If I were a child of any other ethnic background than what I am, I know I would get tired of–and be confused by–the people in my books seldom looking like me.

I’m happy to have worked for a publisher that embraced the belief that all children should be able to see themselves in their books and curriculum materials. Often, this meant including children from a variety of ethnicities in group illustrations or photos. Covers tended to show groups or feature a white main character. But not always!

Christianbook.com provides this list of picture books, biographies, and more featuring African-Americans, including several from Christian publishers. You can view and read an excerpt of each book on the list. It’s well worth checking out!

As important as it is for children to see book characters that look like them, it’s also important for children whose neighborhoods and schools look all one way to have books that show children of other ethnicities–a reflection of the way God made us and our world.

And everyone benefits when children’s Bible storybooks illustrate Bible characters with skin tones and features true to what they might have been. That’s something I always look for.

A version of this post appeared recently at www.dianestortz.com.

Do you think children from diverse ethnicities are depicted adequately in children’s books?

What’s important to you about illustrations of Bible people in children’s books?

DIANE