Multicultural Children's Book Day

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Multicultural Book Recommendations for World Travel from the Safety of Home

March 22, 2020 by Valarie Budayr

Guest Post from Janelle Diller and Pack-n-Go Girls®

::Big sigh:: The world has changed—we hope just temporarily. But here we are. No travel. Extra days out of school. Uncertain times. Thank goodness for books to distract us! We have some great multicultural recommendations to pass the time and expand your children’s world.

Hopefully, your library has them, but if not, Amazon still delivers to your door. We hope.

Multicultural Book Recommendations for World Travel

The Breaking News Written and Illustrated by Sarah Lynne Reul

Multicultural Book Recommendations

Bad news breaks and a young girl tries to make sense of it. A gray cloud slips over the family and the community. The parents are sad and distracted. “Suddenly Mom is glued to the television. Dad can’t stop checking his phone. They whisper and I pretend not to hear.” The mother even forgets to tuck the girl into bed at night. Her schoolmates feel the weight of the bad news, too.

This isn’t a random bedtime story to read to a sleepy three-year-old. Even though the sparse text and picture book format implies a preschool audience, the subject matter and treatment could be unsettling for a young child who didn’t have a context for the theme. In this current environment, it can be a powerful conversation starter for preschoolers through early elementary children.

 

My Beijing: Four Stories of Everyday Wonder Written and Illustrated by Nie Jun; Translated by Edward Gauvin

Multicultural Book Recommendation

Whether you’re eight or eighty, My Beijing: Four Stories of Everyday Wonder is perfect for an afternoon of contemplating. What’s real? What’s a dream? What’s magic? The four stories give readers plenty of moments to use their own imagination.

Nie Jun wrote and illustrated the stories in comic book style, but don’t be misled. This is not your father’s comic book of bold lines and dramatic primary colors (washed out by the printing process and cheap paper). This is a book of art. Each page presents multiple frames of the story, all done in pastel watercolors and ink lines. They’re rich in detail and action.

 

Penguin Days Written by Sara Leach; Illustrated by Rebecca Bender

Multicultural Book Recommendation

Penguin Days takes the reader on a journey. In the second book in this endearing series by Sara Leach, Lauren and her family travel to Lincoln, North Dakota, so Lauren can be the flower girl in her auntie Joss’ wedding. It takes Lauren’s family “two days, eight movies, four chapter books, and three throw-ups” to get to their destination. This is perhaps as good of a time as any to stop and ponder how many children’s books take place in North Dakota.

Zero? That’s the common answer.

So here’s the first clue to the nature of this book: Penguin Days is not common. And that’s its gift. Lauren, the protagonist, has ASD, or Autism Spectrum Disorder, which means her brain works differently than other people’s brains. The book is filled with gentle humor, which helps the reader appreciate Lauren’s perspective while at the same time doesn’t sugar coat life with a child with ASD. The family drives to North Dakota because the last time they traveled there, they flew, and as Lauren notes, “[N]obody wanted to live through the experience of flying with me again.”

Penguin Days provides learning of the most important kind and has an added bonus of sweet humor, age-appropriate text, and engaging illustrations. It belongs on the shelf of every library for young readers.

 

Big Problemas Written and Illustrated by Juana Medina

Multicultural Book Recommendation

In Big Problemas, written and illustrated by Juana Medina, Juana and Lucas return in a second romp through the world of this delightful young Colombian and her dog, Lucas.

Juana’s life is just about perfect—but it’s about to become just a little less perfect. Her first clue is that her mami has a new hairdo. At first, Juana thinks she’s just gotten into the wrong car after school, but when Juana tells her mami that she liked her mami’s old hair better, her mami isn’t too happy about her comment. “That’s when I knew I was in the right car with the right Mami, just not with the right hairdo.” And that’s when the reader realizes that this is going to be fun.

This engaging story with endearing characters and a gentle touch on the larger themes of loss and change make for a valuable read.

Small Mercies Written by Bridget Krone; Illustrated by Karen Vermeulen

Multicultural Book Recommendation

Mercy steals the reader’s heart from the very first page. Although more accurately, it’s Mercy’s eccentric foster aunts who do the initial stealing. Their quirky excuse notes—one says Mercy has “the collywobbles,” another that she has “a dicky tummy,” and on another that she can’t participate in inter-house cross-country because she “has a bone in her leg”—let the reader know some sweet humor is ahead.

Small Mercies carries the reader to South Africa. One of the benefits for the North American audience is that the reader realizes that, yes, there are unfamiliar differences between the two places, but even more important, the similarities are even greater. Take away the African cultures and replace them with familiar American cultures, and the classroom is the same. Children can be kind and can be cruel; they can stress out about school expectations, and the worries they have about their home life travel with them into the classroom.

Karen Vermeulen’s simple line drawings complement Krone’s text with appropriate whimsy. The short chapters are a nice treat for the reading level, particularly since the themes have a depth to them that takes some reflecting. Krone notes that her “favorite stories are those that, just when you expect a lesson, sing a song instead.” Small Mercies is just that surprising song, full of light and sweetness. Readers will carry the melody in their hearts long after the last page is turned.

Pack-n-Go Girls Adventures

Pack and Go Girls

If you’re looking for travel adventure mysteries, Pack-n-Go Girls will take you there. Snuggle up with spooky stories that take readers to haunted castles in Austria, catch thieves in Mexico, save dolphins and turtles in Brazil, search for lost golden temples in Thailand, and chase aliens in Australia. It’s the cheapest way to travel to the other side of the world, and you can do it by paperback, ebook, or audiobook!

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If you love Pack-n-Go Girls, we’d love your review on Amazon!

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Multicultural Booklist Tagged With: #ReadYourWorld, book review, diverse books, diverserkidlit, Multicultural Book Recommendations, Multicultural Books for kids, Pack-n-Go Girls®

Diversity in kid literature | Your experience matters too, little one

February 18, 2020 by Valarie Budayr

Guest Post from author Connie-Vee Hawkins

People often say I was born with a camera in my hand. I loved taking my parent’s camera and snapping pictures. I saw each picture as a story. As I grew older, everyone realized I was indeed the storyteller of the family. Storytelling is therapeutic. It helps us to process the negative experience and immortalize a positive experience. Many experiences turned into stories. Like the one I wrote while in elementary school. It was called The Wrong Turn. I later understood it was my way of processing moving to a predominantly white neighboorhood in the ‘70s.

Just about every day, my sisters and I were subjected to insults at school or when we walked home from school. “jungle bunny” “jigaboo” “spear chucker” and the constant hearing of the “n” word were all foreign to me. Never head that ending with a hard “r”-although it was similar to what I heard on the streets in Watts, this was different…painful. Maybe it was the look in the faces of my White schoolmates and their parents when they said it? Maybe.

Mr. Hayes was my 5th-grade teacher. He was a White man that suffered from the Marfan syndrome, which made him this long-haired, extremely tall and lanky hippy-like man. Coming from Watts made him even extra particular to me. I really liked him. I being his only black student made him take an interest in me, I think he was just as curious about me as I was him.

“Have you ever read the book, Sounder?” he asked me one day. I hadn’t. He then handed me the book. I read it twice over the weekend. I was so moved by the characters and the experience which, although in two different worlds we were experiencing the same thing. When I finished the book, I wanted more. I wanted to read about my experience. The next book he gave me was, The Miracle Worker-The Helen Keller Story. Although she was a White lady, I related to her. Being the outcast. Different from her peers. Misunderstood and struggling to assimilate. Assimilation was survival. After reading her book, I started writing my own stories. I was in 5th grade.

As an adult, I became the mother of two children. Of course, I wanted to read stories to them that was like my experience. Stories that valued family, hard work, unity, and more. I wanted my girls to see characters that looked like them and their experience. So, instead of going on the exhaustive hunt for these books, I started writing them myself. I even tried to illustrate them. They loved them.

I’m not sure if people understand just how valuable it is for kids to see diversity in kid literature. It’s like, the world is looking at you and saying…hey, your life matters too. Your experience matters, little one.

As a mother, I wanted to share with my children my experience as a nature lover. I grew up camping in the Angeles Forest and although we often experience racism, it was always overshadowed by the beauty of nature. I discovered, there were tons of books dealing with, cooking, sibling-rivalry, and sharing, but nothing on nature with black families. So I started writing short stories for my children’s bed-time stories that featured topics that included characters that were nature lovers or loved hiking, camping and more. It just seemed to make storytime extra special. Most of those stories are still on longhand on some paper in a box by my bed. But I vowed to share them with the world. One book at a time.

Adventure one: Up and Out, is just the beginning. Much more to come. 🙂

About Connie-Vee

Connie-Vee HawkinsWriting was my first connection to creative expression. I have always been fascinated at how words strung together in a story can awaken one’s imaginations while inspiring us to live a better life.

When my children were younger, I enjoyed reading folktales with a positive, message-driven narrative—only I wanted to see more characters that looked like my daughters and the children of color in my community. I began writing those stories myself and eventually shared them at local schools, where they were well received. Now I’m making them available in paperback, e-book format and audio version—one story at a time.

“Connie-Vee is a talented storyteller and gifted, generous teacher. It was a pleasure to work with her. She has the courage to try to make the world a better place by celebrating diversity while also showing the humanity and kindness that can unite us all.” –Robert Reese, Author

Filed Under: Multicultural Booklist Tagged With: #ReadYourWorld, book review, Children's Book Author, diverse picture books, diverserkidlit, Diversity in kid literature

Encompassing All Perspectives | Guest Posts from Pack-n-Go Girls

January 19, 2020 by Valarie Budayr

Multicultural Children’s Book Day is just around the corner on January 31st. It’s a great time to reflect on whether your book collection is encompassing all perspectives.

One of our authors, Lisa Travis, had a unique experience as a panelist for this topic at the last American Association of School Librarians conference. We thought we would do a quick synopsis of the author panelists’ books and the perspectives they represented.

The first panelist was Rafael Lopez, the illustrator for Sonia Sotomayor’s book, Just Ask: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You. This children’s picture book does an amazing job of answering children’s curiosity about others’ differences. Using her own experience as a child who was diagnosed with diabetes, Justice Sotomayor writes about children with all sorts of challenges–and looks at the special powers those kids have as well. Rafael talked about his gratitude to have the opportunity to positively bring awareness to our unique abilities in this world. We also discussed the power of engaging in conversation. Hopefully, this book helps children feel confident to “just ask” and not make assumptions. What books do you have on your bookshelf that speak to the perspective of differences, whether they be physical or mental?

Just Ask: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You

The second panelist was Geoff Rodkey, author of We’re Not From Here. This sci-fi middle-grade novel proves that friendship and laughter can transcend even a galaxy of differences. If you want to go multicultural, why not go to Mars or Planet Choom? Readers of this book will get introduced to immigration through the perspective of space refugees.  Boys and girls will love the main character. Is it boy? Or a girl? According to Geoff, “I gave the readers a bit more space to imagine whatever version of Lan works best for them.” During the panel, Rodkey discussed his approach to creating a gender-neutral character and the misadventures he has had since with those who have assumed one way or the other. In this book, Geoff gave us many perspectives that will expand our thinking. If you’ve got middle-grade readers, add this one to your bookshelf.

We’re Not From Here

The third panelist, Greg Howard, author of Middle School’s a Drag brought yet another perspective for middle grader readers, encouraging us to see the world through a middle school entrepreneur who is discovering how to be open about his identity. He starts his own junior talent agency and signs a thirteen-year-old aspiring drag queen as his first client. Greg shared with us his own perspectives on LGBTQ issues and how they informed his characters and why it was important to have these perspectives on our bookshelves to build a more inclusive world.

Middle School's a Drag

Last, our Pack-n- Go Girls Adventures brought yet another perspective. Lisa Travis, the author of our latest Pack-n-Go Girls Adventure, Mystery of the Naga at Night, discussed the importance of multicultural literature in our globally connected world.

Our mission has always been to make a difference by nurturing an adventurous spirit that inspires kids to go out and explore the world, infusing kids with curiosity and an insatiable thirst to learn, and coaching kids to notice what unites us and appreciate the value of our differences. This is what multicultural and diverse literature brings to the table. If we teach our children to move into the world from a place of openness, wonder, and curiosity, rather than fear, judgment, and separation, we set them up to live profoundly more nourishing, connected lives. Reading multicultural books is an easy first step in this direction.

Ultimately, the more we read, the more we learn. The more perspectives we learn about, the more we build empathy and acceptance. Consider this: How much does it mean for children to read a book that has a girl or boy “just like me” in it? The loss isn’t just for children who don’t see themselves on the pages, but the loss is also for the children who only see themselves on the pages. How do they learn to appreciate and understand different perspectives?

So, as we get ready to celebrate multicultural books, take a look at your bookshelf. Does it encompass the perspectives that you want your children or students to explore? Stay tuned for the great 2020 linky with a myriad of book reviews of multicultural books to discover hot new titles that will encompass all perspectives.

Check it out: https://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/

Pack-n-Go Girls are a proud PLATINUM Sponsor of MCBD2020!

Filed Under: 2020 MCBD, Guest Posts Tagged With: #ReadYourWorld, Children's Book Author, diverserkidlit, MCBD2020, Pack-n-Go Girls®, Platinum sponsor

Christmas Around The World (plus a free Christmas activity download!)

December 14, 2019 by Valarie Budayr

Guest post from Pack-n-Go Girls

Ever wonder what holiday celebrations look like in other countries?

Then let’s take your kids on a tour of the world this Christmas with Pack-n-Go Girls Christmas around the World Adventure!

Travel to different countries and learn about holiday celebrations in Austria, Australia, Mexico, Brazil, and Thailand. Print out the provided passport read about how each country celebrates and then do the country activity. When complete, add a stamp to your passport.

Pack-n-Go Girls Christmas around the world

For a special Christmas treat, don’t miss Mystery at the Christmas Market. And if you need some more activities to keep everyone entertained during your holiday vacation, make sure you also check out our Country Exploration Kits for more fun and learning about the different countries. We’ve extended the learning with 45+ pages of educational activities for your children and students. You’ll find lots of cross-curriculum activities in reading, writing, math, science, art, and social studies. In the spirit of traveling, our Country Exploration Kit also includes a crossword puzzle, word search, maze, secret decoder, some coloring pages, and recipes for cooking some treats for your next trip.

Happy Holidays!

About Pack-N-Go Girls

Dreaming of true-blue friends, mysterious adventures, and faraway places? Pack-n-Go Girls take you there!

2017 Literary Classics Winner – Best Series – Young Reader
2017 Moonbeam Children’s Book Winner – Best Chapter Book Series
2014 Moonbeam Children’s Book Winner – Best Chapter Book Series
Readers tour haunted castles in Austria, catch thieves in Mexico, save dolphins and turtles in Brazil, search for lost golden temples in Thailand, and chase aliens in Australia. AND at the same time, they’re inspired to embrace adventure, be curious, value what unites us, and celebrate the differences that make us unique. Kids discover the diversity of cultures and the richness each one contributes to the world.
Headquartered in Colorado Springs, CO, Pack-n-Go Girls specializes in creating innovative stories for girls that deliver positive messages around independence, adventure, and global awareness.
PNGG’s newest offering is Mystery of the Rusty Key, the second book in the Australian adventures. Here’s a bit about both books:
Mystery of the Min Min Lights – Australia 1
Journey into the dusty, windswept Australian outback, land of bounding kangaroos and dazzling sunsets. Wendy Lee arrives from California. She’s lucky to meet Chloe and Jacko Taylor, who invite Wendy to their sheep station. It sounds like fun except that someone is stealing the sheep. And the thief just might be something as crazy as a UFO.
Mystery of the Rusty Key – Australia 2
Wendy, Chloe, and Jacko travel to Sydney and dive straight into another mystery where they must unravel four spooky clues: an ancient letter, a rusty key, a missing box, and a curse. The kids race against time to solve the mystery before the clock strikes midnight.
Learn more about the Pack-n-Go Girls® books and related products HERE.
Follow the Pack-n-Go Girls® on Twitter:@packngogirls , Instagram, Pinterest, and on Facebook: facebook.com/packngogirls

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)

Filed Under: 2020 MCBD, Author Visits, Guest Posts Tagged With: #ReadYourWorld, book review, Christmas Around the World, diverse easy reader, diverserkidlit, Pack-n-Go Girls Christmas around the world, Pack-n-Go Girls®

9 Kidlit Books that Share Physical and Developmental Challenges {Part 1}

July 10, 2019 by Valarie Budayr

Recently, the MCBD Team has spent considerable time creating our 5th Free Classroom Kit for Teachers, Librarians, and parents to utilize. The theme of the 2019/2020 Multicultural Children’s Book Day Classroom Kit is Understand and Celebrate our Differences. We’ve replaced our previous title, “Understanding and Celebrating People with Disabilities,” after learning that this isn’t correct language.

Creating this downloadable kit has been eye-opening and educational and we’ve done our best to pass the lessons on to those who welcome this kit into their classrooms and homes.

Understand and Celebrate our Differences

Within this free downloadable Classroom Kit, you will find books and resource links for:

  • ADHD
  • Allergies
  • Anxiety/Separation Anxiety
  • Asthma
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
  • Cancer
  • Charcot Marie Tooth
  • Cerebral Palsy
  • Cystic Fibrosis
  • Deaf/Partial Hearing Loss
  • Degenerative Diseases
  • Diabetes
  • Disfiguration
  • Down Syndrome
  • Dyslexia
  • Epilepsy
  • Glasses
  • Limb Differences
  • Mental Illness
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
  • Osteogenesis Imperfecta
  • Person with Albinism
  • Person with Brain Injury
  • Physical Disabilities involving Walking
  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Prosthetic Implants
  • Sensory Processing
  • Someone Who Uses a Wheelchair
  • Someone with an Alcohol Problem
  • Someone with Dwarfism
  • Spinal Disorders
  • Speech and Language Difficulties
  • Tourette Syndrome
  • Visual Impairment

Since this is a huge topic, we’d appreciate any suggestions you have on rounding out this list!

Go HERE to download your FREE Classroom Kit.

Bonus Special Needs and Disabilities Booklist {PART 1}

As you can imagine, the pool of amazing books to pull from that showcase the above topics was HUGE. There were many hours of discussion and decision-making that took place and the final result was a fine-tuned list of books and resources.

HOWEVER, there are many more books that we simply did not have room for in the kit so we’d like to offer a Bonus Booklist! Enjoy.

Allergies

Avril Knows by Ginny Heenen offers a positive message by showing Avril how she is seen through the eyes of an artist who paints her portrait. Avril loves learning new magic tricks. She also has an uncanny way of noticing details and things that other people don’t, and that makes her good at magic. When her parents decide to have her portrait painted Avril imagines herself as a proud magician. However, Avril learns through the eyes of the artist that her allergies are not a bad thing, but instead make her more powerful and special than she ever imagined.

Autism

Anatomy of Autism: A Pocket Guide for Educators, Parents and Students by Diego Pena.

Diego is a nine-year-old non-verbal author who has written the bestseller book, Anatomy of Autism: A Pocket Guide for Educators, Parents, and Students, with a goal of delivering a message that shatters misconceptions about autism

Cancer

The Little Green Monster: Cancer Magic! by Sharon Chappell, PhD, Associate Professor of Education, CSUF, and Director, Little Green Monster Project.

What happens when someone you love is diagnosed with cancer? In this inspiring story written by a breast cancer survivor, The Little Green Monster helps Marie and her family survive and thrive through her mother’s treatment. The book includes how to express feelings, cancer vocabulary, as well as family cancer resources and activities. The book explores the questions like: what can you expect while the loved one goes through treatment? While science does its work, what can love and everyday magic do to help? “The Little Green Monster donates free book copies to families impacted by cancer. Copies also available through the website for purchase. Partial proceeds of sales are donated to Susan G. Komen Orange County.

“This book provides a meaningful tool for teachers, daycare providers, counselors, or anyone who works with children whose lives are impacted by cancer or other illnesses. Every day students walk through the doors of our schools bearing enormous burdens. The Little Green Monster: Cancer Magic! can comfort them and be a source of hope.” -Laurel Estrada, Family Resource Center Coordinator, Rowland Heights School District

Cerebral Palsy

S.M.A.R.T.S. and the 3-D Danger by Melinda Metz

This book is an inclusive story as the protagonist is Jaden, a male middle school student with cerebral palsy. [chapter book, ages 8-11]

Deaf/Hard of Hearing

The Secrets Hidden Beneath the Palm Tree by Angeliki Pedersen

This early childhood book is written from a mother’s point of view with the purpose of helping hard of hearing or deaf children and their families at the critical mainstream stage. When young children get exposed to differences in others, they learn tolerance, empathy and create new ways of learning. [picture books for ages 4 and up]

Ranvir Cannot Hear by Genevieve Yusuf and Shermain Philip

Ranvir Cannot Hear is a magical story set in the plains of India and is about a little elephant that goes on a long journey in search of his hearing. On his travels he meets some wonderful friends along the way who can’t do certain things but tell him about the things that they can! Ranvir even finds out he has a special talent too… This is a beautifully illustrated children’s story with a message of inclusion and empowerment. Learn to find out what you can do and don’t worry about what you can’t. [picture book, ages 5-8]

Waiting for a Sign by Etsy Schachter

Shelly and Ian used to be close, but after Ian leaves home to attend the Hawthorne School for the Deaf, Shelly feels abandoned, and the two drift apart.

When Ian returns home with news that the future of Hawthorne is in jeopardy, Shelly isn’t sure she wants him back. And Ian, who has enjoyed living with students and staff who sign all the time, feels angry when his family forgets to do the same.

An explosive argument that could drive brother and sister further apart actually offers hope for reconciliation—a hope that grows as Shelly’s spirited best friend, Lisa, helps strengthen their bond.

The siblings grow closer still when they find themselves coping with an unexpected tragedy. To fully heal her relationship with Ian, however, Shelly needs to acknowledge and understand why Hawthorne—and access to the Deaf community—is so important to him. To do so, she’ll need to take action and stop waiting for a sign.

Written by clinical social worker Esty Schachter, Waiting for a Sign celebrates the beauty and power of Deaf culture, offering readers an opportunity for insight and understanding. [chapter book, ages 10+]

Down Syndrome

The Colorful Adventures of Pauline and Tiff by Megan Cooper and Nicolette Stearns

Megan is a young adult with Downs Syndrome; she narrated the story to Nicolette Stearns. It is about a girl with Down syndrome and her neurotypical friend.

Culture of Life: 5 Picture Books about Downs Syndrome

Mental Illness/Depression

Meh: A Book About Depression by Deborah Malcolm

Sadness is an emotion that everyone feels at some time or another. But sometimes you might feel a sadness so long and so deep and dark that it seems impossible to find happiness. That kind of sadness is called depression. Meh is a wordless picture book about one boy’s journey through depression. Discussion questions at the back of the book are intended for parents or teachers to discuss depression with children.

OCD

Waiting for Fitz by Spencer Hyde

Fitz is haunted by the voices in his head and often doesn’t know what is real. But he feels if he can convince Addie to help him escape the psych ward and get to San Juan Island, everything will be okay. If not, he risks falling into a downward spiral that may keep him in the hospital indefinitely.

Waiting for Fitz is a story about life and love, forgiveness and courage, and learning what is truly worth waiting for.

Stay tuned for Part Two of this project!

Together the MCBD team hopes to spread the word and raise awareness about the importance of diversity in children’s literature We encourage readers, parents, teachers, caregivers and librarians to follow along the fun book reviews, author visits, event details, multicultural children’s book linky and via our hashtag (#ReadYourWorld) on Twitter and other social media.

Thank you for cultivating understanding, kindness, inclusion, and exploration of this beautiful world in your classroom.


The Author/Platinum Sponsorship July Flash Sale has BEGUN!

It’s time!

Back by popular demand is our MCBD 2020 Author Sponsorship July Flash Sale! And this year, we are throwing in a special deal on Platinum Level Sponsorships as well (limit of 3)!

Go here to see past Medallion Level Sponsors and Author Sponsors(MCBD2019)

Planning for MCBD2020 is already underway and we can’t help being in awe as to how far this non-profit initiative has come.

Mission:  Raise awareness for children’s books that celebrate diversity by getting more of these books into classrooms and libraries. Multicultural Children’s Book Day is celebrated on the last Friday of January. 2020 will be our 7th year and our much-anticipated Twitter Party on the day of the celebration grows bigger (and more fun!) every year.

From October through February, Multicultural Children’s Book Day is especially active on social media and the buzz surrounding this event gets national even global support and recognition. The whirlwind that is Multicultural Children’s Book Day is a proven way to get books into the hands of young readers while also raising awareness with parents, caregivers, teachers, and librarians.

We know Author Sponsorship is an amazing and powerful way for Authors to get visibility and readership for their work. Last year’s July Flash Sale was huge success and authors and publisher appreciated the cost savings.

NOTE: Medallion Level Sponsorship options for MCBD2020 (1/31/20) will be available by September 1, 2019…but in the meantime…

Lock in your MCBD 2020 Author Sponsorship during the July Flash Sale!

During the July Flash Sale, the Author Sponsorship price of $129 will be slashed to $89 for Author sponsorships purchased in July for MCBD2020—that’s a 30% savings!




Recognizing all of the wonderful authors and illustrators that bring multicultural children’s books to life is very important to us. As a way of acknowledging their work and shining the spotlight on specific authors, the MCBD Team has created a very special sponsorship option.

GO HERE to read deeper details and don’t let this opportunity pass you by!

**sale ends July 31, 2019

Filed Under: Multicultural Booklist Tagged With: #ReadYourWorld, book review, diverse booklist, diverse books, diverserkidlit

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