Africans in the Americas before colonization -- The beginning of slavery in the New World -- African Americans and the beginning of a new nation -- Harriet Tubman, the Underground Railroad, and the voice of Frederick Douglass -- The Civil War era -- Hope and reconstruction after the Civil War -- A land of promise : exploring and settling the west -- New laws, old racism : the Jim Crow years -- Gaining community, gaining voice : the Harlem Renaissance, the Negro Baseball League, and war -- Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and the struggle for civil rights -- Telling it like it is : stories of today -- Selection and inclusion of children's literature about American history : a critique -- Outstanding authors and illustrators of children's literature.