Here are 100 books that Amina's Voice fans have personally recommended if you like
Amina's Voice.
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In fifth grade, I chose to play the clarinet. After a lot of cracked reeds and squeaky notes, I switched to choir. I still love to sing! I love books that explore young people’s first experiences with music, whether it’s as a star or as a way to express one’s true self. Music takes many forms, and for me, that includes the arrangement of sounds in a sentence. When I write for young people, I look for the musicality of words, how they flow, and how variety can make a story pop. Try reading aloud your own work or a favorite book and listen to the rhythm of language.
My last choice is about a musical girl who finds a very different kind of “instrument” to play!
Twelve-year-old Emmy just moved from Wisconsin to San Francisco for her dad’s big break as a pianist. Emmy wants to be a musician, too, but can’t find the right instrument to play (I can relate!).
Notes and classical terms are in her head, but not her fingers in this novel-in-verse. Instead of music as an elective, Emmy ends up in computer science and makes friends with a quiet girl named Abigail.
Emmy learns java script, and the reader learns along with her. In the end, Emmy finds a way to make her own kind of music through computer coding.
In this innovative middle grade novel, coding and music take center stage as new girl Emmy tries to find her place in a new school. Perfect for fans of the Girls Who Code series and The Crossover.
In a new city, at a new school, twelve-year-old Emmy has never felt more out of tune.
Things start to look up when she takes her first coding class, unexpectedly connecting with the material—and Abigail, a new friend—through a shared language: music. But when Emmy gets bad news about their computer teacher, and finds out Abigail isn’t being entirely honest about their friendship,…
In fifth grade, I chose to play the clarinet. After a lot of cracked reeds and squeaky notes, I switched to choir. I still love to sing! I love books that explore young people’s first experiences with music, whether it’s as a star or as a way to express one’s true self. Music takes many forms, and for me, that includes the arrangement of sounds in a sentence. When I write for young people, I look for the musicality of words, how they flow, and how variety can make a story pop. Try reading aloud your own work or a favorite book and listen to the rhythm of language.
I am, and so is Apple Yengko, who wants desperately to learn to play the guitar but her mother says no. The family moved to Louisiana from the Philippines, after the death of Apple’s father, and everything about her mom embarrasses Apple.
Then, at the start of sixth grade, Apple realizes her one-time best friend cares only about social tiers and lists, including the so-called dog log. I love that Erin Entrada Kelly doesn’t shy away from the meanness of middle school!
What saves Apple are two new friends, including one with a beautiful voice, and at last Apple is comfortable showing who she is: a naturally talented guitar player.
Future rock star or friendless misfit? That's no choice at all. In this acclaimed novel by Newbery Medalist Erin Entrada Kelly, twelve-year-old Apple grapples with being different; with friends and backstabbers; and with following her dreams.
Publishers Weekly called Blackbird Fly "a true triumph," and the Los Angeles Times Book Review said, "Apple soars like the eponymous blackbird of her favorite Beatles song."
Apple has always felt a little different from her classmates. She and her mother moved to Louisiana from the Philippines when she was little, and her mother still cooks Filipino foods and chastises Apple for becoming "too…
In fifth grade, I chose to play the clarinet. After a lot of cracked reeds and squeaky notes, I switched to choir. I still love to sing! I love books that explore young people’s first experiences with music, whether it’s as a star or as a way to express one’s true self. Music takes many forms, and for me, that includes the arrangement of sounds in a sentence. When I write for young people, I look for the musicality of words, how they flow, and how variety can make a story pop. Try reading aloud your own work or a favorite book and listen to the rhythm of language.
If you’ve ever heard drumrolls and rhythms in your head, this story is for you.
Set during a recession, Sam and her family are experiencing hard times. But sixth grader Sam has a dream to play drums, and she’s gutsy enough to lie and mow lawns to pay for lessons and save for her own drum set someday.
Her worries about friends, cuts to the school’s music program, and her parents fighting over money mean that drumming is the only thing that’s saving Sam.
Through sheer determination and lots of practice, this girl who everyone said would never be good finally plays like the star drummer she is.
“This book is the song of my middle-school heart.” —Michelle Schusterman, author of the I Heart Band! series Sam knows she wants to be a drummer. But she doesn’t know how to afford a drum kit, or why budget cuts end her school’s music program, or why her parents argue so much, or even how to explain her dream to other people. But drums sound all the time in Sam’s head, and she’d do just about anything to play them out loud—even lie to her family if she has to. Will the cost of chasing her dream be too high?…
In fifth grade, I chose to play the clarinet. After a lot of cracked reeds and squeaky notes, I switched to choir. I still love to sing! I love books that explore young people’s first experiences with music, whether it’s as a star or as a way to express one’s true self. Music takes many forms, and for me, that includes the arrangement of sounds in a sentence. When I write for young people, I look for the musicality of words, how they flow, and how variety can make a story pop. Try reading aloud your own work or a favorite book and listen to the rhythm of language.
When you have a stunning gospel-singing voice that nobody expects, what would you do?
This is a sweet story about ten-year-old Cadence whose mother left her when she was little; as a result, her father and the whole community babies her and calls her Mouse.
She embodies that label by never speaking up for what she wants (like a small birthday party) and by never singing with her full voice. When a new church music director invites students to audition, Cadence uploads a video of herself singing to the wrong website—and it goes viral.
When her friend asks her to pretend that she’s the “gospel girl,” Cadence finally decides to claim her talent and sing.
For ten-year-old Cadence Jolly, birthdays are a constant reminder of all that has changed since her mother skipped town with dreams of becoming a star. Cadence inherited that musical soul, she can't deny it, but otherwise she couldn't be more different - she's shy as can be.
She did make a promise last year that she would try to break out of her shell, just a little. And she prayed that she'd get the courage to do it. As her eleventh birthday draws near, she realizes time is running out. And when a secret recording of her singing leaks and…
I’ve published many books for children, but this one is truly special. The Everybody Club is a collaboration with my dear friend Linda Hayen in memory of her daughter, Carissa. As a child, Carissa started a real-life Everybody Club. The first members were toys, dolls, the family cat, and her brothers, one of whom had severe disabilities. Carissa died in a car accident at the age of 16, and this book is Linda’s way of sharing her daughter’s generous spirit with the world. A note for adults at the end of the book shares this backstory.
Kindness multiplies. These words (from the endnotes) come to life in the stirring story portrayed in I Walk With Vanessa: A Story About a Simple Act of Kindness. The new girl in school is bullied, but another girl’s decision to walk her to school creates a community outpouring of empathy—and joy. The story itself has no words, but the illustrations offer many opportunities for discovery and discussion. One of my all-time favorites!
This simple yet powerful picture book--from a New York Times bestselling husband-and-wife team--tells the story of one girl who inspires a community to stand up to bullying. The perfect back-to-school read for every kid, family and classroom!
Don't miss the companion book, I Forgive Alex, about the importance of compassion and forgiveness.
Inspired by real events, I Walk with Vanessa explores the feelings of helplessness and anger that arise in the wake of seeing a classmate treated badly, and shows how a single act of kindness can lead to an entire community joining in to help. By choosing only pictures…
Hello, my name is Stephanie Duley and my passion lies in fantasy. From books and movies to board games and tabletop RPGs, if it’s fantasy, I am usually a big fan. My love of reading started at a young age when my mom would take us to our local library to sign up for the summer reading programs. As an adult, I will gobble up any fantasy novel I can get my hands on. As a published author, I strive to give readers that same feeling and bring a little magic into their world, even if it is only for a few hundred pages.
This book is set in a post-apocalyptic world where humans are living in domes to keep them safe from the deadly radiation of the planet. The story follows: Aria is a young woman living in the safety of one of these domes, and her quest to find her mother, whom she lost contact with recently after her mother was sent out to repair damage to a pod in the outer wastelands. She knows she likely won’t survive, but she ventures out into the unknown anyway, finding help from a young man named Perry. Perry is an outsider, one of the few humans left able to survive the planet’s harsh conditions. His people are referred to as uncivilized savages.
This story has a great plot twist, and Aria finds out that the savages might not be the people who live outside the domes but within them. I love a good plot…
WORLDS KEPT THEM APART. DESTINY BROUGHT THEM TOGETHER. Aria has lived her whole life in the protected dome of Reverie. Her entire world confined to its spaces, she's never thought to dream of what lies beyond its doors. So when her mother goes missing, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland long enough to find her are slim. Then Aria meets an outsider named Perry. He's searching for someone too. He's also wild - a savage - but might be her best hope at staying alive. If they can survive, they are each other's best hope for…
As a mom and children’s author, I’ve seen how much children need reminders that they are already loved, already important, and already enough. I’ve written over 30 picture books that explore kindness, confidence, and emotional resilience, but my heart always comes back to one mission: helping kids see their worth.
I created this list because I believe books are powerful mirrors—they show children not only who they are but who they can grow to be. These stories encourage kids to embrace their differences, trust their voice, and carry the confidence that being themselves is the most beautiful thing of all.
This book is a favorite among many parents who can relate!
This book beautifully speaks to children who feel different or left out, and as we know, that's quite a common experience. It shows the courage it takes to share your story and the power of finding connection.
I admire how it encourages kids to embrace what makes them unique and see that their differences are what make them special.
There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you.
There are many reasons to feel different. Maybe it's how you look or talk, or where you're from; maybe it's what you eat, or something just as random. It's not easy to take those first steps into a place where nobody really knows you yet, but somehow you do it.
Jacqueline Woodson's lyrical text and Rafael Lopez's dazzling art reminds us that we all feel like outsiders sometimes and how brave it is that we go forth anyway. And that sometimes, when…
A reader. A librarian. A writer. I majored in History/English in college, partly because I love historical novels. When my editor asked that my second book be set during the California Gold Rush, I knew I wanted to write from the Mexican point of view - I’m a quarter Mexican. I soon found myself deep in research, learning about those years when Mexico owned what is now the American Southwest. Writing Daughter of Madrugada left me wondering: were some of my own ancestors displaced by American encroachment?
This is one of the funniest, and saddest, books ever. When Kenny starts telling the story, it’s dead winter in Flint. Michigan. Cold enough to make your spit freeze. Momma, who grew up in Alabama, begins yearning for the South. By reputation, Momma’s momma is the strictest, meanest grandma ever. Kenny - who’s never met her - decides Grandma Sands must look like a troll. Dad and Momma decide that Grandma Sands is the perfect person to straighten out big brother Byron, who shows signs of turning into a juvenile delinquent. So... Join the Watsons. Get in their car (also known as the Brown Bomber), listen to the tires roll onto I-75, and imagine what’s going to happen when Byron meets his doom.
Celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Newbery and Coretta Scott King Honoree about an unforgettable family on a road-trip during one of the most important times in the civil rights movement.
When the Watson family-ten-year-old Kenny, Momma, Dad, little sister Joetta, and brother Byron-sets out on a trip south to visit Grandma in Birmingham, Alabama, they don't realize that they're heading toward one of the darkest moments in America's history. The Watsons' journey reminds us that even in the hardest times, laughter and family can help us get through anything.
As a mom and children’s author, I’ve seen how much children need reminders that they are already loved, already important, and already enough. I’ve written over 30 picture books that explore kindness, confidence, and emotional resilience, but my heart always comes back to one mission: helping kids see their worth.
I created this list because I believe books are powerful mirrors—they show children not only who they are but who they can grow to be. These stories encourage kids to embrace their differences, trust their voice, and carry the confidence that being themselves is the most beautiful thing of all.
The umbrella symbolizes kindness and inclusion, always having room for one more. Children joyfully recognize that kindness is simply about making space for everyone.
“A subtle, deceptively simple book about inclusion, hospitality, and welcoming the ‘other.’” —Kirkus Reviews
“A boundlessly inclusive spirit...This open-ended picture book creates a natural springboard for discussion.” —Booklist
“This sweet extended metaphor uses an umbrella to demonstrate how kindness and inclusion work...A lovely addition to any library collection, for classroom use or for sharing at home.” —School Library Journal
In the tradition of Alison McGhee’s Someday, beloved illustrator Amy June Bates makes her authorial debut alongside her eleven-year-old daughter with this timely and timeless picture book about acceptance.
By the door there is an umbrella. It is big. It is…
Reading certain texts in the Bible growing up began my love for all things supernatural. The more I studied the subject and understood the worldview of the biblical authors and of other ancient cultures, the more I began to see these scenes in vivid color. With my passion for theological study (personally and as part of a master’s program), my work as a police officer, and my love for fantasy fiction perfectly positions me to write stories in which deep supernatural elements intersect with the gritty and real space of everyday life.
Adeyemi’s book features wonderful powers and magic, all set in an epic setting.
The masterful way she writes, the supernatural world she paints, and her expert use of story elements all caused me to emote out loud in fits of “oh my god!”, “don’t do it!”, and “I can’t stand (insert person)!” while reading the book.
I’m always a sucker for writers who construct worlds in which powers fall into categories.
I love the idea of wondering which type of power would be best and which one would I want to have in real life.
Tomi Adeyemi conjures a stunning world of dark magic and danger in her West African-inspired fantasy debut Children of Blood and Bone. Winner of the Tonight Show Summer Reads with Jimmy Fallon.
They killed my mother. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise.
Zelie remembers when the soil of Orisha hummed with magic. When different clans ruled - Burners igniting flames, Tiders beckoning waves, and Zelie's Reaper mother summoning forth souls.
But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, anyone with powers was targeted and killed, leaving Zelie without…
