39 Diverse Children’s Books to Add to Your Shelf
Representation matters. And one way to expose your children to greater diversity or for them to see themselves reflected in the media you consume as a family, is through story time!
Books that represent diverse characters, cultures, and themes, are important for all children to consume, to help foster a greater appreciation of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Therefore, I’ve curated a list of diverse children’s books for you to add to your family’s book shelf!
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Most of these books are geared towards children under the age of 10, however, a good story is appropriate for all ages!
1. The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats
2. Mixed: A Colorful Story, by Arree Chung
3. The First Strawberries, retold by Joseph Brucac
4. Hair Love, by Matthew A. Cherry
5. Hair Twins, by Raakhee Mirchandani
6. The Skin You Live In, by Michael Tyler
7. The Day You Begin, by Jacqueline Woodson
8. Happy in Our Skin, by Fran Manushkin
9. Be Kind, by Pat Zietlow Miller
10. When God Made You, by Matthew Paul Turner
11. Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History, by Vashti Harrison
12. Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History, by Vashti Harrison
13. Little Dreamers: Visionary Women Around the World, by Vashti Harrison
14. Whoever You Are, by Mem Fox
15. The Color of Us, by Karen Katz
16. Why Mosquitos Buzz in People’s Ears, by Verna Aardema
17. Anansi the Spider: A Tale of The Ashanti, by Greg McDermott
18. Mama Do You Love Me?, by Barbara Joosse
19. Papa Do You Love Me?, by Barbara Joosse
20. Marvelous Me: Inside and Out, by Lisa Bullard
21. I Like Myself, by Karen Beaumont
22. Bippity Bop Barbershop, by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley
23. Full Full Full of Love, by Trish Cooke
24. All Because You Matter, by Tami Charles
25. I Am Enough, by Grace Byers
26. Change Sings, by Amanda Gorman
27. All Are Welcome, by Alexandra Penfold & Suzanne Kaufman
28. Skin Like Mine, by Latashia M. Perry
29. Hair Like Mine, by Latashia M. Perry
30. One Love, by Cedilla Marley
31. I Just Want To Say Good Night, by Rachel Isadora
32. The Ring Bearer, by Floyd Cooper
33. Siesta, by Ginger Foglesong Guy
34. Hey Black Child, by Useni Eugene Perkins
35. I Got the Rhythm, by Connie Schofield-Morrison
36. Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut, by Derrick Barnes
37. Niño Wrestles the World, by Yuyi Morales
38. The Library Book, by Tom Chapin & Michael Mark
39. Over and Under the Pond, by Kate Messner
This is not an inclusive list of all of the amazing children’s books out there that represent, honor, and respect diversity. But hopefully it’s a good place to help you get started in diversifying your family’s bookshelf!
What other diverse children’s books should I add to this list? Please share in the comments below!
Check out diversebookfinder.org for an amazing list of books that you can filter with many different choices.
A small selection of some of my favorites include:
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña
Milo Imagines the World by Matt de la Peña
Windows by Julia Denos
Bea’s Bee by Katherine Pryor
Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love
The Lost Package by Richard Ho
A Different Pond by Bao Phi
Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty
Ruby’s Birds by Mya Thompson
Jabari Tries by Gaia Cornwall
The little red fort by Brenda Maier
My Heart Fills With Happiness by Monique Gray Smith
The world is not a rectangle by Jeanette Winter
The Many Colors of Harpreet Singh by Supriya Kelkar
I could go on and on…I’m especially excited by bilingual, wordless, and STEAM books too. There are also lots of great books on scientists like Patricia Bath, Charles Turner, Mae Jemison, Mario Molina, Wu Chien Shiung, and Lonnie Johnson. Make sure to check out your local library too!
These are fantastic! Thanks for the recommendations. The only one we have read thus far is Julian is a Mermaid. I’m going to add all of these to our library list!