A little over a year ago, I, along with four of my colleagues in the kid-lit industry, joined together to form The Brown Bookshelf – an online community charged with highlighting both established and up-and-coming African-American children’s and YA authors and illustrators. Our 2008 – 28 Days Later Campaign was a huge success, and I’m [ Read the full article… ]

I received two very cool books in the mail today, Abe’s Honest Words: The Life of Abraham Lincoln, written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Kadir Nelson. And We Are The Ship, written and illustrated by Kadir (I already have this book, but shhh!). So what’s up with the Kadir books? I’ve been granted the [ Read the full article… ]

While surfing the net today, I discovered one more Barack Obama children’s book to add to my list, Barack, written by Jonah Winter and illustrated by AG Ford (read his blog). I haven’t read the book, yet (maybe they’ll send me a review copy), but the cover illustration is off the chain. Do they still [ Read the full article… ]

My six-year-old son was a staunch Hillary supporter. I didn’t have a problem with that; I was happy his mind was open to a woman president. What bothered me, however, was his attitude toward Obama. “I don’t want a Black president,” I overheard him say to a playmate. And he got quite emotional on caucus [ Read the full article… ]

Are you an unpublished writer of children’s fiction or nonfiction, who is a person of color? It’s not too late to submit a manuscript to Lee & Low Books Ninth Annual New Voices Award. Submissions are still being accepted through October 31, 2008. See the Lee & Low Books website for more information. Congratulations to [ Read the full article… ]

A Man for All Seasons: The Life of George Washington Carver by Stephen Krensky Illustrated by Wil Clay Published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers How does a pumpkin seed become a pumpkin? Why do some plants require more sunlight than others? Even as a young child, George Washington Carver’s mind was consumed with [ Read the full article… ]

The Freedom Business Including A Narrative of the Life of Venture, a Narrative of Africa Poems by Marilyn Nelson Art by Deborah Dancy Published by Wordsong Poetry Ages: 11–14 Grades: 6–9 Pages: 72 Broteer Furro was born the son of royalty. His father was the Prince of the Tribe of Dukandarra, in Africa. At the [ Read the full article… ]

Dr. Jonda McNair, assistant professor of reading education at Clemson University,  is the creator of an innovative program that celebrates African-American children’s literature. Her family literacy project, I Never Knew There Were So Many Books About Us: Parents and Children Reading African-American Children’s Literature Together, used monthly workshops to model for parents engaging read-aloud techniques and teach children ways to respond to books [ Read the full article… ]