Checking it Twice
I was constantly reminded this past week that this time of year everyone is making lists. Lists of celebrations. Lists of goals. Lists to share and engage others. Lists of books still to be read. . . I share individual books and groups of books on this blog. I don't usually share the lists I consult or how I find and then choose the books or groups.
So, instead of highlighting book lists, I am going to dig into list making, because even lists have stories. Mine goes something like this. . .
Once upon a time, I was a preservice teacher who wanted to live out the multicultural lens of her coursework. As my Master's Thesis reflected ten years later, I was repeatedly frustrated by resource availability and selection. It appeared I could never create an appropriate group of books. At the time I was using lists that were defined by single lines, those found on Census forms and political maps. Somehow these lines didn't connect my community of students with the objectives set in front me.
Once upon a time, I signed up to be a Peace Corps volunteer and at the end of my service, became involved in a library project. After returning home, I fundraised to buy books. I ended up with money but not titles. I struggled because the books I found in Spanish were written primarily by Mexican authors or they were translated titles whose words and pictures did not represent the lives of the youth who would read them. It was another version of the first story, where I either didn't have enough boxes or people who didn't fit in the box.
Once upon a time, I waited on a Guatemalan roadside for a bus with Jorge, a member of my staff. I had returned to Guatemala to work for a literacy nonprofit. Jorge was incredibly motivated, had recently begun university studies. He was assigned the special responsibility of instructing the pre teacher course we provided. In that moment, Jorge turned to me and he said, "I never used to believe that you could connect to a book."
My body vacillated between sensations. I was simultaneously punched in the stomach and patted on the back. I was proud, or at least satisfied, that what I was hearing meant he connected to books now. However, I was shocked that somehow we had worked together for several years and I didn't know he, or other staff for that matter, could feel that way about books. Jorge never had access, choice nor ownership of the books on his list. His reading experience would have also been complicated by a marginalized identity as a Kaqchikel identifying child in a Ladino school system and a second language learner struggling to read in his second language, Spanish.
Several years after my conversation with Jorge, I sat outside a classroom with another member of my staff, Jeremias. He held up the book "More Than Anything Else" about how Booker T. Washington learned to read. The selection of picture books about Guatemala were few so I had made choices based on other possible connections.
"This is a great book," he told me. "We have this experience. I understand how he feels."
Once upon a time, I returned home after ten years in Guatemala, I collaborated on a multicultural storytime at a local library. We created collections with names like Environment, Counting, My World and Peace. To create the lists we used previously established lists in the traditional divisions and diverse literature awards celebrating authentic voices:
Since then, this list has expanded.
As I continued to develop community programming that centered diverse books, I began to understand how I could teach key content in the programming through the book list themes. Finally, in the shade of a summer wading pool, I discovered how I could focus community initiatives and youth development needs through the theme selection. These themes opened the door for both new languages and youth who used technology to communicate. They included family recipes and meals alongside mental health and wellness. Beauty became a synonym for belonging. The book lists online began to move along with us. On the Lee & Low Books website you can filter by genre but also by themes such as adoption or colors.
Social Justice Books has lists that celebrate Black History and also lists such as Bikes and Fantasy and Magic.
Once upon a time, I started making book lists. Today I checked them so many more times than twice. Lists are just undone items until they become things you need to finish. This is also true of books. This holiday season as we make lists for ourselves or for Santa, I challenge you to discover new books and revisit familiar ones with a fresh perspective. Pull the pages, sentences and words apart. Some meanings will cling together; others will separate further. Below is an example list of the themes and books. How many times you decide to check them is up to you.
Beauty (Bright Star by Yuyi Morales)
Peace (Carmela Full of Wishes by Matt de la Peña)
Communication (A Day with No Words by Tiffany Hammond)
Celebration (We Move Together by Kelly Fritsch and Anne McGuire)
Nature (Brown is Beautiful by Supriya Kelkar)
My World (Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman)
Counting (We are Not Free by Traci Chee)
Wellness (Wild Dreamers by Margarita Engle)
Further Considerations to build your lists:
Social Media: You can follow recognized authors. For example, if you ‘friend’ Margarita Engle on Facebook, she provides many great recommendations! Moreover, if you stick with an award winning author listed on one of the awards sites above, you’ll continue to have great options.
Search out ‘read alikes.’ Public libraries use online catalogues and other databases that give you key words to help you find more books like the one you love already in your hand. Or, try a site like Goodreads that curates lists of similar books
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