BIPOC Picture Book Classics Galore!: A Booklist of Necessary Titles for Every Library
At the end of June of this year I attended the American Library Association’s Annual Conference and had the express pleasure of watching a number of delightful panels. See enough of them and they all begin to blur together, but I have a clear cut memory of a woman on one of the stages proclaiming loudly that when we think of picture book classics we tend to think of books about and by white people.
This struck me as odd. It is true that historically white creators and their white subjects have dominated the children’s book publishing world. But if a person even slightly scratches the surface they can find a whole plethora of wonderful books that I’d most certainly deem “classics” by BIPOC creators. In fact, on my podcast Fuse 8 n’ Kate, where we determine whether or not books deserve to be remembered as classics or not, we’ve covered a wide swath of such titles.
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Our rules for every book up for the title of “classic” are simple. It much be a picture book and it must have been published at least 20 years ago, preferably more.
Today, I would like to share with you the list of Picture Book Classics by BIPOC creators that we have covered. We didn’t deem every last one of these to be a classic, but most are. And please note too that there are two or three books on here that break the 20 year rule.
For those of you in need of a list of BIPOC picture book classics, feel free to use this as a starting point:
- Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters (Episode 6)
- Lon Po Po (Episode 11)
- Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears (Episode 20)
- Big Red Lollipop (Episode 75)
- The Boy Who Didn’t Believe in Spring (Episode 80)
- Perez and Martina (Episode 86)
- Stevie (Episode 95)
- The Swallow and the Tom Cat (Episode 108)
- Jingle Dancer (Episode 125)
- Mirandy and Brother Wind (Episode 135)
- Little Man, Little Man (Episode 139)
- Show Way (Episode 141)
- Chato and the Party Animals (Episode 147)
- Anno’s Journey (Episode 171)
- Tar Beach (Episode 173)
- Ugly Vegetables (Episode 178)
- Black Is Brown Is Tan (Episode 184)
- Meet Danitra Brown (Episode 191)
- I Love My Hair (Episode 195)
- Blast Off (Episode 199)
- Little Red Riding Hood (Episode 206)
- Ashanti to Zulu (Episode 214)
- Seven Blind Mice (Episode 220)
- Crow Boy (Episode 225)
- Harlem (Episode 228)
- Black Misery (Episode 231)
- Grandfather’s Journey (Episode 233)
- Uptown (Episode 237)
- Beautiful Blackbird (Episode 241)
- Who’s In Rabbit’s House (Episode 259)
- Harvey Potter’s Balloon Farm (Episode 272)
- So Much! (Episode 274)
Additionally, here are LGBTQIA+ books:
- Heather Has Two Mommies (Episode 2)
- Oliver Button Is a Sissy (Episode 131)
- Daddy’s Roommate (Episode 140)
- The Sissy Duckling (Episode 183)
- And Tango Makes Three (Episode 242)
- When Aidan Became a Brother (Episode 267)
And here are some Jewish picture book classics:
- Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins (Episode 24)
- The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming (Episode 68)
- Tell Me a Mitzi (Episode 89)
- Hanukkah Bear / The Chanukkah Guest (Episode 117)
- It Could Always Be Worse (Episode 154)
- Latkes and Applesauce (Episode 164)
- Joseph Had a Little Overcoat (Episode 208)
- Laughing Latkes (Episode 252)
What would you add?
Filed under: Booklists, Fuse 8 n' Kate
About Betsy Bird
Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.
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Umbrella by Taro Kashima.
Ruby’s Wish by Shirin Yim Bridges.
And of course, The Snowy Day is not by a BIPOC creator but features a black protagonist.
I really need to finish that spreadsheet to make this easier.
Off the top of my head, I have: Apple Pie 4th of July, Tomas and the Library Lady, How My Parents Learned to Eat, The Chinese Siamese Cat. Do you want to tackle The Funny Little Woman? Who is Lafcadio Hearn?
Have you done any disability books? It’s Disability Pride Month!
You did My Brother Charlie. What about Thank you, Mr. Falker? That only barely qualifies. It’s hard to find disability rep that old. Libraries prefer new stuff, as you know.
I will do some searching.
Lark
Glad to see “Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters” is on the list….it’s one of my top picture books of all time. It was also one of the first books I remember from the Georgia Children’s Storybook Contest around the time I started in the library in 1989 and has been a favorite since then.
Would you include a book the author of which is white but the illustrator is Black and the story focuses on a Black family – and is one of the all-time great picture books for kindergartners??
I’m talking about DOWN THE ROAD by Alice Schertle, illustrated by E. B. Lewis – which I love! (obviously)
Absolutely. That’s a great one.
Everett Anderson’s Goodbye by Lucille Clifton, illustrated by Ann Grifalconi. I have my own copy, I love this book so much. And I read it again and again recently when my father unexpectedly passed away last August.
Oh yes!! Excellent choice!!