Why Jewish Kidlit Shouldn’t be Offered to ONLY Jewish Children
{Guest post from Chana Stiefel}
I recently saw a question posed by Multicultural Children’s Book Day that I felt needed a thoughtful response from me.
The question was, “What book-related topics/concerns are you seeing discussed? Where do you feel there are “gaps” in representation when it comes to multicultural books for kids?”
First, I want to say a heartfelt “thank you” to the MCBD team and all of the hard work they are doing to spread the word about diversity in children’s books. When I saw their request for feedback about underrepresented groups, the first thought that came to mind was that I would love to see more Jewish books and Jewish authors and illustrators included in this important conversation.
Chana Stiefel is the author of more than 25 books for children, both fiction and nonfiction. Her next picture book biography is THE TOWER OF LIFE: How Yaffa Eliach Rebuilt Her Town in Stories and Photographs, illustrated by Susan Gal (Scholastic, Fall 2022). A fun holiday book, MENDEL’S HANUKKAH MESS UP, illustrated by Daphna Awadish, will be coming from Kalaniot in Fall 2022. Chana’s most recent nonfiction picture book is LET LIBERTY RISE: How America’s Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty (illustrated by Chuck Groenink, Scholastic, 2021). Chana is represented by Miranda Paul at Erin Murphy Literary Agency. Learn more at chanastiefel.com.
Connect with Chana on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Vivian Kirkfield
December 15, 2021 11:53 amFabulous article! Thank you, Chana, for shining a light on this topic. Books are a window on the world for kids…let’s help them to see ALL cultures and peoples. And of course, a huge thank you to MCBD and its founders.
Carol Green Ungar
December 17, 2021 3:42 amMy book “The Surprise in the Desk” was sold in Jewish book stores and on amazon but it’s a story about a man who happened to be a Rabbi who found a bag full of cash in a second-hand desk and returned the money. When it happened the real story went viral and I dont see why my picture book retelling cant be appreciated by kids of all types.
Michelle
January 5, 2022 1:39 pmThank you for the great article! I have been pleasantly surprised by a number of new books coming out with Jewish main characters and themes (and not being Holocaust books). When I talk about multicultural, I truly try to include everybody.