WHY WERE THEY SELECTED?

           

            The children’s books selected were chosen based on the criteria listed above. Some of the books received awards, some are best sellers, but these two accomplishments were not used to select the top 100 children’s books.

            I searched for children’s literature on the Amazon.com’s online website. I chose the ‘books’ category and entered “children’s books for African Americans” and scrolled the various book titles. Using my criteria listed above I chose numerous titles; I was able to view the age groups/grade levels and look inside each book. Reviews are also available to peruse for further study.

            Another source used to select quality children’s literature was when I attended the African American Book Fair in 2017; the book titles observed were noted to memory and their website is available all year round to review the book titles of interest. The website address is: http://theafricanamericanchildrensbookproject.org

            I researched children’s literature by accessing Kirkus Reviews’ website online using the web address: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/indie-reviews/  and Book List’s website online using the web address: https://www.booklistonline.com .

            I also have personal knowledge of the various fiction and non-fiction available in children’s literature due to purchasing it on a regular basis for family members.

            I started my selection by choosing fiction; I chose books based on the titles and book covers first, then I reviewed the content. The main character must be a black child with a developed realistic characterization which is relatable to the young reader. The content and illustrations must be realistic and authentic regarding physical features of the characters and the illustrations must help tell the story.

            During the selection process I chose children’s literature with a black child as the main character and African American children’s literature. What is the difference? Children’s literature written by non-blacks is not African American children’s literature. Brooks and McNair quoted popular author Jacqueline Woodson who defined African American literature.

 

McNair & Brooks (2009) cited Jacqueline Woodson’s quote:

I do not believe someone who is not a person of color can know the roads I and my people have traveled, the depths and heights we reach in our trek from children to young adults. I do not believe anyone who is not of color can step inside our worlds, our skin, our childhoods-and write from there. No, to write Black children’s literature, the major criterion is that at some point in your life -you had to have been a Black child. 

(p. 134)

 

            Some people don’t believe that whites should be writing our stories                         

 

            My selection process in searching for non-fiction titles was a lot easier. I chose book titles and covers which first appealed to me as interesting. I chose biographies about artists, dancers, activists, musicians, inventors, scientists, and mathematicians. Some were well known, and others were not. I chose inspirational people who could inspire others and who were persistent in achieving their goals. This is the type of message that should be conveyed to young people. The non-fiction books I chose were accurately written and the backgrounds of the people were researched.

            Poetry was straightforward to select; I have taken a children’s literature course in the past, so I am familiar with this topic as well as fiction and non-fiction for young children. The children’s literature course was required to earn my master’s in education. I chose various types of poetry for young people. The funny or comical style of Nick Cannon’s Neon Aliens Ate My Homework: And Other Poems to a compilation of fourteen African American poets’ work in Pass It On: African American Poetry for Children.

            Children select books by title and book cover and parents sometimes encourage the titles chosen. Gender plays a role in their selection as well as personal interests. In addition, the children skim the first few pages of each book before making their selections. (McNair, 2011)

            My selection process was limited due to the number of published children’s books by and about black people. Per the Children’s Cooperative Book Center which started tracking the publishing of African American children’s books back in 1985, the statistics have not changed significantly.

            In 1985 there were a total of 2,500 children’s books published, but only 18 [.7%] were written and illustrated by African Americans (CCBC, n.d.). In 2017, there were 3,700 children’s books published, but only 122 [3.29%] were by African Americans and an additional 340 books were about black people (CCBC, n.d.). This means that white authors are writing our stories instead of us. The statistics can be viewed at:

http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/books/pcstats.asp

            Black consumers should be purchasing their books for their family members and friends from black publishing companies such as: Amber Books, Black Classic Press, Urban E-books, Third World Press, Triple Crown Publications, Smiley Books and Life Changing Books. These publishers sell a certain genre of literature, but patronage of these publications is essential. (Urbanebooks.com, 2018)

            Besides the uniqueness of ethnic literature for children the children’s publishing industry does not value the authors and illustrators of color. Even though the demographics are changing, the children’s publishing industry does not seem to be hiring more ethnic authors and illustrators, instead they are hiring white authors and illustrators to write other ethnic group’s stories. In the article titled, “Diversity in Contemporary Picturebooks: A Content Analysis,” the author describes three types of books written for children. The first is called the “culturally generic book” which is written about a cultural group but has little authentic information. The second type is “culturally specific” which contains cultural information which distinguishes it from other groups. The third type of book is “culturally neutral” this book contains characters with certain skin colors and physical features. (Koss, 2015)

            My selection of children’s literature was based on the criteria listed above, then after the top 100 were chosen I investigated the author’s racial identity. Using the method cited in the article titled, “Diversity of Authors & Illustrators in First Grade Core Reading Series,” the authors/researchers viewed the photos of the authors and illustrators to determine their race to validate their study of racial disparities in the hiring of authors and illustrators to write children’s literature for U.S. Children’s Publishing companies. (Buescher, Lightner, & Kelly, 2016) I provided separate links to view fiction by black authors and non-black authors and non-fiction by black authors and non-black authors to compare their writing styles. I assert that white authors [non-black authors] are writing “culturally neutral” books. They write about a general topic then the illustrators create a black characterization to fit the storyline. None of the books were offensive or stereotypical, they are just not “culturally specific”, because white people can’t write about a culture other than their own, but they can write a neutral story.

The black authors whose titles were chosen wrote “culturally specific” books in other words African American children’s literature.

             About the economic concerns addressed by U.S. Children’s Publishers, the theory of “interest convergence” is another excuse to deny non- white authors and illustrators the opportunitiy to write and illustrate children literature for a growing population of non-white young readers, due to their fear of their financial statement’s bottom-line.

 

 

Koss (2015) analyzes the theory of “interest convergence”:

Children’s book publishers should promote ethnically diverse authors and illustrators and the creation of books containing representations of diverse populations if commercial statistics proved they would be profitable. However, if books with diverse populations are not being published, they cannot be purchased. According to Harris (1991a, 1991b), multicultural literature, specifically culturally conscious literature, although desired by educators, was not profitable enough for publishers and therefore is less likely to be published. At a recent Children’s Book Council panel on marketing diverse children’s books, it was acknowledged that publishers are driven by the bottom line and there is an increasing awareness of the need for diverse books. (p. 38)

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The selection of diverse titles was also driven by the Common Core State Standards which were adopted by my state of Pennsylvania. The Common Core State Standards emphasize language arts and mathematics. It also recommends the use of more non-fiction literature of all kinds to make children/young adults more aware of the world around them. The Common Core State Standards web address is listed below:

http://www.corestandards.org

            Lastly, I viewed my local Free Library of Philadelphia’s website online to access book titles to complete my top 100 children’s book list. The website address is:

http://freelibrary.org