Comments for CORA Diversity Roll Call: Early Readers

CORA Diversity Roll Call: Early Readers: 11/10/09

Yes, it's time once again (past time, actually) for another Diversity Roll Call. This week's assignment comes from Mary Ann of Great Kid Books.

I have an idea for a color challenge that I would LOVE help with: finding books for early readers (1st and 2nd grade) with children of color as the main characters.

I loved discovering Nikki & Deja last year, but I find it very hard to find either early readers or early chapter books with kids from different backgrounds. There are lots of picture books out there, but not many books that young kids can read for themselves.

So, your assignment is one of the following:

1. Find a book for Mary Ann's library.
2. Write the blurb for the book you'd like kids of that age to see on the shelves, or
3. Was this an issue for you when you were first reading books on your own? Tell us about it.
4. Got a diversity issue on your mind lately? We'd love to read your thoughts. Who knows, you may spark the next C.O.R.A. question!

When I read the newest assignment, my first though was "good question!" My plan of action was to go to the library. The first two books on my list of recommendations are ones I found at my library. There were many others I could have picked; my library does an excellent job of providing a diverse range of books. These though are the two that caught my attention first.

My recommendations:

• Rules of the Net by Jennifer Guess McKerley.
  It's part of the "Character Education" series of books. I didn't pick it because it teaches a moral (trustworthiness in this case). I chose it because of the cover which has a diverse cast of characters who are all members of a volley ball team.

  
  The book is easy to read and is about one of my favorite sports (volley ball). Carlos (the boy with the broken arm on the cover) is asked to help count points and fouls while the coach picks who will be the starters in the next day's game. He ends up making the foul call that will prevent his best friend (the girl on the cover) from being a starter. It takes the next day's game for her to realize he's done the right thing.

  
  

• Don't Say Ain't by Irene Smalls-Hector.
  This book is a picture book but there are enough words to be a challenge to an early reader. I chose it though for the lovely illustrations. Here a girl gets a chance at a better education, having tested well enough to go to an advanced school. To go there, she has to leave behind her neighbhood friends. Will going to the new school mean the end of their long time friendship?
  
  
• An African Tale by Enna Neru.
  This book arrived in my mail box yesterday. It's not an early reader book but I want to mention it anyway. I haven't read it yet but it came all the way from Botswana in an envelope completely covered in stamps. It's a young adult book and I'm eager to start reading it.

  
  Here's part of the blurb:
  "Africa, the land of extremes, drought, floods, beauty, devastation, vibrant life and miserable death. Into this land are born two children with a shared destiny and two very different backgrounds. One from a rural village in the Okavango Delta Botswana, with mud huts, no electricity and no mod cons. The other from Gaborone the capital city with all its westernizations of cell phones, TV's, cars etc."
  

CORA

Comments (2)

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Comment #1: Saturday, November, 28, 2009 at 02:02:53

Ali

Thanks for sharing your finds! My youngest son would have liked the volleyball book when he was in the Early Reader stage.

Comment #2: Friday, December 4, 2009 at 19:25:00

Pussreboots

The Diversity Roll Call has helped me focus how I pick books to read when I'm at the library. So far I've been pleasantly surprised at how broad the range of books available is at my library.