I saved my brother from the soldiers, but the princess says he is hers now. Abba and Ima will never trust me again.

Over three thousand years ago in ancient Egypt, there lived a girl, Almah, who adored her baby brother, Mosis. She would do virtually anything to ensure his safety and happiness, even if it meant shunning their birthparents…but now Mosis will not be satisfied until he knows who he truly is.

Award-winning author Julius Lester imagines Mosis as a brother, a son, an adoptee, and ultimately, as a young man who must make sense of his own unique identity....

The author introduces the concept of race as only one component in an individual's or nation's "story."...

I am a story.
So are you.
So is everyone.

Julius Lester says, "I write because our lives are stories. If enough of those stories are told, then perhaps we will begin to see that our lives are the same story. The differences are merely in the details." Now Mr. Lester shares his own story as he explores what makes each of us special. Karen Barbour's dramatic, vibrant paintings speak to the heart of Lester's unique vision, truly a celebration of all of us.

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Jenna and Jeremy knew their parents' marriage was in trouble. But no one could have predicted what would come next. Now with Mom dead and Dad in jail, Jenna and Jeremy must re-create a family of their own. But each guards a secret that could send their fragile new lives into a tailspin.
Newbery Honor winner Julius Lester paints a dramatic portrait of a family forced to confront the unimaginable.
Reader's guide included.
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There are ghosts in the cemetery near Malcolm David’s house, and they’re filling the air with their spooky OOOOOs and EEEEEs and ARRRRs. When Malcolm David dares to go looking for them late one night, he is surprised to discover that the eerie howling is actually coming from the ghosts’ empty stomachs. They’re not trying to scare anybody— they’re just hungry, and they don’t know what it is that ghosts are supposed to eat!

A satisfying read-aloud for Halloween or anytime, this book mixes playfulness and lyricism as only Newbery Honor–winning author Julius Lester could do it. His dynamic text is well matched by Geraldo Valério’s glowing, happy artwork....

I am a story.

So are you.

So is everyone.

Julius Lester says, "I write because our lives are stories. If enough of these stories are told, then perhaps we will begin to see that our lives are the same story. The differences are merely in the details." Now Mr. Lester shares his own story as he explores what makes each of us special. Karen Barbour's dramatic, vibrant paintings speak to the heart of Lester's unique vision, truly a celebration of all of us.

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On March 2 and 3, 1859, the largest auction of slaves in American history took place in Savannah, Georgia. More than 400 slaves were sold. On the first day of the auction, the skies darkened and torrential rain began falling. The rain continued throughout the two days, stopping only when the auction had ended. The simultaneity of the rain storm with the auction led to these two days being called "the weeping time." Master storyteller Julius Lester has taken this footnote of history and created the crowning achievement of his literary career.

 

Julius Lester tells the story of several characters including Emma, a slave owned by Pierce Butler and caretaker of his two daughters, and Pierce, a man with a mounting gambling debt and household to protect. Emma wants to teach his daughters-one who opposes slavery and one who supports it-to have kind hearts. Meanwhile, in a desperate bid to survive, Pierce decides to cash in his "assets" and host the largest slave auction in American history. And on that day, the skies open up and weep endlessly on the proceedings below.

Using the multiple voices of enslaved Africans and their owners, Julius Lester has taken a little-known, all-true event in American history and transformed it into a heartbreaking and powerfully dramatic epic on slavery, and the struggle to affirm humanity in the midst of it....

Emma has taken care of the Butler children since Sarah and Frances's mother, Fanny, left. Emma wants to raise the girls to have good hearts, as a rift in morals has ripped the Butler household apart: Sarah and their mother oppose the inhumanity of slavery, while Frances and their father, Pierce, believe in the Southern lifestyle and treatment of blacks.

Now, to pay off mounting gambling debts, Pierce decides to cash in his "assets." He hosts the biggest slave auction in American history, at the price of his humanity. During these two days, the skies weep on the proceedings below, for although Butler promises Emma's parents not to sell her: money, desperation, and greed enable him to justify his any misdeed. Through flashbacks and flash-forwards, and shifting first-person points of view, readers will travel with Emma and others through time and place, and come to understand that every decision has its consequences, and final judgment is passed down not by man, but by his maker....

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The four award-winning Uncle Remus books--now in one volume with a new introduction by Julius Lester

Brer Rabbit is causing trouble again for his fellow creatures Brer Fox, Brer Wolf, and the rest--this time in an omnibus edition that brings together all the stories from Tales of Uncle Remus, More Tales of Uncle Remus, Further Tales of Uncle Remus, and Last Tales of Uncle Remus.

The Uncle Remus tales, originally written down by Joel Chandler Harris, were first published over a hundred years ago, and serve as the largest collection of African-American folklore. In this four-book series, Julius Lester masterfully retains the flavor of the tales, while dropping the heavy dialect of the Harris originals and adding contemporary language and references-- ensuring that the stories will be understood and enjoyed by new generations of readers. And, of course, the stories are beautifully illuminated by the slyly humorous full-color and black-and-white art of Jerry Pinkney. The result is a treasure of a volume that will delight all ages and belongs on every shelf....

Jenna and Jeremy knew their parents' marriage was in trouble. But no one could have predicted what would come next. Now with Mom dead and Dad in jail, Jenna and Jeremy must re-create a family of their own. But each guards a secret that could send their fragile new lives into a tailspin.
Newbery Honor winner Julius Lester paints a dramatic portrait of a family forced to confront the unimaginable.
Reader's guide included.
...

What was it like to be a slave? Listen to the words and learn about the lives of countless slaves and ex-slaves, telling about their forced journey from Africa to the United States, their work in the fields and houses of their owners, and their passion for freedom. You will never look at life the same way again....

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Meet Rambler, a runaway slave roaming the countryside with a guitar, who knows the only way to stay free is to keep moving. Louis is another runaway, fleeing the plantation where he was raised, because he is about to be sold. And Jake and Mandy's marriage is damaged by slavery--and destroyed by freedom. Here is the African-American experience, brought alive by a master storyteller. Lester has an eye for capturing the essence of a human experience.[His work] boldly proclaims the heritage of African-Americans. --The New York Times Book Review ...

With his two sledgehammers pulverizing boulders, John Henry races a steam drill tunneling through a mountain. It's a deadly contest of man-vs-machine written with such power that this African-American folk hero becomes as awesome as a force of nature, yet as familiar as an older brother. Pinkney's stunning art shows John Henry's energy bursting from nature. Full color....

Generations of children have been captivated by the hair-raising adventures and misadventures of Brer Rabbit. Come along as he sneaks into Mr. Man's garden, persuades Brer Wolf to be burned in a hollow log, and kicks Brer Fox's Tar Baby. ...

THIS EDITION IS INTENDED FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Traces the African American slave experience through paintings beginning with the Middle Passage and concluding with images of post-Civil War emancipation....

When Cupid takes aim–duck!
Cupid is the god of love and a tireless maker of mischief. When he breaks out his bow and quiver, nobody’s safe. Sleepless nights, embarrassing poetry, nausea . . . What could be more fun? Only, perhaps, seeing the god of love humbled with a little heartache of his own.
With healthy doses of wit and wisdom, Julius Lester’s disarming narrator leads us through the tale of Cupid and Psyche–and helps us navigate our own treacherous passions....

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