How diverse are your children's bookshelves?

(This post originally appeared on our Facebook page on July 9, 2021.)

Representation matters.

In 2018, a U.S. statistic was published stating that there were 27% more children's books with animals and non-human characters than all other minorities combined. Meanwhile, half of the books reviewed featured white people. 

Seeing yourself and others like you portrayed in books is a huge part of how self confidence is developed. 

Imagine being a young Indigenous person and seeing more bears in books than kids like you. Or being a Latinx child unable to find a single story with a main character who looks like you. 

Take a look at your own child's book shelf. Are there animals? Probably lots. Are there white kids? I'm sure. Now see if there are any other races represented. If yes, are they even the main character of the story?

Link to JPG & PDF files: Diversity in Children’s Books 2018 – Dropbox Folder

Full citation: Huyck, David and Sarah Park Dahlen. (2019 June 19). Diversity in Children’s Books 2018. sarahpark.com blog. Created in consultation with Edith Campbell, Molly Beth Griffin, K. T. Horning, Debbie Reese, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, and Madeline Tyner, with statistics compiled by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison: https://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/literature-resources/ccbc-diversity-statistics/books-by-about-poc-fnn/. Retrieved from https://readingspark.wordpress.com/2019/06/19/picture-this-diversity-in-childrens-books-2018-infographic/.