Multicultural

Please create and add sections as you wish.  Add the most recent item to the top of each section. Include the citation,  a brief annotation of the item's value, your name as contributior, and the date you added it. Draw a line between each subtopic and  bullet each individual entry within the section.

• Jaramillo, Ann. (2006). La linea. New Milford, CT: Roaring Books Press.

   

  Miguel and Elena have not seen their parents in almost seven years.  Their parents left to the United States and Miguel and Elena have been living with their grandma in Mexico.  For Miguel’s birthday, he gets a message that his parents are ready for him to join them.  Miguel and Elena undertake the dangerous illegal journey from Mexico to the US. Their father has paid for Miguel's passage and Elena's appearance is only the beginning of it's unraveling.

           - Mandy Ballenger 8/07/07

• Satrapi, M. (2003). Persepolis. New York: Random House, Inc.

  This graphic novel tells of a young, nine-year old’s experiences living in Iran during the Iranian Revolution. The story is told in a simple graphic novel format, yet touches on complex, poignant themes of a young girl’s desire for independence. All teens, but especially Iranian-American teens, will enjoy these young girl’s journey.

  Kamon Naddaf, 8/3/07

• Reevino, Rose Zartuche, ed. The Pura Be;[re Awards: Ce;ebratomg Latino Authors and Illustrators. Chicago: American Librarya Association, 2006. An annotated listing of the awards with spotlights on titles and authros. David Loertscher, Oct. 2, 2006

• Worlds Without Boarders - The online magazine for international  Literature. (2006).  Retrived August 9, 2006 from: http://www.wordswithoutborders.org/ 

This site provides many resources to explore for international literature of various cultures.

Paula Miller, August 9, 2006

• International Children's Digital Library - A library for the world's children. Retrieved August 9, 2006 from: http://www.icdlbooks.org/ 

This site provides free access to children's books from around the world from many cultures an in diverse languages.

Paula Miller, August 9, 2006

• Larson, Jeanette, & Martinez, Carolina G. (Spring 1998). Hispanic_Kids@Library.net: internet resources for latino youth. Youth Services in Libraries, 243-51.

The authors of this article express the importance of including interests of Latinos in internet functions of the library, especially since this group is growing at such a great rate. Important in considering Latinos is their reliance on the library as an internet source. Also important is cultural awareness of subgroups within the Latino culture. A list of annotated web sites of interest to Latinos is provided, with discussion of criteria for evaluation, internet instruction, and short bilingual glossary of internet terms.

 

John Moore 7/28/2006

• Guevara, Susan. (Summer 2002). The 2002 Pura Belpre Medal (for illustration) acceptance speech. Journal of Youth Services in Libraries, 15, 4, 19-21.

 

Susan Guevara expresses her gratitude at the ALA Annual Conference in Atlanta in June 2002 for having received the Pura Belpre Medal for the illustration of Chato and the Party Animals. This is the second time she has received the award, winning before for the illustration of Chato’s Kitchen. She discusses what it is like to win the award, how difficult it was to illustrate again after the first story’s success, how she relied on her cultural heritage to create anew, and what others did to support her talents.

 

John Moore 7/28/2006

 

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• Houston, Jeanne Wakatsuki and James D. Houston. Farewell to Manzanar. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1973. 188 pages. $15.00. ISBN 0-618-21620-0.  The story tells of the personal experiences of Jeanne as a young Japanese American girl during WWII. Her family was sent to Manzanar Internment Camp and lived there for three years. Jeanne tells how her large family which was close and always ate meals together and spent time together slowly changed and became more Americanized due to the small camp housing and cramp living situation. After they were finally released, the family dispersed, some went to New Jersey for work but her father insisted on returning to where their home was in the Long Beach area.

Tracy Frie, August 4, 2006

• Asgedom, M. (2002). Of beetles & angels“ A boy’s remarkable journey from a refugee camp to Harvard. Boston: Little, Brown and Company.

  This autobiography is the story of Mawi Asgedom, who graduated from Harvard with honors and spoke as valedictorian in 1999.  Due to civil war in east Africa, Mawi ends up in a refugee camp in Sudan for three years with his family. Eventually World Relief helps his family immigrate to the United States, but finding sponsors and a place to live is difficult.  Mawi must face issues of prejudice, language, and economic disparity to adapt to the United States while holding on to his own values and identity. Eventually he is accepted to Harvard on a full scholarship.  Following the advice of his father, Mawi decides to “treat all people -- even the most unsightly beetles -- as though they were angels sent form heaven.”

• Pletka, B. (2005). My so-called digital life: 2,000 teenagers, 300 cameras, and 30 days to document their world. Santa Monica, CA: Santa Monica Press.

  What is the culture of teens? How do they see themselves? This book cuts right to the heart of what young adults care about, value, and struggle with. From school to family and friends, each aspect is addressed through the experience and photography of real teens. Important subjects covered include what goes on before and after school, learning in the classroom, technology in schools and beliefs about school, recreation, and neighborhood life. These issues are represented from a variety of cultural viewpoints and are a real eye opener for anyone who thought they already knew.

Michelle Bone 7/25/2006

• Carvell, M. (2002). Who will tell my brother? New York: Hyperion.

This style of this book reminds me of Out of the Dust. Written as a series of journalistic poems, it is the true story of Evan Hill, a Native American boy who fights to change his school’s mascot from the braves to a less derogatory symbol. Evan faces the challenge of expressing his feelings and exposing the social prejudices his school community does not see. He feels both social and cultural barriers to fitting in that many kids will relate to. Evan learns about his cultural heritage, how to stay true to himself, and how to be a leader in his community with courage and perseverance.

Michelle Bone 7/24/2006

Celebrating Diversity with Young Adults (culture, race, politics, sexual identity, activism)

• Color Lines http://www.colorlines.com/ Described as the nation's leading magazine on race and politics, Color Lines addresses essential issues of race, culture, and activism in the United States. This magazine is hip enough to attract young people and to get them thinking about their own views and roles in today's hottest political issues.  It is a favorite among students and an important way to represent student diversity.

• MAVIN http://www.mavinfoundation.org/projects/magazine.html Produced by the Mavin Foundation, this magazine describes itself as expressing the "mixed race experience."  It is very popular among teens at my library and is full of thoughtful perspectives and real-life experiences for young adults who prefer some substance to their reading. Mavin often highlights interesting young people who are making positive contributions to their communities by celebrating diversity.

Michelle Bone 6/27/2006

Multiculturalism

Felsberg, U. (Producer), & Chadha, G. (Director) (2002). Bend It Like Beckham [Motion picture]. UK/Germany: Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.

This movie revolves around Jess, a young Indian girl growing up in England. She is tore between her love of football (soccer) and honoring her family’s culture. She meets an English girl, Jules who shares her love of the game and plays on an all girls team. Jules invites Jess to play on her team, but Jess knows that her family will disapprove. Not wanting to disappoint her family, but also not wanting to give up playing soccer, Jess begins to play secretly. Soon Jess and Jules are invited to play at a university overseas. Jess wants nothing more than to play soccer professionally, but is torn between her love of soccer and honoring her family and Indian culture.

This is a nifty movie. It deals a lot with conformity, family values versus personal ones, cultural tradition, and being true to ourselves. Jess has a dream of playing soccer, but does not want to disappoint her family by betraying her culture. Jess’s difficulties and choices are something many multicultural and ethic kids have to deal with growing up, and her struggles are something everyone will be able to relate to. It’s also a bit of a romantic comedy, but the story line also deals with a lot deeper issues. I feel like this movie gives both a serious and humorous account of growing up in two different cultures. 

Desiree Lazo, December 11, 2008

Older Materials

Multiculturalism - Professional Reading

Useful Bibliographies of the Best:

Totten, Herman L., Carolyn Garner, and Risa W. Brown.

Culturally Diverse Library Collections for Youth

. Neal Schuman, 1996.

Miller-Lachmann, Lyn.

Global Voices, Global Visions: A Core Collection of Multicultural Books.

R.R. Bowker, 1995.

Helbig, Alethea K. and Agnes Regan Perkins.

This Land Is Our Land: A Guide to Multicultural Literature for Children and Young Adults

. Greenwood Press, 1994.

Boyd, Alex.

Guide to Multicultural Resources, 1995/1996

. Highsmith Press, 1995. A marvelous source of all kinds of information about African Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and multicultural American resources. Included are organizations, associations, devil rights/advocacy, colleges & universities, educational organizations/resources, federal agencies, Interracial support/advocacy groups, library and bookstores, media, museums, religious organizations, social services, student organizations, and women's organizations.

MulticulturalResources

• Good Stuff for Teens in the Multicultural Arena (w1r.html)

• Multiculturalism - Professional Reading (w10a.html) - an analysis by cultural group from CCBC

• The State of Multicultural Literature (w10e.html) - an analysis from CCBC, 1997, 1998

General Sources

• For a wide variety of resources, publications, try City Lore: The New York Center for Urban Folk Culture.

• Book (w10r.pdf): Kruse, Ginny Moore, Kathleen T. Horning and Megan Schliesman. Multicultural Literature for Children and Young Adults: A Selected Listing of Books by and About People of Color. Volume Two: 1991-1996. Cooperative Children's Book Center, 1997. (http://www.soemadison.wisc.edu/ccbc/) - An excellent annotated bibliography. Presented here are a few pages listing YA resources.

• Web site. Check out Multicultural Pavilion at the University of Maryland for a host of elementary and secondary resources. (http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/)

Latino Resources

• Isabel Schon has been creating bibliographies of Spanish Language children's and YA resources for years. Look for her annual bibliographies published by Scarcrow Press. Here is included a brief column (w10j.PDF)by Isabel published in Booklist, May 1, 1997.

• Speech (w10n.pdf): Guevara, Susan. "Pura Belpre Award Acceptance Speech for Illustration 1995," Youth Services in Libraries, Spring 1997, p. 273-75. Guevara discusses artistic inspiration in the process of illustrating Gary Soto's Chato's Kitchen."

• Student project: (w10t.html) Gary Soto by Sue Tiiesiera

Jewish-American Heritage

• Judaism 101 covers all types of information about Jewish customs, beliefs, and religious rituals.

• Passover on the Net provides everything you need to know about attending a seder.

Student Projects

• Holocaust Literature (w10v.html) by Roxanne A. Ansolabehere

Native Americans

• Professional article (w10l.pdf): Bader, Barbara. "'They Shall Not Wither': John Bierhorst's Quiet Crusade for Native American Literature," The Horn Book Magazine, May/June, 1997, p. 268-81. - Bierhorst, an Anglo, married an illustrator and has spent a career editing and publishing Native American tales from both North and South America.

• Professional article (w10m.pdf): Barclay, Donald A. "Native Americans in Books from the Past," The Horn Book Magazine, September/October, 1996, p. 559-65. - Barclay looks across time at stereotyping of Native Americans as represented in children's books and struggles for answers about fair treatment.

• Website: Native American Books. Native American Perspectives.

• Student project: (w10x.html) Native Americans by Linda Hodgin.

African Americans

• Bibliography (w10p.pdf) Estes, Sally. "the Civil Rights Movement Remembered," Booklist, Feb. 15, 1998, p. 998-99. - A short annotated bibliography of some works for young adults.

• Book (w10q.pdf): King, Casey and Linda Barrett Osborne. Oh, Freedom!: Kids Talk About the Civil Rights Movement with the People Who Made It Happen. Knopf, 1997. - An amazing book of kid interviews with participants who put their lives on the line. Here is presented a sample interview. A must purchase for children and YA collections.

• Student project (w10w.html) Coretta Scott King Award by Dorothy Nowroozian

Asians

• Student project: (w10u.html) Asian Resources for Young Adults by Warren Wright.

• Student project: (w10y.html) Asian Literature by Joyce Belanger.

Americans of Japanese Ancestry

• (w10l) Pat Skjervheim created a bibliography of materials for children and teens of Japanese Ancestry from the point of view of Japanese Americans living in the Hawaiian Islands during WWII.

Filipino-Americans

• Student project: (w10z.html) Filipino-American Literature by Leonardo Cortez.

Teaching Ideas

• (w10o.pdf): Bontempo, Barbara T. "Exploring Prejudice in Young Adult Literature through Drama and Role Play," The ALAN Review, Spring, 1995, p. 31-33. - In-class role pays can serve to create multi-cultural undersstanding on an emotional as well as intellectual plan\e.

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