The Black Creators Series

When We Say Black Lives Matter is a picture book celebration behind the true meaning of the words Black Lives Matter. Join award-winning author-illustrator Maxine Beneba Clarke as she converses with Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul about her latest picture book and the profound and inspiring ways it can be used in classrooms.

Elite athlete and Netflix documentary star Zion Clark joins Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul to discuss his extraordinary and deeply inspirational authorial debut, Zion Unmatched; his upcoming projects; and the powerful messages they bring to classrooms.

Multiple-award-winning illustrator Eric Velasquez speaks with Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul about his latest work, ¡Mambo Mucho Mambo! The Dance That Crossed Color Lines, a picture book that portrays the power of music and dance to transcend racial, religious, and ethnic boundaries.

National Book Award Finalist Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party's Promise to the People puts the Panthers in the proper context of Black American history. It invites a new generation of readers grappling with injustices in the United States to learn from the Panthers' history and courage, inspiring them to take their own place in the ongoing fight for justice. Listen in as author Kekla Magoon discusses her work with Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul.

Suspenseful, absorbing, powerful, unflinching, extraordinary, and rich are just some of the ways reviewers have described the fictionalized childhood story of literary genius Zora Neale Hurston written by Victoria Bond and T. R. Simon. Listen in as the authors speak with Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul about their inspiration for the Zora and Me trilogy and the important history and messages within that will resonate with and inform young readers.

In his trilogy of picture books, Michael S. Bandy recounts for young readers his childhood as a Black boy growing up in the segregated South. The first two books were nominated for NAACP Image Awards. The third, Northbound: A Train Ride Out of Segregation, received two starred reviews and was described by Kirkus Reviews as "painful history portrayed honestly and beautifully to help children understand the very personal impact of racism." Listen in as Michael S. Bandy and Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul discuss his very personal work and the powerful ways it can be used in classrooms.

Angie Thomas, award-winning author of The Hate U Give, said of performance poet Sophia Thakur's Somebody Give This Heart a Pen, "The power of her words will affect generations." Listen in to find out why as Sophia Thakur and Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul discuss her debut poetry collection for young adults and the powerful ways it can be used in schools and classrooms.

Kekla Magoon, multiple award-winning author of books for young readers of all ages and the recipient of the 2021 American Library Association's prestigious Margaret A. Edwards Award for her significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature, talks with Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul about her work and the powerful ways it can be used in classrooms.

Among his many accolades, which include Comic-Con International's Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award and being named to both the 2019 Forbes 30 Under 30 list and the 2018 Root 100, an annual list of the most influential African Americans, Frederick Joseph is the New York Times best-selling author of The Black Friend: On Being a Better White Person. Listen in as he and Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul discuss his work and the powerful ways it can be used in schools and classrooms.

Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul talks with New York Times best-selling author Tami Charles about her work and the powerful ways it can be used in classrooms.