“When I was growing up, I never saw a book cover or
read a book about someone who looked like me.”
Renee Watson |
This heartrending quote came
from a good friend and colleague of mine several years ago. She is an
African-American woman, an educator and published author. My friend now writes
Young Adult novels that include healthy doses of diverse characters, and she
feels fulfilled by doing so.
The tragedy, of course, is that it took so long
coming. And the question is, why? One of the more obvious answers lies in the
publishing houses. Publishers, in large part, have traditionally been white
themselves. There was a widespread belief that diverse books would not be
marketable, thus the profits would suffer. Finally, though, as with the impact
of television in the 1950’s, the Internet came into its own. At about the same
time, a third-wave feminist movement occurred, and a growing appreciation for
the need of diverse young adult literature took root. Happily, today, with organizations such as We Need Diverse Books and Diversity
in YA, the concept and use of
diverse characters is much more fully etched in the writing landscape.
Nancy Stewart |
Diverse novels such as The Skin I’m In by Sharon
G. Flake and The Sun is Also a Star by
Nicola Yoon, legitimize diversity. These books give the characters flesh and
blood, and heart, and humanity, not to mention a voice from which the reader
can learn and grow. And if the reader is diverse him/herself, that person can
be much the richer for having read the book.
If ever there were a time for Young Adult books
featuring diverse characters, it is now. The rising culture of nationalism,
brought on in large part by shifting populations worldwide, is allowing and
validating groups of hatemongers in the United States and across the globe.
Literature in general, and Young Adult literature in particular, has the power
to combat such dangerous philosophies.
The future appears brighter in the world of Young
Adult Literature. Publishing houses are much more open to giving diverse authors
and their books the chance to be read. Librarians are buying the books needed
by and for diverse populations. And teachers are recommending and reading these
books to their classes. Diversity is truly the magic word in Young Adult
novels.