Bryan Collier is our Vanguard illustrator for this year’s 28 Days Later Campaign. He is a trailblazer among African American children’s book creators. His unique style of art combines watercolor and collage, and has earned him numerous Caldecott honor awards, as well as Coretta Scott King awards and honors. Encouraged at home and at school, [ Read the full article… ]
After reading T.L.. Clarke’s story of hard work and endurance, we’re so very proud to honor her in the spotlight of The Brown Bookshelf’s 28 Day Program. For every writer dreaming of the day when they’ll see their work published, here’s a story for you. Tell Us About Your Journey I started writing my debut Young [ Read the full article… ]
Known around the world for her award-winning, soul-stirring poetry and activism, Nikki Giovanni has been creating books for young people for more than four decades. From Spin a Soft Black Song (1971) and Ego-Tripping and Other Poems for Young People (1973) to Rosa (2005) and Hip Hop Speaks to Children (2008), Giovanni’s poetry collections for kids and picture books celebrate our history and [ Read the full article… ]
Keith Shepherd is an artist, designer, and illustrator, living in Kansas City, Missouri. He began his professional career at Hallmark Cards. Shepherd’s art has been exhibited at galleries shows around the country. Most notably, a painting entitled Sunday Best, became a part of the permanent collection at the Negro League Baseball Museum. Shepherd’s bold and colorful art [ Read the full article… ]
Denise Lewis Patrick author of the Cecile American Girl Books comes from a family of women who have propelled themselves forward for generations. Not to be outdone, Denise is following their lead with her own successes. Drawing from her life growing up in Louisiana, Denise adds a little bit of herself in each of her [ Read the full article… ]
Poet Kwame Alexander has won acclaim for many things – creating the Capital BookFest, a touring book festival which reached more than 10,000 people, pioneering his Book-in-a-Day writing and publishing program which has turned more than 1000 teens into student authors. But today, he’s winning kudos for something entirely new: writing for children. During a summer [ Read the full article… ]
On Saturday, February 4, Philadelphia’s African American Children’s Book Fair turns 20. It’s a milestone that means a lot to founder Vanesse Lloyd-Sgambati. “Twenty years of putting on this book fair has reinforced my belief that children will read if you put good books in front of them,” she said. “They will read if they [ Read the full article… ]
Young adult has come a long way. But there will always be those who like to remind YA writers that we musn’t try and sit at the grown-ups table. After all we “only” write for kids. Why haven’t they figured out that this dismissive attitude only fuels our fire? I think the mere existence of [ Read the full article… ]