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Kadir Nelson

Get to know the work of this critically acclaimed author and illustrator. 

By Scholastic Editors
April 9, 2021

Kadir Nelson

Kadir Nelson illustrated two Caldecott Honor Books: Moses and Henry's Freedom BoxJust the Two of Us by Will Smith won an NAACP Image Award, and his book We Are the Ship continues to garner major awards. Ellington Was Not a Street by Ntozake Shange won the Coretta Scott King Award.

Nelson showed artistic talent at age 3 and began working in oils by age 16. He lives in Los Angeles. For more information about Nelson, please visit kadirnelson.com.

Shop books illustrated by Kadir Nelson below! You can find all books and activities at The Teacher Store.

Paperback Book Collection

Kadir Nelson Grades 3-5

Grades 3 - 5
$20.00$31.80
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This collection of titles from illustrator Kadir Nelson was hand selected to provide you with the best books at the best prices.

Hardcover Book

He's Got The Whole World In His Hands

Grades Pre-K - 3
$17.95$18.99
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Through sublime landscapes and warm images of a boy and his family, this adaptation of the beloved folk song creates a dazzling, intimate interpretation that rejoices in the connectedness of people and nature.

Paperback Book

Nelson Mandela

Grades Pre-K - 3
$7.46$9.95
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Kadir Nelson tells the story of Mandela. It is the story of a young boy's determination to change South Africa and of the struggles of a man who eventually became the president of his country. 

$17.95$17.99
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From the time he was a young boy roaming the forests of the unsettled Midwest, Abraham Lincoln knew in his heart that slavery was deeply wrong. The passion for humanity that defined Lincoln's life shines through in this portrait of a great American president. 

Paperback Book

Testing the Ice

Grades 2 - 4
$5.21$6.95
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In a stunning metaphor for Jackie Robinson's legendary breaking of the color barrier in Major League Baseball, Sharon Robinson honors her extraordinary father's memory with her warm graceful storytelling. Kadir Nelson has created richly rendered paintings that radiate with the beauty and spirit of one of America's finest heroes.

Paperback Book

Hewitt Anderson's Great Big Life

Grades 2 - 4
$6.71$8.95
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Inspired by "Jack and the Beanstalk,"  Jerdine Nolen tells an original story of bravery and the power of the individual. Kadir Nelson's imaginative and loving illustrations create a world where smallness rules—a world that children will want to return to again and again.

 

Paperback Book

Henry's Freedom Box

Grades 2 - 5
$5.96$7.95
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A stirring, dramatic story of a slave who mails himself to freedom by a Jane Addams Peace Award-winning author and a Coretta Scott King Award-winning artist.

Paperback Book

The Real Slam Dunk

Grades 3 - 4
$5.21$6.95
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Marcus Robinson is psyched! Tomorrow, his class is going on a field trip to a professional basketball arena to meet Jason Carter, Marcus's hero. But when Jason tells Marcus some things he didn't expect to hear about professional basketball, Marcus is confused.

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