Books for young readers with non-white characters

A great resource for teachers and parents looking for books with non-white main characters is Violet Harris' (ed.) "Using Multiethnic Literature in the K-8 Classroom." she's got reams of recommendaitons, divided by ethnicity. I have copies of her chapters on Mexican-American and African-American kids in literature, if you'd like to borrow them. In the former, she recommends Gary Soto's "Taking Sides" and "Pacific Crossing" (he's a local author, too!); she also suggests Sandra Cisneros' "The House on Mango Street." In the latter, she suggests all of Mildred Taylor's novels (song of the trees, etc.), Virginia Hamilton's "Justice" trilogy (and everything else by her, too!), Joyca Carol Thomas' "Marked by Fire," Mildred Walter's "Second Daughter," Yarbrough's "The Shimmershine Queens," and Rita Williams-Garcia's "Sisters on the Home Front." There are ltos more, but these are a good start. Sorry I didn't write in in answer to your first request! Jessica

the Arrowhead Library System (http://als.lib.wi.us/AACList.html) maintains an african american children's literature list from picture books to chapter books.. and there is the Multicultural Book Reviews: http://www.isomedia.com/homes/jmele/joe.html granted, their selections are few and most are about overcoming hardship but there are a few interesting ones in there ! -- Carrie

"Marisol and Magdalena" by Veronica Chambers About two friends of Panamanian decent living in New York. They are separated when one of them spends a year in Panama with her grandmother. There is a new sequel about the two girls and their quincea1eras. called "Quincea1era Means Sweet Fifteen"

"Esperanza Rising" by Pam Mu1oz Ryan About wealthy girl from Mexico during the Great Depression who loses everything, moves to California and ends up working in a labor camp.

"The Amah" by Laurence Yep About girl of Chinese decent living in San Francisco who wants to be a ballerina. She has a hard time when her mom ends up being the caretaker of another girl who is also twelve.

"A Jar of Dreams" by Yoshiko Uchida About a Japanese family living in Berkeley during the Great Depression and their struggle to make ends meet while confronting racism. Also

"Journey Home" has to do with a young girl and Japanese internment.

"Carlota" Scott O'dell About a young Mexican girl living in Californian during the Mexican-American war. She is a real tomboy and ends up fighting against the US with the neighboring rancheros.

Also "Island of the Blue Dolfins" Liza

I run a book project called Reach Out and Read, and we give used books away in the waiting room at Kaiser in Richmond and new ones to children when they come for a well check up. I received a donation one day after 9/11/01, and in the bag was the book "Whoever You Are" by Mem Fox. It's beautifully illustrated and the message is about how "There are little ones just like you all over the world, and even though their skin may be different or their homes may be different, their hearts are just like yours and their smiles are just like yours...joys are the same, love is same, tears are the same, blood is the same" etc... I would love to see all parents here in the USA reading this book as a reminder to the ADULTS about children everywhere.

Like many of you, my heart is heavy these days as I think of the children in NY who have lost their parents, homes, and schools, and as I think of children in the Middle East who are suffering and afraid. Mem Fox is a great children's writer and story teller. Her new book for parents is called "Reading Magic". It gives great suggestions about reading to your child from birth, and she really communicates the value in having fun while you read. She will be here for a book tour on Nov. 1st in Corte Madera at the Book Passage at 1:00PM. At Kaiser in Richmond we will continue to give her book "Whoever You Are" to children ages 3-5 years, as a part of our program. I suggest you may want to check it out, and give a gift to the young children, and adults, in your life. Rona

In a recent UCB Parents message a parent was asking about multicultural books for a list she/he is putting together for her/his child's class. I deleted it but since I saw this flyer I thought I would pass on this information:

The Educational Loft Program, presented by USF School of Education, will lead an evening discussion on: Awe and Imagination in the World of Multicultural Children's Books led by Daphne Muse. Thursday April 30, 1998 6:30-8pm Univ. of San Francisco - Harney, Room 232 (located on Golden Gate Ave next to Gleeson Library). For queries or additional information, call (415) 422-6525 . No charge for this event.

Daphne Muse has published more than 150 feature articles, reviews and commentaries. She is an employee of UCB, a research coordinator for the McNair Scholarship Program if those who can't make the talk want to get in touch with her.

Harding Elementary School has a Multicultural Committee and lending library. Please call the school at 525-0273 and leave a message for the Multicultural Committee asking for a list of books they have and maybe set up a time to meet with them. Good luck.

The Berkeley Public Library (Children's Dept) used to have a list of highly recommended multicultural books. Check with the children's librarians there; they are very helpful and knowledgeable. You might also check their web site (not sure of web address), and can send inquiries by email and they will get back to you.

One great resource is the Children's Literature Web Guide

One of the links on the home page is Lots of Links, which includes Best Books lists for 1994-1997, as well as lists for specific subjects. In my quick scan I didn't see any specifically "multicultural" lists, but I did see headings for Jewish Religion and Culture, Latino People, History, and Culture, Native American Books, and Multiracial Families, among others; and I'm sure a more thorough perusal of this site will turn up many other lists.

Another terrific web site is Berkeley Public Library's Librarians Index to the Internet

The Kids page has links to many resources, including the Children's Literature Web Guide mentioned above.

You didn't say how big your list has to be. If what I've given you so far is overkill, you may want to head to the children's room at BPL's Central Library , at Kittredge and Shattuck. It seems to me that in the past I've seen staff- created reading lists of the type you're seeking; even if my memory is faulty one of the librarians should be able to help out. I know that there are a number of bibliographies to multicultural children's literature in print. Hope this gets you started!

A great resource for multi-cultural books is "Let's Hear it for the Girls" this book lists and describes "375 books for readers 2-14" that have strong female characters and many are multi-cultural. It is published by Penguin and is compiled by Bauermeister & Smith. I have found some great relatively unknown books which my family has really enjoyed.

The Berkeley Public Library's children's staff has produced a number of 
lists suggesting children's books by topic and age group. For instance: 
       African American Folklore and Poetry  
       All Together Now; Recent Multicultural Books for Children 
       Children's books on the Asian Experience in America 9/93 
       Cornbread and Cornrows; African American Fiction for Children 2/96 
 
       Families and Friends; African American Picture Books 1/96 
       Freedom's Children; True Stories for Children about African 
       Americans 

They also maintain in-house bibliographies on a variety of topics, 
including social issues, multicultural titles.

You may need to focus on what is meant by "multicultural."  Are you 
looking for books with characters of many colors, or are you looking for 
books which portray aspects of different cultures within the U.S., or are 
you looking for world cultures?  And does multicultural mean ethnicity, 
or also include sexual orientation, religion, etc.?  Obviously your 
school has something in mind when they give you an assignment such as 
this, but I find that commonly used words such as multicultural or 
diverse often have many different interpretations.

Here are a couple of good websites:

Books with Multiracial Families
http://deeptht.armory.com/~web/fambooks.html 

Children's Literature Web Site (many lists)
http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/index.html>