Archives for Dive into Diversity

International Day of Friendship: YA Fiction

International Day of Friendship: YA Fiction

In honor of the International Day of Friendship on July 30, I read When You Were Everything by Ashley Woodfolk, a new release that I’d been looking for an excuse to read. Somewhat ironically, the friendship at the heart of this book actually goes up in flames… but its true value becomes painfully clear through its absence. High school sophomores Cleo and Layla have been best friends for years. But when Layla realizes her dream of joining the school choir and gains a new group of friends, Cleo’s left behind. Flashbacks reveal the initially subtle rift in the girls’ friendship
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June 30, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: children, children's literature, Dive into Diversity, International Friendship Day, Observances and Celebrations, staff picks, staff recommendations, teens, and YA Fiction.

International Day of Friendship: Chapter Books

International Day of Friendship: Chapter Books

International Friendship Day is celebrated every year on July 30th. This day is for thinking about your friendships that are really important to you and cherishing those individuals. Friends come in all shapes and sizes – they can be classmates or family members. Take some time this summer to read about friendships and hopefully find a chance to reconnect with some of your friends! To Night Owl From Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer For children in grades 4-6. OverDrive: Audiobook and eBook Avery Bloom and Bett Delvin are two extremely different twelve-year-olds. Avery is bookish as well
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June 30, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: books, children, children's literature, Dive into Diversity, International Friendship Day, Observances and Celebrations, staff picks, staff recommendations, and The Trove.

Antiracism YA Fiction

Antiracism YA Fiction

Typically, when choosing books for my Dive into Diversity posts, I mostly try to avoid titles that focus on racism, police or gun violence, or other trauma. Instead, I prefer to highlight books that show a diverse range of teens dealing with everyday life. In this moment, though, it's time to feature books that demonstrate the impact of violence and oppression on teens. These stories are heavy, but they are important. Especially if you don’t identify with the protagonist, I challenge you to read and consider the character’s situation with an open mind. Let these stories be windows into another
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June 10, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: Antiracism, Antiracism Reading List, Dive into Diversity, diversity, eBooks, staff picks, staff recommendations, YA Fiction, and YA literature.

Family Month: YA Fiction

Family Month: YA Fiction

In addition to being Pride Month, June is also Family Month. I wanted to take the opportunity to showcase YA fiction that celebrates families in their many wonderful forms. I’m happy to share one of my favorite YA books, The Other F-Word by Natasha Friend: the story of four teens who share the same sperm donor. Milo Robinson-Clark has serious food allergies; after yet another doctor visit, he makes the decision to track down his sperm donor in hopes of finding medical information. Along with his one known half-sibling, Hollis Darby-Barnes, he embarks on a quest to find genetic relatives.
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June 3, 2020 10:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: Dive into Diversity, diverse reads, Family Month, Observances and Celebrations, staff recommendations, and YA Fiction.

Dive Into Diversity: Girl Power for Grades 4-6

Dive Into Diversity: Girl Power for Grades 4-6

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Ashley's portion is aimed at readers in grades 4-6. March is Women's History Month so I’ve put together a list of some books that feature diverse strong female characters that I’ve been wanting to read! Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee (Available in eBook format on Hoopla) For children in
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March 19, 2020 9:19 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: children's books, Dive into Diversity, juvenile fiction, Observances and Celebrations, staff picks, staff recommendations, Women's History, and womens history month.

Dive Into Diversity: Black History for Teens

Dive Into Diversity: Black History for Teens

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Kathlyn‘s portion is aimed at readers in grades 7-12. Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America, edited by Ibi Zoboi Grades 9 and up “No collection could represent the entire spectrum of blackness, however, the presence of trans, Afro-Latinx, and physically disabled characters is missed: a clarion
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February 14, 2020 2:26 pm | by | No Comments
Categories: Homepage Teens, Library News, and Teens.
Tags: black history month, Dive into Diversity, Observances and Celebrations, teen books, and young adult fiction.

Dive Into Diversity: Black History Month for Grades 4-6

Dive Into Diversity: Black History Month for Grades 4-6

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Ashley's portion is aimed at readers in grades 4-6. Author and educator Zetta Elliott put together this incredible list of middle grade and young adult books published in 2019 by black authors. Below are a bunch of them that I’m especially looking forward to reading! New Kid by Jerry Craft
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February 5, 2020 9:00 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, Featured, and Kids.
Tags: black history month, children's books, Dive into Diversity, juvenile fiction, Observances and Celebrations, staff picks, and staff recommendations.

Dive into Diversity: Celebrating Black History Month with Picture Books

Dive into Diversity: Celebrating Black History Month with Picture Books

White Plains is a wonderfully diverse community! Parents, children and teens have expressed an interest in titles that reflect the diversity in the community, and Ashley, Kathlyn, and Raquel's “Dive Into Diversity” column will spotlight noteworthy children's and teen titles that are inclusive, diverse and multicultural to fulfill that interest. Raquel's portion is aimed at readers up to Grade 3. A great resource for parents and educators looking for the newest, excellent titles for children by African-American writers and illustrators is The Brown Bookshelf’s 28 Days Later: A Black History Month Celebration of Children’s Literature at 28 Days Later. Highlighted
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February 1, 2020 10:37 am | by | No Comments
Categories: Authors & Books, eNewsletter, Evergreen, Featured, Homepage Kids, Kids, and Library News.
Tags: black history month, children's books, Dive into Diversity, diverse reads, Observances and Celebrations, picture books, staff picks, and staff recommendations.