The best children's (and adult) books featuring every kind of person.
“Dream big, little one. There’s so much you can do. Just look at all the leaders who came before you.” pages 1 and 2
Dream Big, Little One by Vashti Harrison.
Little, Brown, and Company, Hachette Book Group, New York, 2018.
Board book nonfiction, 26 pages.
Not leveled.
A board book adaptation of Harrison’s popular book Little Leaders.
We already have more board books than one family really needs. But after spending so long hunting for great diverse board books, I still get excited about new releases, especially one like this that has excellent role models for our daughters.
“Kids may need years of consistent, loving care before they begin to trust, and they may resist trusting even in the face of much love and care from new parents.” page 107
Forever Mom: What to Expect When You’re Adopting by Mary Ostyn.
Nelson Books, Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee, 2014.
Nonfiction, 241 pages.
Not leveled.
Mary Ostyn shares her experiences as a mother of ten, six adopted, children.
I’m always interested in reading books about adoption and foster care. Initially when I got this, I thought it would have more about fostering or domestic adoption. While Ostyn did go through the initial process of domestic adoption, in the end all of their six adopted children were foreign adoptions.
This is part memoir and part advice book. Ostyn writes from a Christian background so there are scripture quotations and references to Jesus and prayer. I didn’t realize before reading this book that like many international adoptive parents, she feels particularly called by Jesus to adopt the children who ended up in her home.
“She resented the fact that her veil, which to her was a symbol of her sacred relationship to God, had now become an instrument of power, turning the women who wore them into political signs and symbols.” page 103
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi.
Random House, New York, my edition 2004, originally published 2003.
Adult memoir, 358 pages including reading group guide.
Lexile: not yet leveled
AR Level: 8.4 (worth 25.0 points) .
NOTE: Despite the reading level, this is an adult book not recommended for children.
As the title states, a memoir of the author’s career in Tehran told through the lens of various literature she read and taught.
Our 35th board book was enjoyable, but would read better in a larger format.
And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, illustrated by Henry Cole.
Little Simon, Simon & Schuster, New York, 2015, orig. pub. 2005.
Picture book converted to board book format, 32 pages.
The true story of two male chinstrap penguins at the Central Park Zoo who became a family, and their adopted daughter Tango.
This is a picture book converted to a board book. Such conversions are always tricky. Some cut valuable information and lose the meaning of the story or the grace of the illustrations. Others simply shrink down the size of the book and create a hybrid that might not work for either the original picture book audience or the babies and toddlers that typically use board books.
“Today it is very hard for me to sit still. Chinese New Year starts tonight. And tomorrow morning, I will dance in the street.” page 7
Lion Dancer: Ernie Wan’s Chinese New Year by Kate Waters and Madeline Slovenz-Low, photographs by Martha Cooper.
Scholastic, New York, 1990.
Nonfiction picture book, 32 pages.
Lexile: 540L .
AR Level: 2.9 (worth 0.5 points) .
The is the story of six-year-old Ernie Wan’s first Lion Dance, which he’s been preparing for since he was three. For the Chinese New Year, he will perform on the streets of New York City.
Ernie is one-fifth of a loving family. His father is, according to the dust jacket text, “a kung fu master” so studying kung fu is very important to his family. (I put that portion in quotes not because I disbelieve his qualifications but because I wasn’t sure if that’s how he would describe himself. Often the jacket text isn’t written by the author so it’s difficult to tell just how accurate this might be.)
In the beginning of 2018 I set a whole bunch of goals. Blogging goals, and goals for the Nonfiction Challenge. Then my real life happened. Here’s the breakdown of how I did with all of those different goals, and the ONE surprising goal I actually completed! Continue reading “I Didn’t Meet My Goals and That’s Okay”
“Bob had been a slave and had never learned to read words. But he could look at the ground and read what animals had walked on it, their size and weight, when they had passed by, and where they were going.” page 7
Black Cowboy, Wild Horses: A True Story by Julius Lester, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney.
Dial Books for Young Readers, Penguin, New York, 1998.
Picture book nonfiction, 40 pages.
Lexile: 710L .
AR Level: 4.5 (worth 0.5 points) .
One expedition of a cowboy named Bob Lemmons, famed for his ability to bring in herds of wild mustangs solo.
As a young reader I acquired a childish interest in the West. Actually, I’m pretty sure it was from Laura Ignalls Wilder (and yes, I now know how problematic that was, and our kids read Louise Erdrich instead). In adult life, I’ve been learning just how very much was wrong, or omitted, from my early education. Even so, it was surprising to learn that the common all-white image of cowboys were actually roughly a third Hispanic and that one in four cowboys was African-American.
Luckily there are several diverse books about this, so I can share a much more accurate and sensitive culturally appropriate portrayal of the West with our kids. Since we love Jerry Pinkney, of course this was our first title.
