Best Teen Nonfiction of 2020Like this list

12 items

• All Boys Aren't Blue

  a Memoir-manifesto

  Johnson, George M. (George Matthew), 1985-

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  Journalist and activist Johnson’s memoir covers his experiences growing up as a young queer black man. The essays cover homophobia, sexual abuse, and toxic masculinity but also focus on healing and self-acceptance.

• Atomic Women

  the Untold Stories of the Scientists Who Helped Create the Nuclear Bomb

  Montillo, Roseanne,

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  Highlighting the research of female scientists that led to the development of the atomic bomb, this narrative nonfiction book gives credit to the women involved in the Manhattan Project that were overshadowed by men. Starting with Marie Curie’s…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Beyond the Gender Binary

  Vaid-Menon, Alok,

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  Part of the Pocket Change Collective series, this short book challenges the traditional Western concepts of gender. Activist Vaid-Menon speaks from their personal experience growing up in Texas and counters the arguments against gender nonconformity…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Concrete Kids

  León, Amyra, 1992-

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  Part of the Pocket Change Collective series, this short book of moving poems describe the author’s experiences growing up in foster care and witnessing young black people getting shot and killed all too often on the streets of Harlem. She gives a…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Imaginary Borders

  Martinez, Xiuhtezcatl,

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  Part of the Pocket Change Collective series, this short book highlights the connection between environmental issues and racial injustice. The author’s organization, Earth Guardians, uses hip hop to spread awareness about climate change.

• Into the Streets

  a Young Person's Visual History of Protest in the United States

  Bieschke, Marke,

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  Full of eye-catching color photos, this book covers all of the important protests in American history between 1492 and 2018. Learn about the Martin Luther King’s March on Washington, the Stonewall riots, the Women’s March and more in this extremely…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The New Queer Conscience

  Eli, Adam,

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  Part of the Pocket Change Collective series, this short book declares that “Queer people anywhere are responsible for queer people everywhere.” Drawing from his experience as an Orthodox Jew, Eli outlines ten principles to strengthen the queer…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Say Her Name

  Elliott, Zetta,

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  Inspired by writers including Audre Lorde and Gwendolyn Brooks, this collection of poems describes the experiences of black women in America. Covering the Black Lives Matter movement and the continuing violence against black women, Elliott speaks…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Self-love Revolution

  Radical Body Positivity for Girls of Color

  Tovar, Virgie, 1982-

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  In this conversational guidebook, the author encourages girls of color to accept and love their bodies. She points out the connections between fat phobia and racism and offers ways to promote body positivity and reject outdated beauty standards.

• Stamped

  Racism, Antiracism, and You

  Reynolds, Jason,

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  Reynolds' remix of Ibram X. Kendi's National Book Award winner Stamped from the Beginning guides readers through the whole history of racist and antiracist ideas from America's beginning to today. In his down-to-earth, highly engaging voice,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Taking on the Plastics Crisis

  Testa, Hannah,

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  Part of the Pocket Change Collective series, this short book spells out the horrifying details of how most plastic items that we throw away every day do not get recycled and instead end up polluting beaches and oceans, then get consumed by fish and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• This Is What I Know About Art

  Drew, Kimberly, 1990-

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  Part of the Pocket Change Collective series, this short book shows how art and activism are connected. Museum curator and activist Drew talks about working in a field with mostly white colleagues while fighting to promote marginalized black artists.