I Love Children's Books

I love children's books. I've purchased quite a few in the last month. I gave one to my nephew for Christmas and the other one, "I Love My Hair", I kept for my self because I love the topic of the book as well as the illustrations presented in it. The book features a little black girl discussing her thick, coarse black hair and how she is able to wear it in many different styles because of its texture. She extols love and appreciation for her coarse hair throughout the book.

I highly recommend giving children books for their birthday, Christmas and other major holidays rather than giving them toys with which they will quickly tire. With books, children are able to experience a journey that they can return to by merely picking up the book and reading it again. They also develop a love for reading, which gives them an advantage in school where reading is fundamental to learning and mastering all subjects. Finally, presenting children of color with culturally-centered books helps to impart a sense of pride and cultural awareness in them.

A few of my favorites are, "I Love My Hair!" by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley and He's Got the Whole World in His Hands by Kadir Nelson. Not only would you be introducing your child to the joy of reading, but in purchasing culturally-based books, you'd be helping them to see themselves represented in these books, and understand that the world is made up of many different kinds of people. Through books, cultural awareness can start before your child gets to college or enters the real world.