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The Rabbits' Wedding by Garth Williams The Rabbits' Wedding is, hands down, my youngest daughters favorite book. It has been as far back as I can remember. It's a sweet story about two little rabbits, one white and the other black, who fall in love and want to be together forever. The illustrations are darling! Garth Williams is famous for illustrating many books, two of the most notable are Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web. Here's a favorite page that always produces laughs: Interestingly, the book was banned in several places during the 1960's for fear that it was "brainwashing" children into thinking integration/interracial marriage was good. Sweet message + darling illustrations = priceless! BUY IT HERE!

Make your influence positive! [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MU3xgnS9H8I&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0]

"If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity." ~ John F. Kennedy

The Painted Man: What My Son Taught Me About Race

by Desmond Williams

Another great find! Father in a multiracial family, Desmond Williams, puts pen (pencil) to paper and creates a soon-to-be-published graphic novel The Painted Man: What My Young Son Taught Me About Race. The collection is a "coming of race” memoir that finds a dad confronted by racially charged questions posed directly by his young son and the people with whom they come into contact. This book can be used as a conversation starter, a self-reflection inducer, or simply a window into an experience that might not reflect your own. BTW, I found it interesting that Williams is from Brooklyn, NY. I would have thought "they" were much more versed in this thing we call "race". More about The Painted Man

Mother's Day by Anne Rockwell or see if it's at your local library! Happy Mother’s Day! In my constant endeavor to find books that reflect diversity, I ran across this great book by author Anne Rockwell. I thought the timing couldn’t be more perfect! Mother’s Day is set in Mrs. Madoff’s class where children (reflecting different cultures and ethnicities) discuss the different ways they will celebrate the holiday, making breakfast, hiking, snuggling, etc. The children were asked to bring in a button for class that they use in making a special tissue paper flower for mom (bonus: instructions are included). I enjoyed many things about the book (illustrations are darling) but I especially liked that a single mother is represented along with a grandmother raising her granddaughter. The children and mothers spent lots of time picking out their button and had little stories about why they chose their particular button. Mom’s didn’t know what the button was for and were surprised that it was to make a flower. Really sweet book! Buy your copy here! Do you have any books to share?

I found the following treasure at a school bookfair eight years ago. It was buried in a book titled "Through Our Eyes: Poems and Pictures About Growing Up". I probably picked the book because it had "atypical" (not the usual blonde-haired and blue-eyed) girls on the cover. To see this, I knew it was intentional. I was happy to see children of different races and ethnicities represented on the pages. The book is filled with sweet poems, but we have especially enjoyed this one:  Lisa by Beverly McLoughland Lisa's father is Black And her mother is White, And her skin is a Cinnamon Delight, Her hair is Dark And her eyes are Light, And Lisa is Lisa, Day and Night. And Lisa is Lisa, Night and Day, Though there are People Who sometimes Say-- Well, is Lisa That, Or is Lisa This? -- Lisa is Everything She is. Lisa is Lisa, Day and Night, And her skin is a Cinnamon Delight, And Lisa is Sun And Lisa is Star, And Lisa is All The dreams that Are.

Cultural Cookies provide a unique way to share the message, "we're more alike than different!" We have taken the fun of fortune cookies and combined them with proverbs around the world to show that all human beings share similar experiences in life, no matter how different our backgrounds.  Proverbs in one culture are frequently similar to proverbs expressed in other cultures. For instance, the French "Qui vole un oeuf vole un boeuf" translates to "He who steals eggs steals cattle," compared to the American proverb "Give him an inch and he'll take a mile." These fun cookies can be used at home to spark discussion, as icebreakers in the office or classroom, an activity during diversity training, or simply on top your desk as a fun way to remind staff or students that people are much more alike than different. For more information