Posted on July 24, 2024 in Interviews
Information stewards and content experts have a robust history of developing platforms to help navigate the often messy and inequitable world of search engines, and even our own acquisition and cataloging practices in libraries. Championing these resources is now crucial given the complexities of the current political and social climate. Diverse BookFinder (DBF), founded in 2010, is a user-friendly resource for “librarians, educators, parents, book creators, and publishers who seek to create collections in which all children and young adults can see themselves — and each other — reflected in the books they read,” according to the website. In this latest TIE Talks feature, TIE contributor Ashleigh Coren recently interviewed co-founder Krista Aronson about the site. What follows are some of the insights she shared.
The Diverse BookFinder is a searchable database featuring thousands of trade picture books published or distributed in the United States since 2002. This unique resource includes:
Our unique focus on collecting and analyzing all diverse children’s and young adult books allows us to broaden the discussion about representation within the diverse books movement. We go beyond the current emphasis on increasing the number of children’s and young adult books featuring BIPOC characters and identifying good/authentic versus bad/harmful representations. The tool provides critical data that identifies common trends in how BIPOC are represented within the broader landscape of diverse books. We translate this critical data on the site so that it is accessible and useful to a wide and informed audience of users, creators, and advocates. This approach allows for a broad and deep consideration of what kinds of stories about BIPOC the diverse books movement has made space for and where we might need to go next.
I’m a mixed-race woman raising mixed-race children. I started working with multicultural picture books about ten years ago when my eldest daughter was in elementary school. Shortly after my daughter entered school, our neighborhood was redistricted, resulting in a more diverse student body that included children whose families had recently immigrated to the United States from Somalia. Given my background and training as a psychological researcher focused on identity development, I have always been open to discussing issues of race, ethnicity, and culture; they are not taboo subjects in my home. This is probably why my daughter came to me with many questions she heard from her friends after the school transition.
She asked:
“Mom, am I Somali? The kids at school want to know.”
“If I’m not Somali, the kids say I can’t play with Somali children. Is that true?”
“We played dodgeball at recess today—Somali against non-Somali—and no one knew which team I was supposed to play on. They decided I should play with the Somali kids because I’m brown. Is this right?”
Concerned, I looked to psychology for answers and found research being conducted in England. Researchers used picture books to help break down barriers between refugee and non-refugee children. We collaborated to investigate how kids respond to depictions of cross-racial friendships in picture books, which drew in co-founder Anne Sibley O’Brien and led to the creation of the DBF.
[There are] so many reasons, but here are a few:
In the context of ongoing social movements and increasing awareness of social justice issues, the Diverse BookFinder’s work is vital in promoting a more inclusive and equitable society through the power of literature.
Our data is available to the public—live and free for everyone’s use. We invite everyone to consider who is represented and how currently in children’s literature and what messages this might send to our children.
Visit https://diversebookfinder.org/ to learn how information professionals, researchers, or anyone else interested in multicultural books for children can support Diverse BookFinder’s mission. The website also includes opportunities for visitors to share their thoughts, suggestions, or ideas about improving the site’s resources.
Dr. Krista Aronson (she/her) is an Associate Dean of Faculty and Professor of Psychology at Bates College. Her scholarship focuses on illuminating how people come to understand complex social constructs like race and ethnicity, including how children process and understand race as well as appropriate, effective and productive ways to discuss this topic with them; specifically, the effective use of picture books to enhance intercultural relationships and self-understanding during childhood. Her own identity as a biracial woman deeply informs her work. The Diverse BookFinder and associated work are the focus of her active research, which represents a substantial portion of the professional effort of faculty at Bates.
Ashleigh Coren is a content strategist, educator, and curator based in the Washington, D.C. area.
This interview feature invites academics, librarians, teaching faculty, and higher education stakeholders to discuss their latest projects and research. Spotlighting both early and late career researchers, TIE Talks aims to sit down with fascinating individuals whose engaging and informative work inspires others in their fields and intersects with DEIA topics.
Header image is a detail of This is Harlem by Jacob Lawrence. Courtesy of Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. © 2021 The Jacob and Gwendolyn Knight Lawrence Foundation, Seattle / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. For more information, click here.
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