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Original poster

Has anyone got any recommendations for preschool picture books with culturally diverse characters?

28 replies

NannyR · 13/04/2021 21:51

I'm looking for some books suitable for three/four year olds that have black and ethnic minority characters.
Some of our favourites at the moment are the Alfie books, Topsy and Tim, Mog books, Julia Donaldson, Hairy Maclary. I've realised that what is missing on our shelves are books a bit like Alfie or Topsy and Tim, where children are going about normal life and learning about new things, but with more diverse characters - our books are either animal based (like The Large Family, Peace at Last) or fantasy characters (like Winnie the Witch, the Gruffalo) or 2.4 children white families.
We have a few books like Handa's surprise, which are great but ideally I was looking for books and stories set in situations that are a bit closer to home.
I bought The Girls by Lauren Ace which we really enjoyed and is exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for but I wondered if anyone else had any other good suggestions or recommendations.
Thanks

OP posts:
RicStar · 13/04/2021 22:16

Izzy gizmo, The everywhere bear, The Something, The new small person. Are a few more to consider.

MNChkn · 13/04/2021 22:11

You need more of Shirley Hughes’ Alfie books - there are loads, and it’s remarkable that they were written 30 years ago because they’re racially and socially diverse. There’s a particularly wonderful one where Alfie is a page at the wedding of family friends, a black couple, and the illustrations are a delight because they’re definitely West Indian without it ever being mentioned.

Compare and contrast with Judith Kerr - just down the road in Barnes, but never a single non-white character in any of her books, although the Great Granny Gang was written just a few years ago.

Christmas in Exeter Street has black/mixed family friends coming to stay, not to mention more than one single mum.

We’re a mixed family and the Smeds and the Smoos by Julia Donaldson is a good effort with a great rhyme scheme, but quite crude in its obviousness.

APurpleSquirrel · 13/04/2021 22:05

Ada Twist, Scientist
Sofia Valdez, Future Prez
Look Up!
Clean Up!
Hair Love
The Dot

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