Each year, the African American Children’s Book Fair in Philadelphia celebrates the beauty of literature by black children’s book creators. Founded by literary publicist and advocate Vanesse Lloyd-Sgambati, it is known as “one of the oldest and largest single-day events for children’s books in the country.” Thousands of parents, children, teachers, librarians and book lovers come to [ Read the full article… ]
One of the pleasures of The Brown Bookshelf is getting a sneak peek at outstanding new work by black children’s book creators. Thank you to Marimba Books for sending us the latest treasure by award-winner Rita Williams-Garcia, The Bottle Cap Boys Dancing on Royal Street. Illustrated by Damian Ward and distributed by Just Us Books, [ Read the full article… ]
When I visit schools, one question kids ask is: “Do you have to be a grown-up to have a published book?” I tell them about trailblazer John Steptoe who started writing and illustrating his acclaimed book Stevie when he was 16. I mention Christopher Paolini who was a teen when his parents self-published his novel Eragon. A couple years later, it became [ Read the full article… ]
By Kirsten Cappy, Curious City Yes, #WeNeedDiverseBooks and #BlackLivesMatter. These hashtags and sentiments are integrated into my many literacy projects and into our ongoing commentary on this troubled nation. Yet, the more I hashtag, the more I wonder if the book industry’s endearing and infuriatingly slow pace can create a place where black lives matter [ Read the full article… ]
He’s far more awesome than I realized. When I went to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s website to get a little background info on him for this post, I discovered a man that has contributed more to our society than I believe most people are aware of. While I don’t have the space to recount all of his accomplishments [ Read the full article… ]
What is a purveyor of awesomeness? If you saw one walking down the street would you know? Let me help you out. Just look at the picture to the left. When you write novels about butt-kicking females with a Greek mythology backdrop, you can put “Purveyor of Awesomeness” on your website next to your [ Read the full article… ]
When we put out the nominations call for this year’s 28 Days Later Campaign, there was one name that flooded the comments section more than any other: Tonya Cherie Hegamin. Hegamin began life as a resident of Westchester, PA, but later relocated to Rochester, NY. She earned her MFA in Writing for Children from the New School University [ Read the full article… ]
R. Gregory Christie is known today as a multi-award winning illustrator , who’s accolades include art for the New Orleans Jazz festival’s Congo square poster, imagery for the 2013 United States Postal office’s Kwanzaa stamp and even a 2010 NAACP Image award for his work in the book “Our Children Can Soar: A Celebration of Rosa, [ Read the full article… ]