Multicultural Children's Book Day

#ReadYourWorld

When a Literature Assignment Becomes A Children’s Picture Book

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Guest Post by Tacardra B. Rountree 

It was my Junior year of high school and I was given an assignment in my Literature Class to write a poem about myself starting with the words, I Am. During that time, I had fallen in love with the poetry of Maya Angelou, especially the poem, “Phenomenal Woman.”I probably thought to myself, if I can be phenomenal, I can also be a Queen. My assignment started with the words, I Am An African Queen. It continued as a poetic affirmation. I published the poem in my first book, Writings From Down Through the Years. 

In graduate school, I came across the book, Honey I Love and Other Love Poems by Eloise Greenfield. When I read the poem,” Honey, I Love,” I was quickly reminded of my childhood. This poem became one of my favorites. It was several years later during my teaching career that I found the picture book Honey, I Love by Eloise Greenfield. It was at that moment, I decided to turn my poem, “I Am An African Queen,” into a children’s picture book. 

I knew I needed to find an illustrator who could make my words come to life. Little did I know that my illustrator would be someone that I already knew. Audrey “Sala Adenike” Jeter-Allen is known in my hometown for teaching and sharing African dance and culture. One year, we were both vendors at the same event. I was selling my first book and she was selling her artwork. I did not realize she was a visual artist. When I saw her artwork, I knew she would be the perfect illustrator for my book. I shared my ideas with Jeter-Allen and we exchanged contact information. She decided to illustrate my book and capture my vision with beautiful paintings and graphic illustrations. I wanted girls and women to find themselves on the cover and pages of the book. 

When it came to the title, I wanted something short and catchy. In February of 2018, I visited the Mann-Simons Site, one of the historical houses in Columbia, South Carolina. While I was reading one of the informational markers, a gentleman walked by and said, “Hello Queen.” I said, “Hello.”A few days later I said, “That is the title of my book, Hello Queen.” 

Remember, you should always answer to what you want to be called. The gentleman called me a Queen and I answered. He also confirmed what I already knew about myself. Yes, I am a Queen. I represent beauty, intelligence, determination, and more. After reading my book, I want young girls and women to boldly say, “I am a Queen” and realize that Queens are all around them. 

I did not realize the type of impact my 11th-grade assignment would have on my life. Save your writings and even your homework assignments. You may have the next best selling children’s book!

Tacardra B. RountreeTacardra B. Rountree is an author, inspirational speaker, and educator. Rountree has her Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Education from Fort Valley State University and her Master of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Minnesota.. 

She is the author of Writings From Down Through the Years and Hello Queen. Writings From Down Through the Years is a compilation of inspirational poetry and readings. Hello Queen is her second book and first children’s picture book. Rountree seeks to encourage and inspire others with her words. She enjoys sharing her books with schools and libraries. 

Website: https://www.authortrountree.com/

New & Fresh Diverse Kidlit Books: #OWNVOICES

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As many of you know, Multicultural Children’s Book Day (MCBD) is a global non-profit initiative that celebrates diverse authors and works year-round to raise awareness on the importance of diversity in children’s literature.

With our ears to the ground and eyes peeled (that is such an ODD phrase!!), we are also always on the prowl for new multicultural books that we know our supporters, educators, parents, caregivers, book reviewers, and librarians would appreciate knowing about.

Sometimes, when someone is a first-time author, getting attention on your new children’s book is a lot like shouting into a hurricane. Delightfully, the options for amazing diverse kidlit and YA books is endless…but that makes it all the more daunting for authors with new releases or first-time offerings.

Shining the spotlight on authors of multicultural/diverse board books, picture books, chapter books, graphic novels, and YA reads is one of our many missions. With that in mind, enjoy the latest “scores” in our ongoing quest to find the best books for our young readers.

Enjoy!

Diverse #OWNVOICES Kidlit Books That Should be on Your Bookshelf

How Angels are Made by Bryson Thompson Sr.

Based on a true story of the relationship between the author’s mother and son, How Angels are Made was a true creation in the midst of a tragedy. Author Bryson Thompson Sr. wrote the initial version of the book only two days after returning home from her funeral. During the initial days of the passing of his mother, Bryson and his wife spent significant time speaking with their son, BJ, about what happened to his mother. In the midst of those conversations, it became very apparent that they needed to be very clear and transparent with young BJ and answer as many questions as he had. One thing the Thompson family took away from their situation was how confused youth are during times of grief. From there, Bryson focused his energy on using their tragedy as a tool for youth and families to be able to work through their own healing processes.

Rain Before Rainbows by Smriti Prasadam-Halls and David Litchfield

This beautiful book was created to raise awareness for Save the Children US and is an uplifting story of hope to comfort children and families in these challenging times. Thanks to MCBD Supporter, Candlewick,  Rain Before Rainbows by Smriti Prasadam-Halls and David Litchfield as a free e-book can be downloaded for FREE here until September 30:  stayhome.candlewick.com and can be downloaded for FREE here until September 30:  stayhome.candlewick.com

 

Danbi Leads the School Parade by Anna Kim

This book was a labor of love that spanned 8 years. It is inspired by my first friend in America and how her kindness made me feel welcomed in this country.
Danbi is an unlikely hero and by all measures. She is a Korean immigrant; she doesn’t speak English; she is utterly confused with her American surroundings. How is she the hero? And to whom?
I also love that this book has multiple themes including multiculturalism, friendship, immigration, and back-to-school.
I believe children should have hero choices that they can identify with, whatever their race, culture, or socio-economic background. And it’s important for those who grow up in one culture to see the beauty of cultures other than theirs. This can be life-changing for a child who is frightened and bewildered in a new country, and craving acceptance.  I feel it is my mission to deliver this positive message of hope to that child sitting in a corner, alone, because she or he doesn’t feel accepted for the color of her skin or the culture he is from. After all, those children desperately need heroic characters that empower them.
This is why I wrote the book – in hopes to start that conversation with children, with families, in classrooms, and with each other.

I Am Different Just Like You by Rebecca DalMolin

I Am Different, Just Like You! is a creative non-fiction children’s book that uses fun illustrations and real photos to explain what Down syndrome is and the remarkable things that people with Down syndrome are capable of doing. It showcases a little girl named Adella who, just like other little girls, loves to run, play, sing, and dance. But there are also things that make Adella different. One difference is that she has Down syndrome. As she explains what Down syndrome is, readers will find that there are things that make them different too, just like Adella. For every book purchased, $1 will be donated to a charitable organization that helps support the Down syndrome community.

Devin’s Discovery by Skylar Miller (Author), Ros Webb (Illustrator)

Devin’s Discovery is a story about an ordinary boy who happens to wear orthotic braces. He realizes he’s not as different as he thought as he discovers there are many other children who need special orthotics and prosthetics to support them, too! A story of acceptance and embracing what makes us all unique, this is a book for EVERY child!

Do you feel you have a diverse children’s book that deserves some visibility?
Shoot us an email at Admin (at) MulticulturalChildrensBookDay (dot) com.
**No Kickstarter Campaigns, please.

About Multicultural Children’s Book Day

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, they have donated over 8,000 books to underserved kids, classrooms, and organizations, and that number continues to climb. To learn more about MCBD, visit them on the web and be follow their official hashtag #ReadYourWorld on social media.
#OWNVOICES

Army Vet, Daddy and Author | Davy’s Pirate Ship #OwnVoices

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guest post from author, Danual Berkley

After getting out of the military, I self-published my first book Wonderful Magical Place. I did not know anything about publishing and marketing, so it didn’t do too well. I eventually gave up writing for several years until my wife encouraged me to get back into it. She thought it would be nice to read the poems to our boys at night. As a result, Wonderful Magical Place is in the process of being completely redone and was given the new title, One More, then Goodnight.

Danuel Berkley

As I began getting more serious about my writing, I started creating stories from playing around with my boys. It occurred to me that as a kid I never saw, or was exposed to, adventure books (or many books in general) with black families or black characters. I decided then that what I wanted to do for my sons was write another book, but in this book, it would have all black characters. That way when my sons read it, they could say, “Hey, that kid looks like me!” or “That dad looks like my dad!” I felt that it was important that they had something that represented them. It says a lot when a child can see a reflection of themselves, or their culture, in a book. It’s a good feeling to know that there are other people out there like you.

I also wanted to provide a positive example that would go up against some of the stereotypes out there about Black men. Black men are hit with several stereotypes, including that we don’t raise our kids or get married. Those stereotypes obviously aren’t true, and my hope is that my books will help to disprove that.

Danuel Berkley

Additionally, I wanted to tap into my culture a little. I am a Black man with earrings and tattoos as a way to express myself, and there are many more like me. We call it swag. It’s our style. Some people see that and may assume that I’m a thug or a drug dealer, and they fear me. Having tattoos, dreadlocks, or anything that represents me, or my Black culture, shouldn’t automatically equal fear. By having characters like myself in the children’s books that I write, I hope to show that it’s just a way of expressing one’s originality. This is my culture, and my culture isn’t anything to be afraid of.

In my book, Davy’s Pirate Ship Adventure, I try to represent all these things within the illustrations themselves. Amariah Rauscher, who has illustrated the Scholastic’s Princess Truly series, has done the illustrations for Davy’s Pirate Ship Adventure. We had a lot of fun creating this book, and we believe this will be not only a game changer but the first of many more books just like it.

Davy’s Pirate Ship Adventure is a book starring my older son Davion, who goes by the name Davy. He builds a magical pirate ship so the family can search for gold, but we run into a couple of obstacles along the way. Together, as a family (and with the help of some good alien and animal friends), we make it. It’s all rhyming and there’s a couple of twists that I’m very excited about.

Grab your copy of Davy’s Pirate Ship Adventure on:

Author’s Website

Available on Amazon 

Barnes and Noble

About the Author

Hi there! I’m Danual. Simply put, I’m a full-time firefighter, husband, father of two little boys, Army vet, and a guy with a dream. My dream is to one day become a well-known children’s author.  The world is diverse and reading should be too!