The most recommended books about Brazil

Who picked these books? Meet our 88 experts.

88 authors created a book list connected to Brazil, and here are their favorite Brazil books.
Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

What type of Brazil book?

Loading...

Book cover of Journey to the River Sea

Glen Huser Author Of Firebird

From my list on historical fiction featuring journeys.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a child, I was an avid reader and particularly fell in love with historical fiction. My favourite corner for reading was on top of the woodbox by my grandmotherā€™s cookstove. Warm and cozy, I delved into such books as Geoffrey Treaseā€™s Cue for Treason and Jack Schaefferā€™s Shane. How wonderful to land for a few hours in the world of Shakespeareā€™s London or the grasslands of the frontier west. When I worked as a childrenā€™s librarian and then began writing books myself, this early love has remained with meā€”so it factored into the books I chose for schoolsā€”and some of the novels I wrote such as The Runaway and Firebird.

Glen's book list on historical fiction featuring journeys

Glen Huser Why did Glen love this book?

Iā€™m always on the lookout for fiction in which the writing itself is dazzling. Eva Ibbotsonā€™s prose is truly something to savour and this novel is the jewel in her crown. Maia, an orphan, is sent from England to stay with distant relatives, the Carters, in Manaus, Brazil. The family is weird and mean but Maia finds two young friendsā€”Clovis, an actor, and Finn, who is partly a Brazilian native, but heir to his British grandfatherā€™s fortune. Clovis longs to return to England and Finn happily changes places with him. Finn and Maia journey down the Amazon (the ā€œRiver Seaā€) to live with his Xanti people. Expect humour, high adventure, and a richly-detailed look at life in early 20th century Brazil.

By Eva Ibbotson, Kevin Hawkes (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Journey to the River Sea as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 12, 13, 14, and 15.

What is this book about?

It is 1910 - Maia, orphaned at 13, travels from England to start a new life with distant relatives in Manaus, hundreds of miles up the Amazon. She is very unhappy with her exceptionally bizarre new family but befriends Finn, a mysterious English boy who lives with the local Indians and shares her passion for the jungle. Then Finn's past life catches up with him and they are forced to flee far upriver in a canoe, pursued by an assortment of brilliantly eccentric characters that only Eva Ibbotson could invent.


Book cover of Neymar: From the Playground to the Pitch

Madelaine Healey

From my list on sport for 8-12 year olds.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am an expat Australian freelance writer living in Silicon Valley, and also the mother of two boys aged ten and seven. My boys are avid readers and it is an accepted rule that no one in our family speaks at breakfast. I have a bad habit of reading books over their shoulders, but my boys are still willing helpers on some current writing projects on kidsā€™ fiction and circumnavigating the horribly sad ā€œdecline at nineā€. I also have a PhD in South Asian Studies and have worked in commercial research and marketing.

Madelaine's book list on sport for 8-12 year olds

Madelaine Healey Why did Madelaine love this book?

This isnā€™t one youā€™ll enjoy reading over your kidā€™s shoulder unless you truly are a diehard soccer fan. Matt and Tom Oldfieldā€™s series of soccer-star bios are comfort food for tween fans - a bland, seemingly never-ending diet of rags to riches stories to inspire every kid with dreams of the Premier League. The prose is undemanding: ā€œWith his mohawk dyed red this time, Neymar Jr walked onto the stage. He couldnā€™t believe what was happening. His goal had beaten brilliant strikes by Wayne Rooney and Lionel Messiā€. The story unfolds with a happy triumphalism: Neymar is spotted as a deft-footed child prodigy, he is scouted to the heights of Barcelona, he overcomes injuries, he puts the team first, he is a mega-star who does noble things for Brazil. If youā€™re not a soccer person, the Oldfieldsā€™ books on Lionel Messi, Harry Kane and Paul Pogba donā€™t read very differently.ā€¦

By Tom Oldfield, Matt Oldfield,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Neymar as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

The No.1 football series - over 1 million copies sold!

'As Neymar Jr made the long walk to the penalty spot, he knew this was his chance, the one that he had dreamed of since the age of three. If he scored, Brazil would be Olympic Champions for the first time ever.'

Neymar da Silva Santos Junior is the boy who carries the hopes of Brazil on his shoulders. Although he now faces a new challenge at Paris Saint-Germain, it was his years playing for Barcelona, in a fearsome attacking trident alongside Messi and Suarez, that made him a legendā€¦


Book cover of Living the Confidence Code: Real Girls. Real Stories. Real Confidence.

Catherine Thimmesh Author Of Girls Solve Everything: Stories of Women Entrepreneurs Building a Better World

From my list on youā€™ve-got-this-girl young readers.

Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™m someone who believes the accomplishments of women have been glossed over for far too long. I'm passionate about sharing the stories of women and girls that the world at large still tends to ignore. Itā€™s critical to share these stores and to give face and voice to women. Social entrepreneurship, the topic of my recent book Girls Solve Everything, has fascinated me for some time:  creative problem solving, tackling problems in our communities and the world, creating a business to find and facilitate the solution. Representation matters. Iā€™m determined to write about and share the stories of strong, innovative, creative women and girls. Our future depends on them.

Catherine's book list on youā€™ve-got-this-girl young readers

Catherine Thimmesh Why did Catherine love this book?

Itā€™s one thing to tell young girls (and women...and men and boys) to ā€œbeā€ more confident. To have confidence in themselves and their abilities. Easy to say. Harder to do. Living the Confidence Code bridges that divide in extraordinary fashion. I love how this is a compilation of real girls sharing their real stories of risk-taking, successes, and failures ā€“ and, most importantly to me ā€“ sharing their thought processes on why they did a certain thing or reacted a certain way. A very engaging and informative book. Empty platitudes are gone and what remains are relatable stories providing multiple templates for finding ā€“ and building ā€“ your own inner confidence. 

By Katty Kay, Claire Shipman, Jillellyn Riley

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Living the Confidence Code as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!

New from the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling authors of The Confidence Code for Girls!

The best way to understand confidence is to see it in action. That's why bestselling authors Katty Kay, Claire Shipman, and JillEllyn Riley have collected 30 true stories of real girls, pursuing their passions, struggling and stumbling, but along the way figuring out how to build their own special brand of confidence.

From Bali to Brazil, South Africa to Seattle, Australia to Afghanistan, these girls took risks, doubted themselves, and sometimes failed. Butā€¦


Book cover of Where We Go from Here

Abdi Nazemian Author Of Only This Beautiful Moment

From my list on queer youth to make you laugh, cry, and grow.

Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up feeling invisible in media, and absent in history. My Iranian history was hidden from me by a culture that believed shielding young people from trauma was the right thing to do, and my queer history was hidden from me by a homophobic time. Iā€™m passionate about the power of seeing yourself represented in storytelling and in history, and have devoted much of my life to telling queer stories, and queer historical stories. As a parent, as a queer Iranian storyteller, as a passionate believer in art as a tool for empathy, these are books I think will both entertain readers and inspire them to love their fellow humans a little more.

Abdi's book list on queer youth to make you laugh, cry, and grow

Abdi Nazemian Why did Abdi love this book?

My personal wish is that Americans start reading a whole lot more books from other countries, especially books that shine a light on the queer experience around the world.

Ours is a global community, and we canā€™t fall into the trap of thinking diversity only exists in our own country and language. Lucas Rochaā€™s novel tells the story of three Brazilian teens who are dealing with the impact of HIV in their own unique ways. Itā€™s engrossing, tender, and transporting.

Anyone who loves this should also seek out the work of Vitor Martins, and should demand more books in translation so we can travel through literature.

By Lucas Rocha, Larissa Helena (translator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Where We Go from Here as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 14, 15, 16, and 17.

What is this book about?

Henrique has had HIV for three years.
Ian has just tested positive.
Victor got with Henrique last night and thinks he might have it.

Ian, Victor and Henrique must navigate treatment, friendship and love, and eventually learn to trust each other.

Because with judgement and ignorance lurking round every corner, the real challenge isn't the disease - it's other people.

Brazilian author Lucas Rocha unveils the common misconceptions and prejudices that still surround HIV in the twenty-first century, showing how far we've come while shining a light on just how far we have yet to go.