G'mar chatima tova to our followers observing Yom Kippur. We wish you and your loved ones an easy and meaningful fast.
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Shanah Tovah to all of our followers celebrating Rosh Hashanah! We wish you and your loved ones good health and a sweet new year. ❤️🍯🍎💛
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We Need Diverse Books”]
Eid Mubarak to our followers! We wish you and yours a blessed and joyful day.
Ramadan Mubarak to our followers! May you have a blessed and generous month.
Chag pesag sameach to our followers! We hope you have a happy and healthy Passover.
Happy Lunar New Year! We wish everyone happiness, good fortune, and good health this year. ️❤️
On Juneteenth, the day commemorating the end of slavery in the United States, We Need Diverse Books remembers that no one is free until everyone is free. Today we remember stories too frequently left untold:
Trayvon Martin wanted to be a pilot. Michael Brown loved playing pranks. Tamir Rice filmed silly videos with a friend. Eric Garner tended plants as a horticulturist. Sandra Bland wanted to stop racial injustice in the South. Philando Castile remembered the allergies of all the students in the cafeteria where he worked. Ahmaud Arbery made his mother laugh to get out of trouble. Breonna Taylor planned to start a family. George Floyd grew up making banana mayonnaise sandwiches with his brother. Dominique Fells was quick with a smile. Riah Milton adored her family. Rayshard Brooks wanted to take his daughter skating for her birthday.
Their lives, the lives behind every hashtag, and the lives of those whose names we do not know mattered. Their loved ones and communities matter. The stories of Black people in the United States have always been more than the ways in which they ended. Today we honor all of them.
Happy International Wheelchair Day! Here are some #OwnVoices titles featuring wheelchair users — have you read any of them?
For more reading suggestions, check out our 100% free, librarian- and educator-curated database of diverse books on OurStory.
- GOOD KINGS AND BAD KINGS by Susan Nussbaum
- PUSH GIRL by Chelsie Hill & Jessica Love
- EVERYWHERE I GO I SEE STAIRS by Margarita Elizondo
- DAD HAS A WHEELCHAIR by Ken Jasch, Illustrated by Anita DuFalla
- THE BARN AT GUN LAKE by Johnnie Tuitel
- ACCIDENTS OF A NATURE by Harriet McBryde Johnson
- A DIFFERENT LIFE by Lois Keith
(Source: diversebooks.org)
At WNDB we believe diversity goes beyond book covers; it needs to be present in the specificity of the storytelling.
For Black History Month, here are picture, Middle Grade, and Young Adult books about Black characters by Black authors and illustrators — across genres. What are your faves?
PICTURE BOOKS:
- GRANDMA’S RECORDS by Eric Velásquez
- ALLIE AND GATOR: A STORY ABOUT A GIRL AND HER GATOR by Geneva Bowers
- LITTLE LEGENDS: EXCEPTIONAL BLACK MEN IN HISTORY by Vashti Harrison
- HOMEMADE LOVE by bell hooks, Illustrated by Shane W. Evans
- WHAT IS GIVEN FROM THE HEART by Patricia McKissack, Illustrated by April Harrison
- SING A SONG: HOW LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING INSPIRED GENERATIONS by Kelly Starling Lyons, Illustrated by Keith Mallett
- BLACK IS A RAINBOW COLOR by Angela Joy, Illustrated by Ekua Holmes
- THE OLDEST STUDENT: HOW MARY WALKER LEARNED TO READ by Rita L. Hubbard, Illustrated by Oge Mora
- JUST LIKE A MAMA by Alice Faye Duncan, Illustrated by Charnelle Pinkney Barlow
MIDDLE GRADE BOOKS:
- CLEAN GETAWAY by Nic Stone
- THE JUMBIES by Tracey Baptiste
- GENESIS BEGINS AGAIN by Alicia D. Williams
- JUST SOUTH OF HOME by Karen Strong
- MY LIFE AS AN ICE CREAM SANDWICH by Ibi Zoboi
- SOME PLACES MORE THAN OTHERS by Renée Watson
- HOW HIGH THE MOON by Karyn Parsons
- ONE CRAZY SUMMER by Rita Williams-Garcia
- THE PARKER INHERITANCE by Varian Johnson
YOUNG ADULT BOOKS:
- RIOT BABY by Tochi Onyebuchi
- QUEEN OF THE CONQUERED by Kacen Callender
- NOT SO PURE AND SIMPLE by Lamar Giles
- MONSTER by Walter Dean Myers
- BLACK GIRL UNLIMITED by Echo Brown
- A DREAM SO DARK by L.L. Mckinney
- LET ME HEAR A RHYME by Tiffany D. Jackson
- REMEMBRANCE by Rita Woods
- THE REVOLUTION OF BIRDIE RANDOLPH by Brandy Colbert
Happy Native American Heritage Month! All month long, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite reads by Native authors. To kick things off, here are some amazing picture books! Have you read them?
For more reading suggestions, check out our 100% free, librarian- and educator-curated database of diverse books on OurStory.
* * *
JINGLE DANCER by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee Creek), illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright & Ying-Hwa Hu
MALIAN’S SONG by Marge Bruchac (Abenaki), illustrated by William Maughan
SKYSISTERS by Jan Bourdeau Waboose (Nishnawbe Ojibway), illustrated by Brian Deines
THANKS TO THE ANIMALS by Allen J. Sockabasin (Passamaquoddy), illustrated by Rebekah Raye
WHEN THE SHADBUSH BLOOMS by Carla Messinger (Turtle Clan Lenape) & Susan Katz, illustrated by David Kanietakeron Fadden (Wolf Clan Mohawk)
WILD BERRIES by Julie Flett (Cree-Métis)
WE SANG YOU HOME by Richard Van Camp (Dogrib Tłı̨chǫ) and Julie Flett (Cree-Métis)
KAMIK JOINS THE PACK by Darryl Baker (Inuit), illustrated by Qin Leng
HIAWATHA AND THE PEACEMAKER by Robbie Robertson (Cayuga and Mohawk), illustrated by David Shannon
(Source: diversebooks.org)
Shana Tovah to our followers celebrating Rosh Hashanah! Here are some of our favorite Middle Grade and Early Reader picks. For more reading suggestions, check out our 100% free, librarian- and educator-curated database of diverse books on OurStory.
HEREVILLE: HOW MIRKA GOT HER SWORD by Barry Deutsch
LOLA LEVINE IS NOT MEAN! by Monica Brown
LUCKY BROKEN GIRL by Ruth Behar
MY BASMATI BAT MITZVAH by Paula J. Freedman
PAPER CHAINS by Elaine Vickers
THE INQUISITOR’S TALE by Adam Gidwitz
Eid Mubarak to our followers who are honoring Eid al-Adha this weekend! For more reading suggestions, check out our 100% free, librarian- and educator-curated database of diverse books on OurStory.
HERE TO STAY by Sara Farizan
AYESHA AT LAST by Uzma Jalaluddin
AMAL UNBOUND by Aisha Saeed
SAINTS AND MISFITS by S.K. Ali
THE GAUNTLET by Karuna Riazi
NOT THE GIRLS YOU’RE LOOKING FOR by Aminah Mae Safi
FAR FROM HOME by Naima B. Robert
AN EMBER IN THE ASHES by Sabaa Tahir
YASMIN THE FASHIONISTA by Saadia Faruqi
LOVE, HATE AND OTHER FILTERS by Samira Ahmed
If you’re looking for children’s and YA books to celebrate freedom and honor #Juneteenth, here are a few places you might start.
Juneteenth
Dread Nation
Juneteenth Jamboree
Come Juneteenth
Amistad: A Long Road to Freedom
Juneteenth for Mazie
A Child’s Introduction to African American History
All Different Now
Happy Pride Month to our followers! Here’s to all of the ongoing, latest, and upcoming YA featuring LGBTQ+ characters. 🌈
Eid Mubarak to our followers! Here’s to all of the ongoing, latest, and upcoming YA featuring awesome Muslim characters and Islam-inspired worlds. 🌙⭐🕌💛
(Source: instagram.com)