all that Amari can hope for. But then an act of unimaginable cruelty provides her with an opportunity to escape, and with an indentured servant named Polly she flees to Fort Mose, Florida, in search of sanctuary at the Spanish colony. Can the illusive dream of freedom sustain Amari and Polly on their arduous journey, fraught with hardship and danger?
Copper Sun
Published in 2012
Stolen from her village, sold to the highest bidder, fifteen-year-old Amari has only one thing left of her own -- hope. Amari's life was once perfect. Engaged to the handsomest man in her tribe, adored by her family, and living in a beautiful village, she could not have imagined everything could be taken away from her in an instant. But when slave traders invade her village and brutally murder her entire family, Amari finds herself dragged away to a slave ship headed to the Carolinas, where she is bought by a plantation owner and given to his son as a birthday present. Survival seems all that Amari can hope for. But then an act of unimaginable cruelty provides her with an opportunity to escape, and with an indentured servant named Polly she flees to Fort Mose, Florida, in search of sanctuary at the Spanish colony. Can the illusive dream of freedom sustain Amari and Polly on their arduous journey, fraught with hardship and danger?
Copper Sun
Published in 2006
Fifteen-year-old Amari witnesses the murder of her family and the destruction of her remote African village. She endures countless humiliations as she is beaten, branded, and forced to board a slave ship. The atrocities continue as she struggles through endless days of backbreaking work and daily degradation on a plantation. Somehow, through it all, Amari's hopes and dreams survive because there are moments of kindness from an indentured white girl, Polly and the gentle wife of the plantation owner. Amari and Polly find that by working together freedom could be possible. Award-winning author and educator Sharon M. Draper, known for her popular, contemporary teen novels, successfully tackles historical fiction and received starred reviews from Booklist and the School Library Journal. In this well-researched novel, Draper explores the inter-relationships of those who live on a plantation. "Draper builds the explosive tension to the last chapter, and the sheer power of the story, balanced between the overwhelmingly brutal facts of slavery and Amari's ferocious survivor's spirit, will leave [listeners] breathless, even as they consider the story's larger questions about the infinite costs of slavery and how to reconcile history." ? Booklist , starred review
Out of My Mind
Published in 2010
Eleven-year-old Melody has a photographic memory. Her head is like a video camera that is always recording. Always. And there's no delete button. She's the smartest kid in her whole school--but no one knows it. Most people--her teachers and doctors included--don't think she's capable of learning, and up until recently her school days consisted of listening to the same preschool-level alphabet lessons again and again and again. If only she could speak up, if only she could tell people what she thinks and knows . . . but she can't, because Melody can't talk. She can't walk. She can't write. Being stuck inside her head is making Melody go out of her mind--that is, until she discovers something that will allow her to speak for the first time ever. At last Melody has a voice . . . but not everyone around her is ready to hear it.From multiple Coretta Scott King Award winner Sharon M. Draper comes a story full of heartache and hope. Get ready to meet a girl whose voice you'll never, ever forget.
Out of My Mind
Published in 2010
Eleven-year-old Melody has a photographic memory. Her head is like a video camera that is always recording. Always. And there's no delete button. She's the smartest kid in her whole school?but no one knows it. Most people?her teachers and doctors included?don't think she's capable of learning, and up until recently her school days consisted of listening to the same preschool-level alphabet lessons again and again and again. If only she could speak up, if only she could tell people what she thinks and knows . . . but she can't, because Melody can't talk. She can't walk. She can't write. Being stuck inside her head is making Melody go out of her mind?that is, until she discovers something that will allow her to speak for the first time ever. At last Melody has a voice . . . but not everyone around her is ready to hear it.From multiple Coretta Scott King Award winner Sharon M. Draper comes a story full of heartache and hope. Get ready to meet a girl whose voice you'll never, ever forget.
Stella by Starlight
Published in 2015
When the Ku Klux Klan?s unwelcome reappearance rattles Stella?s segregated southern town, bravery battles prejudice in this New York Times called “storytelling at its finest” in a starred review. Stella lives in the segregated South?in Bumblebee, North Carolina, to be exact about it. Some stores she can go into. Some stores she can?t. Some folks are right pleasant. Others are a lot less so. To Stella, it sort of evens out, and heck, the Klan hasn?t bothered them for years. But one late night, later than she should ever be up, much less wandering around outside, Stella and her little brother see something they?re never supposed to see, something that is the first flicker of change to come, unwelcome change by any stretch of the imagination. As Stella?s community?her world?is upended, she decides to fight fire with fire. And she learns that ashes don?t necessarily signify an end.
Stella by Starlight
Published in 2015
When the Ku Klux Klan?s unwelcome reappearance rattles Stella?s segregated southern town, bravery battles prejudice in this Depression-era tour de force from Sharon Draper, the New York Times bestselling author of Out of My Mind . Stella lives in the segregated South?in Bumblebee, North Carolina, to be exact about it. Some stores she can go into. Some stores she can?t. Some folks are right pleasant. Others are a lot less so. To Stella, it sort of evens out, and heck, the Klan hasn?t bothered them for years. But one late night, later than she should ever be up, much less wandering around outside, Stella and her little brother see something they?re never supposed to see, something that is the first flicker of change to come, unwelcome change by any stretch of the imagination. As Stella?s community?her world?is upended, she decides to fight fire with fire. And she learns that ashes don?t necessarily signify an end.
Stella by Starlight
Published in 2015
When the Ku Klux Klan makes an unwelcome reappearance in Stella?s segregated southern town, bravery battles prejudice in this Depression-era tour de force from Sharon Draper, the New York Times bestselling author of Out of My Mind . Stella lives in the segregated South?in Bumblebee, North Carolina, to be exact about it. Some stores she can go into. Some stores she can?t. Some folks are right pleasant. Others are a lot less so. To Stella, it sort of evens out, and heck, the Klan hasn?t bothered them for years. But one late night, later than she should ever be up, much less wandering around outside, Stella and her little brother see something they?re never supposed to see, something that is the first flicker of change to come, unwelcome change by any stretch of the imagination. As Stella?s community?her world?is upended, she decides to fight fire with fire. And she learns that ashes don?t necessarily signify an end.
The Buried Bones Mystery
Published in 2011
Ziggy and his friends form a clubhouse after someone vandalizes their basketball court, and they soon uncover a clue that may tell them who did it.
Copper Sun
Published in 2006
Two fifteen-year-old girls--one a slave and the other an indentured servant--escape their Carolina plantation and try to make their way to Fort Moses, Florida, a Spanish colony that gives sanctuary to slaves.
Copper Sun
Published in 2006
Two fifteen-year-old girls--one a slave and the other an indentured servant--escape their Carolina plantation and try to make their way to Fort Moses, Florida, a Spanish colony that gives sanctuary to slaves.
Darkness Before Dawn
Published in 2001
Recovering from the recent suicide of her ex-boyfriend, senior class president Keisha Montgomery finds herself attracted to a dangerous, older man.
Double Dutch
Published in 2002
Three eighth-grade friends, preparing for the International Double Dutch Championship jump rope competition in their home town of Cincinnati, Ohio, cope with Randy's missing father, Delia's inability to read, and Yo Yo's encounter with the class bullies.
Fire from the Rock
Published in 2008
In 1957, Sylvia Patterson's life--that of a normal African American teenager--is disrupted by the impending integration of Little Rock's Central High when she is selected to be one of the first black students to attend the previously all white school. Includes author's note and related websites.
Fire from the Rock
Published in 2007
In 1957, Sylvia Patterson's life--that of a normal African American teenager--is disrupted by the impending integration of Little Rock's Central High when she is selected to be one of the first black students to attend the previously all white school. Includes author's note and related websites.
Just Another Hero
Published in 2009
As Kofi, Arielle, Dana, November, and Jericho face personal challenges during their last year of high school, a misunderstood student brings a gun to class and demands to be taken seriously.
Lost in the Tunnel of Time
Published in 2011
From a map Ziggy and his friends discover an old tunnel that was once used as a safe haven by escaped slaves. While checking out the tunnel, the trap door gets stuck and the boys are forced to use the old, dark, damp tunnels that just may be haunted.
November Blues
Published in 2009
A teenaged boy's death in a hazing accident has lasting effects on his pregnant girlfriend and his guilt-ridden cousin, who gives up a promising music career to play football during his senior year in high school.
Out of My Mind
Published in 2010
Considered by many to be mentally retarded, a brilliant, impatient fifth-grader with cerebral palsy discovers a technological device that will allow her to speak for the first time.
Panic
Published in 2013
As rehearsals begin for the ballet version of Peter Pan, the teenaged members of an Ohio dance troupe lose their focus when one of their own goes missing.
Sassy
Little Sister is Not My Name
Published in 2009
Fashion-savy Sassy does not like being the smallest student in her fourth-grade class, until a family emergency calls for a pint-sized hero.
Sassy
The Birthday Storm
Published in 2009
While in Florida to celebrate her Grammy's birthday, nine-and-a-half-year-old Sassy worries that an approaching hurricane will ruin not only the party, but a nest of sea turtle eggs, as well. Includes facts about hurricanes and sea turtles.
Sassy
The Dazzle Disaster Dinner Party
Published in 2010
Sassy Simone Sanford plans a fabulous dinner party for her fourth grade class, but it turns into a recipe for disaster when her dog eats the food, her friends make a mess, and the new girl in school is missing.
Sassy
The Silver Secret
Published in 2010
Because she has a terrible singing voice, fourth-grader Sassy must use a different talent to be part of her school's musical performance on the importance of saving our planet. Includes "Fifteen ways that you can help save our earth."
The Space Mission Adventure
Published in 2012
Ziggy and the other members of the Black Dinosaurs go to space camp where they learn about the space program and speculate about the existence of extraterrestrial beings.
Stars and Sparks on Stage
Published in 2012
Ziggy, Jerome, Rashawn, and Rico are sure they will win the talent show and the prize money to fix up their clubhouse. A moral dilemma develops when they realize another contestant may need the prize money even more.
Stella by Starlight
Published in 2015
When a burning cross set by the Klan causes panic and fear in 1932 Bumblebee, North Carolina, fifth-grader Stella must face prejudice and find the strength to demand change in her segregated town.
Stella by Starlight
Published in 2015
Stella lives in the segregated South, in Bumblebee, North Carolina, to be exact about it. Some stores she can go into. Some stores she can't. Some folks are right pleasant. Others are a lot less so. The Klan hasn't bothered them for years, but one late night, while wandering around outside, Stella and her little brother see something they're never supposed to see, something that is the first flicker of change to come, unwelcome change by any stretch of the imagination.
Blended
Published in 2018
Piano-prodigy Isabella, eleven, whose black father and white mother struggle to share custody, never feels whole, especially as racial tensions affect her school, her parents both become engaged, and she and her stepbrother are stopped by police.
Stella by Starlight
Published in 2015
When a burning cross set by the Klan causes panic and fear in 1932 Bumblebee, North Carolina, fifth-grader Stella must face prejudice and find the strength to demand change in her segregated town.
Blended
Published in 2018
Eleven-year-old Isabella's blended family is more divided than ever in this thoughtful story about divorce and racial identity from the award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of Out of My Mind, Sharon M. Draper.