So here are the picture books I read. Met these authors at TLA.
DAD AND POP: AN ODE TO FATHERS AND STEPFATHERS by Kelly Bennett (Candlewick, 2010) is a perfect book and read aloud for young readers. Simply, a young girl has two fathers. She describes how the two are similar and how they are different. The on thing they have in common is that they love her very much. Gentle and reassuring, this is exactly the kind of book that hits home with kids from divorced/blended families.
Matt Tavares' HENRY AARON'S DREAM (Candlewick, 2010) shines a light on the childhood of Hank Aaron. The opening illustration depicts the racial divisions of the era. Henry longs to play baseball, but it is a whites only sport at the time. When Jackie Robinson crosses the color barrier, Henry dares to get his hopes up a bit. Page by lustrous double page spread, readers will learn of the tenacity and patience that it took to suffer the ill treatment players of color faced in those early days of integration. Tavares pulls no punches as he describes the name-calling and rock-throwing that dogged Aaron up to the threats he received as he approached Babe Ruth's record. Great appended materials fill out the story of this amazing slugger.