If you have no work or school on the first Monday in September, why not learn about the history and importance of the Labor Day holiday during your free time? The first Monday of September is Labor Day in the United States, and this month’s S-Collection blog offers suggestions for children’s books about unions, strikes, and other labor movements that have made a difference in the lives of the working class. The fiction picture books tell the stories of kids watching the adults in their lives fight for what they deserve from their employers – and learning how to use their voices themselves. The next section features chapter books suited for older readers that feature fights for workers’ rights, set in both historic and fantasy settings. Finally, the selection of children’s nonfiction books highlights events and people from history who proved the value of unions, strikes, and labor activism, as well as paved the way for modern-day labor movements. The S-Collection has what you need to celebrate Labor Day this September!

Picture Books

Cohn, Diana
Illustrated by: Francisco Delgado
¡Sí, Se Puede! = Yes, We Can!: A Janitor Strike in LA. 2002. Picture Book.
Carlito’s mom wants to spend time with her son and her mother, but she can’t – her long, grueling hours working as a janitor prevent her from being at home. Eventually, she decides to go on strike for better hours and wages so she can be there for her family. After seeing her one day on TV, Carlito realizes he and his class can help her cause by creating signs. The importance of labor movements is highlighted in this historical fiction picture book, which is based on the 1990 Justice for Janitors strike in Los Angeles.
Q. SE. C661s:Sp

Donoso, Raquel
Illustrated by: Carlos Vélez
Viva’s Voice. 2022. Picture Book.
Viva’s papi is a bus driver, and Viva loves sitting on his bus as he drives. When her papi and his fellow bus drivers go on strike for better working conditions, she decides to also join him on the picket line. Her enthusiasm and spirit keep her papi from backing down until he and the other workers get the treatment they deserve. Beautiful and colorful illustrations make this book an engaging read for those who want to learn more about union activity and striking through picture books.
SE. D7195vi

Alice Faye Duncan
Illustrated by: R. Gregory Christie
Memphis, Martin, and the Mountaintop: The Sanitation Strike of 1968. 2018. Picture Book.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a visionary and activist in many different spheres of social life, including workers’ rights. However, King’s efforts to improve the lives of laborers are not always highlighted in history textbooks. This book seeks to rectify this error by following the fictional Lorraine as she attends the real 1968 Sanitation Strike in Memphis. After two Black sanitation workers died due to their awful working conditions, King and the workers marched throughout the city and demanded better treatment. King’s speech after this protest, called “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop,” would be his last; he was assassinated soon after. The continued legacy of Black voices in labor movements is brought to the forefront in this powerful work of historical fiction.
Q. S. D9124me

Juvenile Fiction

Carroll, Emma
Illustrated by: Lauren Child
The Little Match Girl Strikes Back. 2023. Juvenile Fiction.
Young Bridie Sweeney sells matches on the frigid streets of London to help her family get by. Her mother’s factory job has long hours and poor wages, meaning even Bridie’s little brother must pitch in to keep the family afloat. One day, striking a match gives Bridie a vision of the lush, easy life of the factory owner, who lives off the labor produced by hard-working women such as Bridie’s mother. Outraged and emboldened to speak out, Bridie encourages the factory workers to strike and advocate for what they deserve. This retelling gives Hans Christian Andersen’s “Little Match Girl” a name, a voice, and a calling to improve the lives of laborers everywhere.
S. C2361li

Fagan, Deva
Nightingale. 2021. Juvenile Fiction.
Lark is a poor girl who lives in the fantasy kingdom of Gallant, where the biggest business is the production of Aether in factories. This grueling, difficult job is performed only by those desperate enough to need the money, such as Lark’s mother, who died as a result of this work. A heist at the local museum leads to Lark discovering that she is, in fact, the famed “Nightingale” – a hero destined to save the laborers of Gallant. Using her newfound powers and confidence, Lark reignites the labor union her mother had once created. This exciting fantasy story seamlessly weaves in messages about the power of labor movements, making it a perfect Labor Day read.
S. F1312ni

Salazar, Aida
A Seed in the Sun. 2022. Juvenile Fiction.
It’s 1965 in California, and Lula and her family are poor farm workers who live at a labor camp. Unable to go to school because she needs to care for her siblings, Lula feels completely trapped. On top of it all, her father’s temper grows increasingly short and her mother has developed a mysterious illness, perhaps caused by the pesticides used in the fields. An unlikely alliance forms between the Filipino-led Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee and the Mexican National Farm Workers Association, of which Lula’s family is a part. Through their combined efforts, the two labor movements put pressure on the farm’s owners and give Lula hope for a better future. The power of collective action shines in this engaging juvenile novel, written in stunning verse.
S. Sa361se

Nonfiction

Krull, Kathleen
Illustrated by: Alexandra Bye
The Only Woman in the Photo: Frances Perkins & her New Deal for America. 2016. Picture Book Biography.
This picture book biography puts a spotlight on Frances Perkins, the first woman who ever served in an American presidential cabinet. Before she came to work for President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Perkins was a social worker, suffragette, and advocate for workers’ rights. The 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire was an inciting incident in her life which inspired her to advocate for better protections against fires in American workplaces; later, she spearheaded the Social Security Act and, some say, authored FDR’s New Deal. While many people have heard of FDR, very few have heard of the woman behind many of his most effective presidential acts. Perkins’ positive impact on the American worker is revealed through this engaging and inspiring text.
SB. P448kr

Watkins, Steve
The Mine Wars: The Bloody Fight for Workers’ Rights in the West Virginia Coal Fields. 2024. Juvenile Nonfiction.
Through photographs, newspaper clippings, and first-hand sources, the plight of the United Mine Workers of America is revealed in this engaging work of juvenile nonfiction. These workers were forced to work long hours and were only paid in rent in company housing and credits for the company store. Their early attempts to unionize were met with swift and violent pushback from the wealthy mine owners. Despite this, the miners did not back down, standing up for their rights at each and every turn. The ups and downs of union activity, and particularly the potential for pushback from wealthy business owners, are explored in this shocking historical text about West Viriginia in the 1920s.
S.331.892 W327mi

Winter, Jonah
Illustrated by: Nancy Carpenter
Mother Jones and her Army of Mill Children. 2020. Picture Book Biography
An advocate for children’s rights and a strong proponent of labor movements, Mary Harris “Mother” Jones was an important figure in American history who gets her moment in the spotlight in this picture book biography. Her children’s march from Philadelphia to Oyster Bay drew attention to the horrible conditions that young children were exposed to in factory settings. Through detailed artwork and clever use of dialogue, this picture book draws attention to the power of protest and the need, both then and now, for labor activism, making it a perfect read for Labor Day.
Q. SB. J78wi

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