Awards

• Booklist Top 10 Series Nonfiction

Overview

In the United States, Black men are almost six times more likely to be imprisoned than white men. This disproportionate impact can be traced back to slavery, Jim Crow laws, and the criminalization of Black people into the modern day. With growing awareness about unfair treatment in the justice system, more and more people are calling for change. Read more about the history and causes of mass incarceration and how activists are reforming and rethinking justice. Read Woke Books are created in partnership with Cicely Lewis, the Read Woke librarian. Inspired by a belief that knowledge is power, Read Woke Books seek to amplify the voices of people of the global majority (people who are of African, Arab, Asian, and Latin American descent and identify as not white), provide information about groups that have been disenfranchised, share perspectives of people who have been underrepresented or oppressed, challenge social norms and disrupt the status quo, and encourage readers to take action in their community.

Full Product Details

9781728423425

Table of Contents

Reviews

"""The short chapters pack a punch with sentences that make unflinching statements . . . a strong addition to social-justice collections.""--starred, Booklist -- (10/1/2021 12:00:00 AM) ""This series is perfect for classroom discussions on social justice.""--School Library Journal -- (11/1/2021 12:00:00 AM)"

Lerner's new Read Woke Books brand, created with librarian Lewis, 'seek[s] to challenge social norms, give voice to the voiceless, provide information about [disenfranchised] groups . . ., disrupt the status quo, and share perspectives from underrepresented or oppressed groups.' Its Issues in Action series (6 titles) certainly does this. Here, readers get a frank accounting of mass incarceration in the U.S. today and how it disproportionately affects Black people as Lewis traces its roots to slavery, Jim Crow laws and convict leasing programs, Nixon's War on Drugs and unjust sentencing practices, and the school-to-prison pipeline. The short chapters pack a punch with sentences that make unflinching statements, such as 'Though slavery ended, white people continued to torture, abuse, and disenfranchise Black people by creating unfair systems.' Each page features an illustration or quote by a respected expert, and readers wishing to get involved or learn more will appreciate the 'Take Action' suggestions and the 'Read Woke Reading List.' Though source notes for the many compelling statistics are sadly absent, this remains a strong addition to social-justice collections. --starred, Booklist -- (10/1/2021 12:00:00 AM) This series tackles issues including mass incarceration, gun violence, immigration, and police brutality. Each book opens with a personal letter from series executive editor Cicely Lewis that contains a little bit of the backstory in the creation of the book and what she wants readers to gain from it. The series is visually appealing and uses small text boxes to provide more information about the pictures included. Each book contains reflection points, take action segments, a time line of events, source notes, a list of suggested reading titles, an index, and a glossary of terms. VERDICT This series is perfect for classroom discussions on social justice. --School Library Journal -- (11/1/2021 12:00:00 AM)

Lerner's new Read Woke Books brand, created with librarian Lewis, 'seek[s] to challenge social norms, give voice to the voiceless, provide information about [disenfranchised] groups . . ., disrupt the status quo, and share perspectives from underrepresented or oppressed groups.' Its Issues in Action series (6 titles) certainly does this. Here, readers get a frank accounting of mass incarceration in the U.S. today and how it disproportionately affects Black people as Lewis traces its roots to slavery, Jim Crow laws and convict leasing programs, Nixon's War on Drugs and unjust sentencing practices, and the school-to-prison pipeline. The short chapters pack a punch with sentences that make unflinching statements, such as 'Though slavery ended, white people continued to torture, abuse, and disenfranchise Black people by creating unfair systems.' Each page features an illustration or quote by a respected expert, and readers wishing to get involved or learn more will appreciate the 'Take Action' suggestions and the 'Read Woke Reading List.' Though source notes for the many compelling statistics are sadly absent, this remains a strong addition to social-justice collections.--starred, Booklist -- Journal (10/1/2021 12:00:00 AM)

"""This series is perfect for classroom discussions on social justice.""—School Library Journal ""The short chapters pack a punch with sentences that make unflinching statements . . . a strong addition to social-justice collections.""—starred, Booklist"

""This series is perfect for classroom discussions on social justice.""—School Library Journal ""The short chapters pack a punch with sentences that make unflinching statements . . . a strong addition to social-justice collections.""—starred, Booklist

Author Information

Cicely Lewis is a school librarian with a passion for creating lovers of reading based in Georgia. In 2017, she started the Read Woke challenge in response to the shootings of young unarmed black people, the repeal of DACA, and the lack of diversity in young adult literature. She was named the 2020 National Librarian of the Year by School Library Journal and Scholastic, a 2019 Library Journal Mover and Shaker and the 2019 National Teacher Award for Lifelong Readers by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and Penguin Random House (PRH).

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available