Anthologies#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Rethinking Popular Culture and Media |
2011 |
Buy |
| Black Enough |
2019 |
Buy |
| The 1619 Project |
2019 |
Buy |
| Every Body Shines |
2021 |
Buy |
| Hope Wins |
2022 |
Buy |
Collections#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Black Girl You Are Atlas |
2024 |
Buy |
Non-Fiction#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Betty Before X |
2018 |
Buy |
Picture Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| A Place Where Hurricanes Happen |
2010 |
Buy |
| Harlem’s Little Blackbird |
2012 |
Buy |
| Maya’s Song |
2022 |
Buy |
| Summer Is Here |
2024 |
Buy |
Ryan Hart Reading Order#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Ways to Make Sunshine |
2020 |
Buy |
| Ways to Grow Love |
2021 |
Buy |
| Ways to Share Joy |
2022 |
Buy |
| Ways to Build Dreams |
2023 |
Buy |
Standalone Novels#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| What Momma Left Me |
2010 |
Buy |
| This Side of Home |
2015 |
Buy |
| Piecing Me Together |
2017 |
Buy |
| Watch Us Rise |
2019 |
Buy |
| Some Places More Than Others |
2019 |
Buy |
| Love Is a Revolution |
2021 |
Buy |
| Skin & Bones |
2024 |
Buy |
| All the Blues in the Sky |
2025 |
Buy |
Renee Watson was born in Paterson, New Jersey, and grew up in northeast Portland, Oregon. She wanted to be a writer from a young age and spent twenty years as a teaching artist, working with children on poetry and creative writing, before becoming a published novelist. Her first children’s book, A Place Where Hurricanes Happen (2010), grew out of her nonprofit work in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Watson writes across age groups, from picture books like Harlem’s Little Blackbird and Maya’s Song to the middle-grade Ryan Hart series and young adult novels like Piecing Me Together (2017), which won the Coretta Scott King Author Award and was a Newbery Honor Book. She founded the I, Too, Arts Collective in Harlem to provide creative arts programs to the community, and she continues to teach writing alongside her fiction career.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books has Renee Watson written?
Renee Watson has written 23 books across six series.
What was Renee Watson's first book?
Renee Watson’s first book is A Place Where Hurricanes Happen, published in 2010.
What awards has Renee Watson won?
Renee Watson’s Piecing Me Together won the Coretta Scott King Author Award and was a Newbery Honor Book. She has also received the Josette Frank Award and multiple starred reviews from major publications. Her work frequently addresses themes of race, community, and identity.