Donate Now

Tag: books featuring diversity

Black Excellence – Dr. Tiya Miles

Dr. Tiya Miles: Weaving Truth and History

As we gather around our holiday tables this November -National Adoption Awareness Month -we’re reminded of how stories shape our understanding of family, history, and home. This month’s Black Excellence spotlight honors Dr. Tiya Miles, a historian and storyteller whose work helps us see the fullness of those connections.

Dr. Miles is the author of Ties That Bind: The Story of an Afro-Cherokee Family in Slavery and Freedom, a groundbreaking book that explores the intertwined lives of African and Cherokee people in early America. Through this and subsequent works -including The House on Diamond Hill: A Cherokee Plantation Story, The Dawn of Detroit: A Chronicle of Slavery and Freedom in the City of the Straits, and her National Book Award -winning All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley’s Sack, a Black Family Keepsake -Miles invites us to look beyond simplified narratives and into the layered, lived realities of identity, land, and lineage.

Her writing sits at the crossroads of African American, Native American, and women’s histories - places where truth is often complex and sometimes painful, but always necessary. Like the work of families navigating transracial adoption, Miles’s research calls us to open our eyes to what’s been missing and to honor the beauty that emerges when we do.

In a month that asks us to reflect on both thankfulness and truth, Dr. Tiya Miles reminds us that telling the whole story -of our families, our nation, and ourselves -is an act of love. Her scholarship is a model of what it means to hold history tenderly and to make space at the table for every part of who we are.

Learn more about Dr. Miles’s work at www.tiyamiles.com.

Black Excellence Posts:

Each month, we take time to highlight the remarkable contributions of Black leaders, trailblazers, and changemakers whose impact continues to shape our world. These stories serve as a valuable opportunity for transracial families to learn, reflect, and engage in meaningful conversations about Black history and culture. We invite you to explore our past Black Excellence features in the carousel below, where you’ll find inspiring figures from various fields—activism, science, arts, sports, and beyond. If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to our monthly newsletter to receive these stories, along with discussion prompts and book recommendations, right in your inbox.

 

Black Excellence Spotlight – Ryan Coogler

Black Excellence: Langston Hughes and Aaron Douglas

Black Excellence: Charlotte Forten Grimké

Black Excellence: Frederick Douglass

Black Excellence: Albert Ely Edwards

Black Excellence: Habeebah Rasheed Grimes

Black Excellence – Jared Donahue Robinson

Black Excellence – Rachel Briggs

Black Excellence – Habeebah Rasheed Grimes

Black Excellence – Alec Ingold

Babys First Words

Book Corner – June 2025

Baby's First Words

by Stella Blackstone & Sunny Scribens
illustrated by Christiane Engel
Board Book

Dad and baby have a great day together in this colorful board book. When a baby’s other dad comes home, it’s time for a bubble bath and a cozy tuck-in. Young children will enjoy learning new words as they spend the day with this happy family.

Related Articles About the Roles of Mothers and Fathers

Blended: Book recommendation for Transracial Adoptees

Book Corner – March 2025

Blended

by Sharon Draper
Grades 4-7

Told from the perspective of an 11 year old, whose parents are divorced, Izzy / Isabella relays her experiences being shuttled between both parents’ homes (she can’t call either house her home). Her mother is white and her father is Black and not much is ever said to her about being two different races until a racist event (targeted at her close friend) happens at school. Suddenly, Izzy is forced to “check the box” as to what her racial identity is and she doesn’t know what to do.

As the story unfolds, more events related to Izzy’s racial identity occur. A boy seems to like Izzy, but it hurts when she finds out he's curious about her “exotic” looks. When she and her Black stepbrother get profiled by the police while getting ice cream, they’re both pulled from the car and the situation becomes racist and violent.

Since everything is relayed in Izzy’s/Isabella’s voice, the story is accessible to young adolescents. There are tough topics related to blended families, divorce, race and racism that make this a reading journey to be shared between responsive parents or adults and children reading this book.

Visit Sharon Draper's website for more resources supporting Blended, including a study guide, discussion questions and additional activities.

Somewhere Sisters

Book Corner – January 2025

Somewhere Sisters: a Story of Adoption, Identity, and the Meaning of Family

by Erika Hayasaki
Ages: Adult

Vietnamese twins Loan and Ha were separated when they were babies.  Ha was raised by her aunt in a loving home in rural Vietnam.  Loan was adopted, renamed Isabella, and grew up in a loving home in a Chicago suburb.  Isabella’s American family weren’t told their daughter was a twin, and when they found out, Isabella’s mom started to search for Ha.  After many years, Isabella and Ha finally met and began to truly reunite.  

Somewhere Sisters is the story of Isabella, Ha, and their families, but it’s much more.  Their story is a framework for information about many aspects of adoption and twinship.  Readers will learn about twin research, the history of international and transracial adoption, how a child’s environment affects them, and much more.  Somewhere Sisters is touching, informative – and very hard to put down!

Listen to Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes speaks with journalist and author Erika Hayasaki. Hayasaki’s new book “Somewhere Sisters: A Story of Adoption, Identity, and the Meaning of Family,” tells the story of identical twins who were born in Vietnam. One was adopted by a well-to-do white American family, the other was raised by her maternal aunt. The two eventually met as teenagers.

Max and the Tag Along Moon

Book Corner – June 2024

By Kristen Perry, transracial adoptive parent and professor of literacy education

Max and the Tag-Along Moon, by Floyd Cooper

Floyd Cooper’s picture book, Max and the Tag-Along Moon, is the perfect story to celebrate all the fathers, grandfathers, and other father-figures in our children’s lives. It is a wonderful ode to the love between a grandfather and grandson and to the things that connect us to each other, even across distances.

In this sweet story, Max is sad to be saying goodbye to his grandfather after a visit. Granpa reminds Max that they see the same moon, even when they are in different places. Max watches the moon all the way home, but he becomes sad and misses Granpa when the moon disappears behind clouds. When the moon reappears, “Max knew that whenever he saw the moon, he would think of Granpa, on and on.”

Max and the Tag-Along Moon is appropriate for children from preschool on up. It offers a wonderful opportunity to facilitate conversations about the connections, both real and symbolic, that family members have with each other, as well as the ways we show our love for each other. 

Max and the Tag ALong Moon

Discussion Prompts:

  • Think about a family member. What is something special that connects you with that person? 
  • Who are the father figures in your life? Think about fathers, grandfathers, stepfathers, uncles, neighbors, and/or friends of the family. How do these father figures show their love for you (or take care of you)?
  • What are things you do (or could do) when you’re missing someone that you love?

Book Recommendations for Families Created in Transracial Adoption

Kristen Perry is a transracial adoptive parent and professor of literacy education.

Change Sings by Amanda Gorman

Book Corner – April 2024

Reviewed by Kristen Perry, adoptive parent and professor of literacy education

Review of Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem

Written by Amanda Gorman and illustrated by Loren Long

Author contact/link info: Website Twitter/X Instagram Facebook

Illustrator contact/link info: Website Twitter/X Instagram Facebook

Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem is a wonderful illustrated children’s book by the poet Amanda Gorman, who many may remember as the poet who wrote and delivered the inaugural poem The Hill We Climb at President Biden’s inauguration. Loren Long provides rich and vivid illustrations for the book. 

Gorman’s text, written in verse, is a call to join in a movement for social change. The poem’s themes emphasize hopes, dreams, change, love, and social justice. Long’s illustrations feature a Black girl with a guitar who gathers a group of diverse children around her while working to make their community a better place. With lines like “I am the change I want to see” and “I’m the voice where freedom rings/You’re the love your bright heart brings,” along with illustrations showing cooperation, collective effort, sharing, and kindness, Change Sings emphasizes both the power of the individual and of the community to create a better world for all.

Although this book is marketed for children in the 4-8 age range, I believe older children and families could use it to spark meaningful discussions. 

Potential Discussion questions:

  • This story begins with one girl by herself, who slowly gathers a diverse group of friends in her neighborhood. Together, they do different things to make their neighborhood a better place. Can you see yourself in this story or in the pictures? Where?
  • What is a change you would like to see in our community? What could we do to help make that change happen?
  • The girl singing the song says, “I show others tolerance, though it might take some courage.” Is there a time that you showed tolerance to or stood up for someone who was different from you? What did you do? How else could you support people who are different? (Alternate questions: Is there a time when someone stood up for you? How did that feel?)

 

Book Recommendations for Families Created in Transracial Adoption

Kristen Perry is a TRJ parent and a professor of literacy education, specializing in family and community literacy. She and Mariama Lockington are colleagues in the University of Kentucky’s College of Education. Learn more about Mariama and connect with her on her website: https://mariamajlockington.com/ 

In the Key of Us

Book Corner – March 2024

Reviewed by Kristen Perry, TRJ Parent

In the Key of Us

By Mariama Lockington

Not only is In the Key of Us by Mariama Lockington written by a transracial adoptee, but it also is a Stonewall Honor Book for LGBTQ+ books. Thus, it has the power to speak to many identities represented within our families and communities. The story is told through the alternating perspectives of Andi and Zora, the only two Black girls at a prestigious, nearly all-white music camp. Andi is struggling with the death of her mother, which is affecting her ability to play the trumpet. Zora is buckling under the pressure of her parents who expect her to be a flute prodigy, when what she really wants is to be a dancer. Over the course of the summer, the girls experience many challenges and ultimately discover the power of their relationship.

In the Key of Us is a wonderful exploration of first love, an ode to the arts, and a powerful statement about discovering your true self. Although transracial adoption is not the focus of this book in the way that it is in Lockington’s first book (For Black Girls Like Me), there are many relevant themes such as loss of first family/family of origin and being the only Black person in a sea of whiteness. Although the book is advertised for ages 10-14, I believe that teens and adults will also enjoy the book and find it meaningful – I know I did!

 

Discussion Questions:  The following questions will help you and your family open up important conversations about experiences of adoption, identity, and differences of race. Before you engage in these discussions be sure you have grounded yourself in the questions and are ready to both listen to the experiences of the children and youth you are engaging, and to share your thoughts and feelings and model conversational openness. Also, if children and young people do not want to engage in the conversation at any particular time, you can always spend some time in reflection on these questions so when the opportunity is right, you’ll be ready.      

  • Andi and Zora are the only two Black girls at the Harmony Music camp, which comes with a lot of challenges. Can you identify with some of the challenges they face?  How do they support each other? Do you have friends that support you when things are challenging? ?
  • Zora is passionate about dance, which historically has excluded many Black dancers, and finding a Black dancer as a role-model is life-changing for her. What are your passions or interests? Who can we look to as role models related to these interests?
  • In the Key of Us provides a great representation of intersectionality, particularly identities related to race and sexual orientation. What identities are important to you, and how do your identities intersect in unique ways? How are your identities perceived in the world, and in what ways might they represent challenges or privileges?

Book Recommendations for Families Created in Transracial Adoption

Kristen Perry is a TRJ parent and a professor of literacy education, specializing in family and community literacy. She and Mariama Lockington are colleagues in the University of Kentucky’s College of Education. Learn more about Mariama and connect with her on her website: https://mariamajlockington.com/ 

Adoptees Like Me

Book Corner – January 2024

This month we are highlighting "Adoptees Like Me" Books, a special series from Dr. Chaitra Wirta-Leiker.  These illustrated children’s books are for elementary readers, and include Marie Discovers Her Superpowers  (2022) and Casey Conquers Bedtime (2023).

Dr. Wirta-Leiker is an adoptee, adoptive parent, and psychologist. She is a consultant for The Adoptee Mentoring Society and a contributor to I AM ADOPTEE, where she serves on their subsidized mental health program review board. She also served on the Adoptee Advisory Board for Heritage Camps for Adoptive Families and the steering committee for the Society of Adoption Professionals of Color in Adoption. You can find her series here. 

Marie Discovers Her Superpowers
Casey Conquers Bedtime

Book Recommendations for Families Created in Transracial Adoption

The Book Corner is a regular feature in our Transracial Journeys monthly newsletters. If you would like to receive monthly book recommendations via email, please subscribe.

Books for the transracial adoptee

The Gift of Growing up with Books to Reflect a Diverse Human Experience

by TRJ Parent and Librarian, Avril McInally

Image from The Ezra Jack Keats Foundation

Meet “Peter” the small African-American child who inspired Ezra Jack Keats “The Snowy Day”.

“Ezra had noticed that the main characters in the books he illustrated were always white. That didn’t seem fair to other children, who deserved to see characters in books that looked like them. He decided that Peter would be the hero of his story because “he should have been there all along.”

Origin of the Annual TRJ Bibliography

A few years ago and with a similar thought in mind, I (TRJ parent and librarian, Avril McInally) thought about searching for books for Black children with characters that look like them and reflect their experience. Then, I thought of finding books featuring characters who were adopted, biracial or LGBTQIA+. So began the annotated bibliography for families formed by transracial adoption in 2021.

A year later, Vicki Richards, a children’s librarian stepped in to help find and vet these books too because, unfortunately, some still don’t quite get the adoption experience right. For the last few years, we’ve been reading lots of books and reviewing them.

2023 Bibliography for the Giving Season and All Year Long

This year, we’re attaching the 2023 Bibliography to this month’s newsletter so you can work to:

  • Support authors and illustrators who are POC (people of color)
  • Support a small, but growing group of authors who are adoptees
  • Give books to our children and families so they can see reflections of themselves in them
  • Give books to white children and families to help them understand the perspective of children who are Black or queer or who have experienced adoption
  • So you don’t miss the boat on giving your children the opportunity to grow up with beautiful books, stories and characters that reflect their experiences

I recommend supporting independent bookstores, especially Black-owned ones and purchasing your books directly from them. If you want to visit a brick-and-mortar shop and don’t know where to find one, just call your local public library and ask a librarian to help you locate one. We have also included links to each book as found on bookshop.org which helps to support independent bookstores.

I’ll see you at TRJ camp in Athens, Ohio next summer with a fully-stocked book sale featuring our book picks for 2024!

Avril

This post is from our December, 2023, newsletter. If you would like to get our newsletter in your inbox each month, as well as information about our annual Transracial Journeys Family Camp and our monthly Zoom call to provide support for our transracial adoption parents please subscribe.

The Night Before Kwanza

Book Corner – December 2023

The Night Before Kwanzaa

By Natasha Wing
Illustrated by  Amy Wummer and Kirsti Jewel
Pre-kindergarten - Grade 2 

A young boy is excited for the arrival of his older brother. He is looking forward to celebrating Kwanzaa with him and the rest of their family. As a candle is lit on the Kinara each night, simple (yet heartwarming) illustrations depict the accompanying seven principles of Kwanzaa.

There is a familiarity in this sweet book as it may remind older readers of “The Night Before Christmas” - one of the most well-known poems about the holiday.

This is a recommended read for multicultural families as it blends an old tradition (reading the old poem) with new ones (celebrating the principles of Kwanzaa).

Books for Transracial Families

Book Recommendations for Families Created in Transracial Adoption

The Book Corner is a regular feature in our Transracial Journeys monthly newsletters. If you would like to receive monthly book recommendations via email, please subscribe.