Two picture books to welcome a Black child

     You know how it is when there's a baby in the family.  Relatives will study that sweet little face and be delighted to find their father's nose or mother's eyes.  As the child grows older attributes and talents are used to create links with family members.  An athlete like their sister?  A chef like their brother?

     Andrea Pippins' Who Will You Be? is a maternal love letter to a child rich in family connections.  The little one:

*has kind eyes like their father;

*boldness like their grandmother;

*is loving like their grandpa.

  In what other ways will they grow to be like other family members while still being their unique self?

     This gentle narrative would make a great bedtime story.

     All Because You Matter is one of the most breathtaking picture books I've ever seen.  Tami Charles' poetry and Bryan Collier's richly detailed illustrations merge to welcome a little Black boy into a world that may question his worth.

     Charles says, "On the day my son, Christopher Sebastian, was born, he became the center of my universe.  Sun-kissed skin, dreamy brown eyes, and a gentle 'coo' that could turn me into a human puddle."

     She wanted to protect him from the cruelty and ugliness of this world.  But news stories constantly reminded her that she didn't have this luxury.  She wrote All Because You Matter to help parents of all backgrounds have difficult but necessary conversations about race with their children.

     "I also wrote this book to remind all children, especially those from marginalized backgrounds, that no matter where they come from they matter.  That the people who came before them and the work that they did to secure the life we have today matter.  Because of this our children must continue this work and and carry themselves with pride, even when they are made to feel unimportant."

     It would make a great baby shower gift for people of color about to become parents.

On a purrrsonal note, another high point was First Friday bagels at the commuter lounge.  It's one of the traditions from the Great Before.  We also had a chance to put paint handprints on a work of art that will go up on a wall.  ( Jules)

Well the rain seems to have stopped.  (Tobago)

A great big shout out goes out to the folks who ran the event.

Tobago and Jules Hathaway 

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