diverse authors Archives - Multicultural Children's Book Day

How to donate a book to Multicultural Children’s Book Day

October 20, 2020 by Rebecca Flansburg

As you may already know, Multicultural Children’s Book Day (MCBD) is an online and offline celebration that attracts thousands of supporters, educators, parents, caregivers, book reviewers, and quality authors and publishers who join forces to shine the spotlight on diversity in children and YA literature.

Celebrated annually on the last Friday in January, this global non-profit offers a plethora of free resources, teaching tools, booklists, downloads, and a year-around initiative to get multicultural and diverse books into the hands of young readers. To date, we have donated over 8,000 books to underserved kids, classrooms, and organizations, and that number continues to climb.

WE COULD NOT CONTINUE THIS WORK if it wasn’t for our book donators!

SO, if you are a publisher or an author of multicultural books for children, and you would like to get your book into the hands of deserving teachers, librarians, parents, and young readers, HERE’s HOW.

How to donate a book to Multicultural Children’s Book Day

Any diverse books that are generously donated to this non-profit are used for giveaways, donations to underserved organizations, Twitter Party Prizes (heavily attended by educators), and our FREE Diverse Books for Classrooms Project.

Your information will not be sold or shared with any non-MCBD personnel unless approved by the donator.

All donators of review copies will be recognized on the Multicultural Children’s Book Day site and within the final Sponsorship report.

NOTE: These donated books will be gifted to young readers, parents, and educators. There is no guarantee your donated book will be reviewed during the event.

****The address of where to send your books is included in the below Google Sign-up Form.

OTHER Ways to Get Involved in Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2021

1. Book Donation: Creators can donate books that will be reviewed and shared on social media.

2. Sponsorships: Sponsorships are directly connected to the yearly celebration itself and are a great way to tap into the hundreds-of-thousands of views our social media channels get from November to February 1. We have sponsorships at a variety of price points to fit any budget. All levels of Sponsorships for MCBD 2021 will open up September 1.

3. Do a Social Shout Out for your book or Favorite Author’s Book: Shout Outs are a one-time social media push on an author/diverse book’s behalf. Our Social Shout Outs are available all year long and act as a fundraiser for our Free Books for Classrooms Project. See samples of how awesome our Social Shout Out images look HERE.

4. Join our Exclusive MCBD Facebook Group: This group is a nice mix of parents, book reviewers, teachers, and authors, so you will be able to connect with like-minded people!

5. Be a Book Reviewer: We are always looking for people who would love a free diverse book in exchange for an honest review on social media during the month of January. If this is something you are interested in, subscribe to the MCBD blog and we will let you know as soon as the reviewer sign up is open September 1.

6. Be an Ambassador and Connector:

7. Follow Us and Support Us on Social Media: Our Official hashtag for this event is #ReadYourWorld!

Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/MulticulturalChildrensBookDay

– Twitter https://twitter.com/MCChildsBookDay

-Instagram https://www.instagram.com/readyourworldmcbd/

-Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/pragmaticmom/multicultural-books-for-kids/

-Reminder: The hashtag for this event is #ReadYourWorld

***Support the diverse children’s literacy initiative Multicultural Children’s Book Day! Our 8th celebration will take place on January 29, 2021. Creators can donate books that will be reviewed and shared on social media. We also have sponsorships at a variety of price points

We appreciate you!

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A day at the beach 1950 vs 2020: The Rounders and The Tallers

October 6, 2020 by Rebecca Flansburg

{Guest post from Matt Bell}

In my family, we have Black, White, and Brown skinned members.

I am light-skinned with an Irish background and a hint of my grandfather’s Jewish heritage from Poland. We live 3 hours from the beach and often load up the cars and head down there for a fun day trip. Along the drive, there are many signs. Signs promoting miles to the coast and the next gas stop. As we get closer to the beach we see more signs that start telling us about some specific information about the beach and where we can access it. Then finally as we approach the entrance to the beach we have many signs telling us the rules about what can and cannot be done while at the beach.

The particular beach we attend is located in a city and county line. One side of the imaginary line is ruled by the laws of the local city and the other by the county. There is a row of wooden piers dug into the beach that extends from the beach road all the way down to the actual waterline. On these wooden piers are many signs Signs such as “No dogs permitted. No campfires. Swim at your own risk. No alcohol. No overnight camping.” can be seen on the city side. On the county side, the signs read differently. “Pick up your cans and bottles. Dogs must be on a leash. Campfires must be extinguished completely after use. Overnight camping permitted.”

I sat there in my car with all the kids excitedly talking behind me as I contemplated which side of the imaginary line would be best for my family. No dogs and no alcohol on this side, dogs, and alcohol, and campers on that side. I choose the city side and we parked and set up our chairs and umbrellas for a fun day at the beach.

I sat in my beach chair watching the kids play along the beach while the county side of the beach filled up. Many other families stayed on the side where they could drink alcohol, set up for overnight campfires, and run their dogs. A few families joined us on our side.

As I watched my dark-skinned, brown-skinned, and light-skinned children play in the surf together, I started thinking. I took a mental time machine back 70 years to this same beach. At this same location, though the year was 1950, the water was the same. The sand was the same. The clouds were the same. There was one difference. The city and county piers both had signs that said, “No Coloreds Allowed at the Beach.”

I snapped back to the present day and looked at my kids. And I counted. 1-2-3-4-5. Five of my kids would be breaking the law by playing at the beach due to the color of their skin. All because of a sign. The only difference was the one sign. And I thought of the people who put the sign there in 1950. Then I thought of the people who in the last 70 years who had worked so hard to make the fundamental changes in our society. The addition of and the removal of a simple sign can mean so much in our society.

So I wanted to explain to my children and grandchildren that this bias and segregation existed and how it can slowly come back unless we stay vigilant. So I wrote a little story called The Rounders and The Tallers.

The Rounders and the Tallers is a tale of a town where its people have lost their way and separated themselves and the journey to come back together. While the adult leaders of two groups of people struggle to get along, it’s a little boy, in his innocence and compassion, that teaches the people how to forgive and unite.

Where one group slowly limits the freedoms of another based on their bias. And how through love and courage a true and new peace is attained and freedom is recovered.

Hello, my name is Matt Bell and I am a children’s book author. I am the father of nine very diverse children from all races and walks of life. I have a series of three children’s books about to be published (July, August, and November). All three are funny, illustrated, and deal with a particular social issue in which there is a conflict in the community and a resolution. They deal with topics such as segregation, access to services, and bigotry.

Raising nine children has given me a lot of time to learn to explain situations about life, guide, and more importantly listen to their thoughts and views on what’s happening in our American society today.

As the head “Teaser” and storyteller in the family. I would often find myself attempting to amuse the kids with stories while making a point about the current situation they were going through. Some of these stories made it to paper and some of those have made it to the publishing world.

Personally I love the beach, skateboarding, and in general having fun with my family. I thank God each day for the breath I am given. I hope you and the kids in your life can read, laugh, and talk about the interesting things that happen in these books.

Connect with me via my website.

Social Media Shout-Outs for Diverse Children’s Book Authors

November 27, 2019 by Rebecca Flansburg

We all have family favorites when it comes to books for kids. The ironic thing is that oftentimes some of our favorite books are from authors that are not household names or even have been published traditionally.

Hidden gems in the genre of multicultural children’s books lurk on every home’s bookshelves, but because many of these favorite authors don’t have huge marketing budgets, they remain a “best-kept secret” despite the fact they produce amazing diverse books for kids.

But Multicultural Children’s Book Day has come up with a fun and clever way to use our vibrant social media channels to shine the spotlight on diverse, multicultural, #OWNVOICES, and global-themed children’s books and authors. Our Friends of MCBD Social Shout-Out feature has been around for years, but sometimes gets lost in the shuffle of our other features, resources, and offerings.

Social Media Shout-Outs for Diverse Children’s Book Authors

Our Friends of MCBD Social Shout-Out feature is also a fundraiser that helps us continue our initiative of getting books into the hands of underserved readers and classrooms all.year.long. So, if you’d like to show some online love while also raising funds to support our cause, this $25 option is a unique and effective way to give a “shout-out” to your own books, or your favorite author’s.

The $25 Friends of Multicultural Children’s Book Day Social Shout Out

Anyone with a PayPal account can gift an online “shout-out” to an author friend who has a book with diversity themes. MCBD will then acknowledge the Social Shout-Out shout-out on their Twitter feed (over 13.5K followers), Instagram (over 9K followers) and Facebook as well.

Nominate and Donate HERE to support the cause and purchase a Friends of Multicultural Children’s Book Day Social Shout Out!

After checkout, contact Project Manager Becky to share who your shout-out should go out to. Becky (at) multiculturalchildrensbookday (dot) com.

Go HERE to support the cause and purchase your Friends of Multicultural Children’s Book Day Social Shout Out

BOOK REVIEWERS, WE.Need. YOU.

If you love diverse books for kids and have a social media platform to share a review on, we want to give you a FREE diversity book to review!

AND…you don’t have to be a blogger to review multicultural children’s books for our MCBD2020 (1/31/20) online event. You just need to have a love of diversity in children’s literature and be willing to share on your social media platforms such as Facebook (Pages only-no Facebook profiles), Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, or YouTube. We encourage honest Amazon reviews of assigned books whenever possible as well.

SIGN UP HERE to be an MCBD2020 book reviewer ASAP and go HERE for the detailed explanation of what it means to be a valued book reviewer for our MCBD2020 celebration

(Signup deadline is 12/15/19)

Mark your calendars for the 2019 Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival!

September 24, 2019 by Valarie Budayr

As one of the largest and most engaging annual book festivals in the northeast, The Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival shares a mission that is near-and-dear to our heart; a mission to put a book in the hands of every child.

{Art by Roxie Munro}

The 7th annual #ChappBook festival will take place this year on October 5th, at Bell Middle School, in Chappaqua, NY, just across the street from the Chappaqua train station. This popular event will be jam-packed with 140+ creatively renowned authors and illustrators, kid-friendly crafts, food, activities, and fun that will make a lasting connection with the love of reading.

The History of the Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival

Art image credit

The event began on the heels of the long-standing festival on the Hudson River canceled abruptly. Knowing that there was a deep need for a book-inspired festival that created a deeper connection with authors, illustrators, readers, and educators, Dawn Greenberg set to work to create exactly that. With local children’s book author Barbara Dee, assistant director Madeline Finesmith, and two other founding Board Members by her side, this ambitious mom dove into making her vision come to fruition.

In only six short months, the Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival (CCBF) was made a reality thanks to Dawn’s hardworking team and 200 volunteers that helped on festival day. Currently, the CCBF board has eight members including teachers and children’s book author Sally Cook.

Now in its seventh year, this free and open to the public event is expected to draw over 8,000 book-loving participants during its October 5th event.

Boy reading Rodent Rascals by Roxie Munro

Photo credit: Bo Zaunders

What You Can Expect at the 2019 Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival

This literacy-filled book festival is for readers 0-18 and will be on Saturday, October 5th from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The location of the celebration is Bell Middle School, in Chappaqua, NY, just across the street from the Chappaqua train station. There are detailed directions on the CCBF website here.

Teachers will have the opportunity to purchase books, meet the authors, learn about illustration and writing while visiting CCBF’s Educator’s Hospitality Tent.

All visitors are welcome to enjoy our Author Meet-n-Greets, our illustrator’s area, the Food for Thought food truck round-up, the Great Chappaqua Bake Sale, all of the literacy-inspired activities along with their many fun and inviting sponsor booths with games, giveaways, and crafts.

Photo credit: Bo Zaunders

Among CCBF’s 140+ authors who will be on hand to talk books and even be on discussion panels, many diverse books and authors will be represented.

Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival Author Talks

{Art by Roxie Munro}

Visitors can meet and talk to well-known and multicultural authors including Eric Velasquez, Bryan Collier, Jerry and Gloria Pinkney, John Parra, Tracey Baptiste, Veera Hiranandani. Nikki Grimes, Padma Venkatraman, Veera Hiranandani, CeCe Bell (El Deafo), Alyson Gerber (Braced, Focused), and authors who have written books with LGBTQ themes, Barbara Dee and Kyle Lukoff.

Art image credit

Authors Joyce Wan, John Parra, Florence Minor, and Bryan Collier

“We truly believe that just one book can change a child’s life and an encounter with the author of their favorite book can be life-changing as well,” Dawn confirmed. “During CCBF, all of the authors who participate are so incredibly gracious and generous with their time. Over the years, watching kids, parents, and educators be positively impacted by our event has never gotten old for me.”

Dawn went on to share that teachers from the region have fully embraced CCBF as it’s grown and evolved over the years and their support is a huge part of the event’s continued success. “Personally, I think teachers rule the world and to have them come in force to this event to meet the authors of the books they love to share with students, and how much that means to them to make that connect, means the world to me.”

Art image credit

In Praise of #ChapBooks

I’m happy to say that since its inception, I have NEVER missed a single Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival. It has been, and continues to be one of my favorite literary events. The warm interactions between the artists and writers, not only with each other, but also with the hundreds of families, teachers, and librarians, make it seem more like a family reunion than a book festival. But the icing on the cake is always the excited kid readers who come not only to search for their current favorite children’s book creators, but also to meet their new favorites. Plus it’s a great to see so many teachers unleash their inner child so that they can continue to be excited and share that enthusiasm with their students. If you’re a fan of children’s lit, it’s not to be missed.-Jerry Craft | Author / Illustrator “New Kid” – My Middle Grade Graphic Novel (HarperCollins Feb 2019)

Connect with Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival on their website, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.

Hope to see you there!

Doctors who Write Diverse Books for Kids

January 14, 2018 by Rebecca Flansburg

Every year for MCBD we get the most amazing array of people and talents. I (Becky) truly love getting to know each and every one of our authors, publishers, and reviewers.

This year is just as exceptional with one extra unique stand-out; we have several Doctors who Write Diverse Books for Kids this year and that is just so admirable! Out of sheer curiosity, I decided to ask these docs what it was that inspired them to write their book. Enjoy!

Juan J. Guerra, MD, and The Little Doctor/El doctorcito

2018 Bronze Sponsor Dr. Juan Guerra

[Read more…]