Book Lists
To celebrate International Left-Handers Day tomorrow, August 13, we’ve created a list of books by famous left-handed authors, biographies of famous left-handers, and a few fiction titles that have left-handed characters.
Did you know?
- Only about 12% of the population is left-handed.
- Left handers are called southpaws.
- Left handers use the right side of the brain more; this side is known for creativity and imagination as well as music and art
Left-Handed Authors
Many authors, artists, and musicians were (or are) left-handed. A few well-known southpaw authors include:
Mark Twain
Lewis Carroll
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass
Hans Christian Andersen
The Fairy Tales of Hans Christian Andersen
Biographies of Left-Handers
The list of famous left-handers is long and includes presidents, sports figures, actors, and many others. Here are a few well-known lefties:
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Who Is Ruth Bader Ginsburg?
By Patricia Brennan Demuth; illustrated by Jake Murray
Oprah Winfrey
By Tamra B. Orr
Bill Gates
Bill Gates: Microsoft Founder and Philanthropist
By Marylou Morano Kjelle
Barack Obama
Helen Keller
By Gare Thompson; illustrated by Nancy Harrison
Left-Handed Characters
Books don’t always mention whether the character is right-handed or left-handed, but here are two that do:
The Case of the Left-Handed Lady
By Nancy Springer
This mystery features a left-handed lady.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
By A Akira Himekawa kira Himekawa
The main character, Link, is left-handed in this graphic novel.
There are many more books by and about left-handers. Be sure to add any of the ones you know and love in the comments below.
I firmly believe that it’s important to stand together against racism, and I’ve been making an effort to feature more black characters in my book talks and displays. Many of the book lists that I’ve come across featuring black protagonists have been full of great contemporary, realistic stories that deal with the experience of growing up black in America but haven’t had a lot of fantasy, sci-fi, or horror. So, here is a list of some of my favorite fantastical, magical, and spooky middle-grade stories featuring black heroes and heroines.
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia- This upper middle grade follows seventh-grader Tristan Strong who accidentally rips a hole into a parallel world where West African gods and African American folk heroes battle iron monsters. To return home, Tristan must help the heroes find Anansi, who can heal the rift that he’s created between the worlds.
The Jumbies by Tracey Baptiste- Eleven year old Corrine doesn’t believe in jumbies, evil shape-shifting creatures that are said to live in the woods near her home, but when her father begins acting strangely following the arrival of the beautiful lady Severine, Corrine begins to suspect that Severine might actually be a jumbie and that she and her father are in danger.
Gloom Town by Ronald L. Smith- To help his struggling single mom, twelve-year-old Rory gets a job as a valet for the mysterious Lord Foxglove, but he soon discovers that the eerie goings-on at Foxglove Manor will put the whole town in danger, and it’s up to Rory and his best friend Izzy to stop them.
Bayou Magic by Jewell Parker Rhodes- When ten-year-old Maddy visits her grandmother in Bon Temps, LA, she discovers that she can summon fireflies and see mermaids, and when disaster rocks Maddy’s family, her magical gifts are the only things that can save her beloved bayou.
Dragons in a Bag by Zetta Elliott- Nine-year-old Jaxon discovers a package of dragons when staying with a relative for the afternoon. “Ma”, the mean old lady, who raised his mother tries to return the dragons to their magical realm, but a transporter accident strands her, leaving the dragons in Zaxon’s care.
The Forgotten Girl by India Hill Brown- Iris and her best friend Daniel are playing in the woods behind her house when they discover the abandoned grave of a girl named Avery who died when she was near Iris’s age. Shortly after the discovery, Iris begins having nightmares about a ghost girl in the woods.
The Last Last-Day-of-Summer by Lamar Giles- On the last day of summer vacation, Otto and Sheed Alston accidentally freeze time in their small Virginia town. Now, they’ll need all their bravery and smarts to defeat the villainous Mr. Flux and save the day.
Shadows of Sherwood by Kekla Magoon- In this futuristic Rbin Hood retelling, twelve-year-old Robyn Loxley flees to the forest following the disappearance of her parents. She bands together with a ragtag group of orphans and embarks on a mission to find her parents and stop the tyrannical Governor Crown.