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My diverse reading from March
I’m a little bit late on this one! In March, I read 31 books. Of those, 12 count toward my We Need Diverse Books resolution. That’s about 39% — a drop from February, but on par with January. I’m now at...
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Help Jennyann Carthern paint African-American youth
Jennyann Carthern is an artist with a mission. She recently launched a project, “Painting Black Faces,” in which she aims to paint 50 faces of African-American children in grades K-5. Her goal is both...
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Updates soon!
You may have noticed I didn’t post my diverse reading progress for April or May. Both months are very busy on the education beat at a newspaper (my day job). I’ve been doing exciting stuff like going...
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2 (true) children’s books about transgender youth
With all the buzz this month around Caitlyn Jenner — formerly known as Bruce Jenner, the Olympic gold medalist — making her first appearance as a woman, you might be wondering how to help the kids in...
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2 Picture Books About … Environmental Activists
Here are two great picture books about environmental activists. “Luna & Me,” written and illustrated by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw tells the story of Julia “Butterfly” Hill, who spent two years...
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6 picture books to celebrate marriage equality
If you’ve spent any time online since Friday, you already know that, after decades of activism, gay marriage is now legal in all 50 states in America. Here are three picture books to help celebrate...
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World War II children’s books: “The Whispering Town” and a blog recommendation
As I’ve mentioned before, I went through a period of reading a lot of books about the Holocaust as a kid. As an adult, I’ve spent more time learning about other periods of mass atrocities, including...
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My diverse reading for April through July
From April through July I read 27 total children’s and YA books. Compare that to March alone, when I read 29. Yikes! I definitely lost some focus in recent months, though I did read many more adult...
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Hurricane Katrina 10th anniversary: 5 children’s books about strength through...
This month is the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. A number of children’s books related to Katrina have come out in the last ten years, ranging from nonfiction on the storm itself to fictional...
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Happy book birthday to “George” by Alex Gino
I just heard about “George,” a new middle grade novel featuring a transgender main character. It was released today by Scholastic The book is Alex Gino‘s debut, so congrats to Alex and happy book...
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Pippi’s a feminist, and what the characters you loved as a kid say about you
Author Astrid Lindgren and a movie version of Pippi Longstocking Children’s author Emma Shevah had a great post in The Guardian’s children’s book section last week, detailing why Pippi Longstocking...
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2 Board books for baby activists
OK, so I guess babies can’t really be activists, but they can certainly attend protests with their parents. And they can also get their first introductions to numbers and letters through activism in...
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“Voices from the March on Washington” and social justice poetry in the classroom
After reading “Voices from the March on Washington” by George Ella Lyon and J. Patrick Lewis last month, I knew I’d need to read it again. Now I wish I had a classroom full of kids to read it with....
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Thinking critically about Columbus Day and American Indians in children’s books
As many kids across the U.S. enjoy a day off school for Columbus Day, I encourage you to visit and follow this blog: American Indians in Children’s Literature. It is written by Debbie Reese, a Nambe...
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3 ways to introduce teenagers to activist Grace Lee Boggs #GraceLeeTaughtMe
Grace Lee Boggs, a longtime civil and labor rights activist, died last week at age 100. I knew Grace’s name before but I didn’t know anything about her life or work, so I’ve been reading about her in...
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On blind spots and “A Fine Dessert”
Is a blind spot still a blind spot if you can see it? I had an experience of seeing one last month. It came after a flurry of Internet debate surrounding the picture book “A Fine Dessert,” written by...
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Last-minute holiday gift ideas for activist families
Innosanto Nagara, the author of “A is for Activist” and “Counting on Community” — both of which I wrote about in September — recently posted a “2015 Holiday Gift Guide for Activisty Families.” If...
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How I did on my 2015 We Need Diverse Books resolution
From August through December, I read 23 diverse children’s books, bringing my year-end total to 68. That means I surpassed my We Need Diverse Books resolution of 50 diverse books even without counting...
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Weekend Round-up: #WhereIsRey & other problems in children’s toys and media
I’ve been reading/listening to some interesting debates and discussions on social issues in children’s books and toys lately. Here are a few links worth checking out. 1. Missing in action figures...
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Scholastic stops sales of “A Birthday Cake for George Washington”
That was fast. In my weekend link round-up, I noted that a new picture book, “A Birthday Cake for George Washington,” written by Ramin Ganeshram and illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton, was...
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