images and stories related to changing the world!
– access Black Youth Matter coloring pages here: www.reflectionpress.com/black-youth-matter
– also view my Write Now! Make Books free video series for kids: www.reflectionpress.com/kids
these words have been rolling around in my brain, like a big wheel turning in the night sky. everything changes. turn. everything changes. turn. my last blog post was about negotiating fear after Orlando. turn. a deep turn of the wheel that rattled my heart. counted my bones. an old …
What if the children’s book industry changed tomorrow? And the number of books that actually reflect our communities was equitable with those of straight Euro Americans? What if I began getting calls that offered real advances and publicity for books with larger publishing houses? What if for some reason, after …
The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker I’ve met a lot of powerful children’s book makers over these past few years teaching The Heart of It: Creating Children’s Books that Matter. I decided from the beginning that whenever …
1/17/16 Francisco X. Alarcón let go of his body January 15. His passing is moving me very much. I am finishing drawings on our latest book together. A book of days. I look at spending the next few months very intimately sitting with Francisco as the arte unfolds. I am …
Ahhh the holidays! My mother stopped talking to me on Christmas day, the rest of my family followed suit. Later, I was actually disowned! I don’t know if my name still appears on any of the papers that connect me to my family of origin. Jajaja! I laugh my queer …
Matthew and I are finally coming to terms with the fact that we LOVE to make fun, smart, creative materials for kids with a holistic, social justice frame. It’s just who we are together. It’s awesome. We have the best conversations about everything (like the Interrupting Chupacabra!) and we see …
Matthew and I opened Reflection Press at the end of 2009. We had NO IDEA what we were doing. We had heard tale and had seen a few things around the edges and then BOOM! we were doing it! We published Claiming Face and Gender Now in 2010. When we …
Saturday I am speaking at the Bay area SCBWI Oktoberfest. One of my talks is titled, Get Radical! Why Radical Thinkers Are Needed in the Children’s Book World. Apparently my reputation precedes me because I didn’t come up with the title. I simply and happily slid into place upon arrival. …
when i look back at the books of my childhood, in my imagination, i see myself looking back. my strong proud forehead alive with thought. my clear eyes open wide to see. i am here! this is my face. i am hear! this is my face. this is where my story …
I estimate that if Latino and African American communities were to create an equitable number of children’s books as Euro Americans, Latinos must create another 890 books and African Americans must create another 600 books—per year. That’s a 94% increase for Latinos and 88% increase for African Americans. ALL communities …
