This historical children's collection is focused on the African-American, African, and Caribbean experience as expressed through picture books, novels and short stories, as well as folklore, poetry, biographies, and other nonfiction works from the 1940s to the late 20th century.
Augusta Braxton Baker (1911-1998), a one-time resident of Queens, was an African-American librarian, author, and storyteller, renowned for her contributions to children's literature and children's librarianship. Many of the titles in the Baker collection were donated personally by Augusta Baker.