From: Kathleen Horning <horning>
Date: Tue, 12 Nov 2002 20:56:46 -0600

I haven't really noticed an increase in non-human animals in picture books in recent years. They've always been a big part of the tradition in children's literature. Besides, the use of animal characters isn't always without cultural or racial specificity. See, for example,
"Chato's Kitchen" by Gary Soto and Susan Guevara; "Jeffrey Bear Cleans Up His Act" by John Steptoe; "Yoko" by Rosemary Wells; or "Beni's First Chanukah" by Jane Breskin Zalben. And have you forgotten "The Rabbit's Wedding," that caused an uproar in the 1960s when Garth Williams illustrated the story with a black rabbit and a white rabbit getting married? (Better to have rabbits living in sin, I guess.)

Seriously, it sometimes irks me that it is easier to find picture books with anthropomorphized bears or bunnies or even elephants as main characters than to find books with contemporary Asian American kids, for example. But I'm not suggesting an either/or scenario. Certainly there's room for everyone.

I'm curious as to what books people have found that do portray different kinds of families. We've had mention of Arnold Adoff, Bob Graham and Vera B. Williams, and the titles "Everywhere Babies" and "A Child's Calendar." Are there other books or authors and illustrators out there you especially appreciate?

Kathleen T. Horning, Acting Director Cooperative Children's Book Center University of Wisconsin-School of Education 4290 Helen C. White Hall 600 North Park St. Madison, WI 53706

horning at education.wisc.edu Voice: 608&3721 Fax: 608&2I33 www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/
Received on Tue 12 Nov 2002 08:56:46 PM CST