#wndb

[mizamour]

Frizzy by Claribel A Ortega and Rose Bousamra: This middle grade graphic novel is amazing! It is going to make so many kids feel so seen! Marlene is a Dominican-American girl who loves hanging out with her loyal best friend and cool Tia Ruby, but she faces a lot of pressure from others around her. Her mom, who has internalized the anti-Black narrative of “good hair” versus “bad hair,” is constantly worried about Paola being ladylike and “presentable.” Presentable, to her, means taming her hair and her fun-loving exuberance into something like her model-esque, demure but catty cousin Diana - but that isn’t who Marlene is, and she knows it. Can she find a way to embrace herself as she is, help her mom understand her, and stand up against school bullies without getting in trouble? Well, maybe not without trouble - but it just might be worth it. This book is phenomenal, with gorgeous, expressive art paired with an honest, compelling, real narrative. It explores family relationships with nuance and promotes self-love while also acknowledging all the systemic factors that play into discrimination based on looks, and that it’s not as easy as “just love yourself and don’t care about what people think.” I can’t wait to get this book on our shelves! It comes out this October. #frizzy #frizzyhair #frizzyhairproblems #frizzyhairdontcare #curlsfordays #curlyhair #graphicnovelsforkids #middlegradebooks #middlegradegraphicnovel #schoollibrarian #librariansofinstagram #librariansfollowlibrarians #teacherlibrarian #mirrorsandwindows #wndb #weneeddiversebooks #representationmatters #claribelortega #alaac22 #ala2022 @claribel_ortega https://www.instagram.com/p/Cfmbn-OuPak/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#frizzy #frizzyhair #frizzyhairproblems #frizzyhairdontcare #curlsfordays #curlyhair #graphicnovelsforkids #middlegradebooks #middlegradegraphicnovel #schoollibrarian #librariansofinstagram #librariansfollowlibrarians #teacherlibrarian #mirrorsandwindows #wndb #weneeddiversebooks #representationmatters #claribelortega #alaac22 #ala2022

[hollymbryan]

Blog Tour: Top 5 Reasons to Read THE COLLIDING WORLDS OF MINA LEE by Ellen Oh! #tbrbeyondtours

Welcome to Book-Keeping and my stop on the TBR and Beyond Tours blog tour for The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee by Ellen Oh! This contemporary YA released yesterday, 23 January. I've got all the details for you below, along with my top 5 reasons to read this one!

About the Book

title: The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee author: Ellen Oh publisher: Crown Books for Young Readers release date: 23 January 2024

When a Korean American teenage artist gets sucked into the world of her own web comic, she must find a way out with the help of a cute boy all while facing off against a villainous corporation. Inspired by the A-ha’s “Take on Me” music video, this entertaining YA novel is a grounded speculative fiction adventure from the co-founder of We Need Diverse Books. Mina has become the hero of her own story. Literally. When Mina Lee woke up on Saturday morning for SAT prep, she did NOT expect to: 1. Nearly be fried by a superhero who turned out to be a supervillain. 2. Come face to face with Jin, the handsome boy of her dreams. 3. Discover a conspiracy involving the evil corporation Merco that she created. And it’s all happening in her fictional world. Mina is trapped in the story she created. Now it’s up to her to save everyone. Even if it means losing Jin forever. From the award-winning author of Finding Junie Kim and co-founder of We Need Diverse Books, Ellen Oh. In the speculative fiction adventure Colliding Worlds, a teenage artist grapples with her first love, grief, and learning how to take charge of her own life.

Add to Goodreads: The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee Purchase the Book: Amazon | B&N | Bookshop.org

About the Author

Ellen Oh is a former adjunct college instructor and lawyer with an insatiable curiosity for ancient Asian history. She loves K-pop, K-dramas, and eating good food that someone else cooks for her. She is fueled by Diet Coke and Krispy Kreme donuts are her kryptonite. Ellen is a founding member of We Need Diverse Books (WNDB), a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing diversity in children’s literature. Originally from New York City, Ellen lives in Rockville, Maryland, with her husband, three children, two dogs, and has yet to satisfy her quest for a decent bagel.

Connect with Ellen: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

Top 5 Reasons to Read

Colliding Worlds is a delightful young adult contemporary + speculative fiction book. Mina suddenly finds herself the main character in her own webcomic, having been transported into that world. She has to save everyone from a conspiracy involving an evil corporation that she made up!

The story is a realistic examination of the power of grief and how everyone grieves in their own way, and how those ways of grieving may be damaging to others.

Colliding Worlds is also both a celebration of Korean culture and an examination of the ways in which it can sometimes be harmful (as is the case with any culture).

The discussions of food will have you salivating!

Most of all, I loved the strong female friendships and relationships found in this book. Whether it's her Auntie or her best friends in real life and new friends in the webcomic, it's girls and women who always have Mina's back, no matter what.

I hope you will pick this one up! I mean, it's inspired by A-ha's "Take On Me" music video, which was an absolute staple of my tween years! How cool is that? I highly recommend this one!

Rating: 4 stars!

**Thank you to Crown BFYR and Ellen Oh for the finished copy, and to TBR and Beyond for having me on tour.

Be sure to check out the bookstagram tour as well! You can find my post here, and the full schedule is here.

#the colliding worlds of mina lee #korean culture #korean american #ellen oh #wndb #we need diverse books #yalit #ya literature #ya lit #bookstagram #new release #newrelease #blog tour #new releases #newreleases #young adult #spec fic #speculative fiction #contemporary fiction #contemporary #ya contemporary #crown bfyr #tbrbeyondtours #tbrbeyond #tbr and beyond tours #top 5 reasons to read

[scribesandvibes]

#weneeddiversebooks / #BlackCreativesFund Repost @weneeddiversebooks ・・・ #BlackAuthors: Applications for the #BlackCreatives Marketing Workshop are OPEN! On Saturday, April 15, Gwen Richardson of @nationalblackbookfest and Stephen Thomas of @scribesandvibes will lead this virtual event geared towards helping published writers develop their careers through marketing. Link in bio! -#wndb ・・・ #scribesandvibes #bookscomeinallcolors #weallneeddifferentbookstolove #amplifyblackvoices #onyxeditions https://www.instagram.com/p/CpvmDFegk4i/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#weneeddiversebooks #blackcreativesfund #blackauthors #blackcreatives #wndb #scribesandvibes #bookscomeinallcolors #weallneeddifferentbookstolove #amplifyblackvoices #onyxeditions

[mar-marmallu]

Without text:

Happy (belated) Holidays, @lady-vicky-toria !!! I’m your secret santa from the @fmasecretsanta event~

I hope this suffices! I had a lot of fun making this one hehe <33

(Context in the tags)

#okay so #greed lives!Ay but it’s in his og form right #so basically ed and al help sorta recreate? greed’s og form in xing through some alchemical schwa schwa #with the help of may they’re able to transfer the remnant of his soul from ling’s body to his own #the problem is that this remnant is fairly weak because of the damage that was dealt during the promised day #so this 200 year old smth man is weary n shit #like oozie woozy #funky wunky #he’s finally living up to his fucking age #but guess WHAT #first thing he does when he resurrects or smth is #jump #out #THE WINDOW #sorry wait he insults his friends first then while they argue abt what to do next THAT’S when he bounces #so everyone’s panicking because this dumbass that is literally at the verge of death is on the run #al lan fan and may (and xiao mei) decide to handle shit in the palace while ling and ed go after greed #the rest is history #greed lives!au THERE WAS A TYPO WNDB #fmab #fullmetal alchemist #fma secret santa

[lastparty]

agree that we don’t need diverse books! we need diverse authors. i cannot handle more books with authors trying to write cultures and experiences they know nothing about. like it gets so superficial when you just hand out different ethnicities and disabilities etc. to characters for diversity sake & without actually writing what their experience is like

yeah! i'm not going to stop an author from writing a diverse cast of characters or writing into diff experiences though i would be wary if that is their selling point Just That there needs to be thought put into it rather than doing it to achieve a long list of what Representation the book has lol. which i think is what you're getting at sorry that it took me so long to get hereeee. but truly this (followed by a careless editing process) is how you get things such as the racism in the peyton beachdeath book both sides now, lol. and then we need sensitivity readers and for those readers to be given enough time and money and general kindness to do a thorough job which goes back to care through the process rather than just pushing for marketable + sellable books regardless of quality. like in my own observationnn i do not think the actual wndb phrase gets used as much anymore and it came from a place of good intentions but it got coopted by marketing pretty quickly. then again i think i am pretty disillusioned towards the publishing industry as a concept. whenever books are marketed too heavily on the diversity points it's like well what is the book actually about. it feels reductive? and then it does sometimes feel like publishers love to market to white audiences and position books (ya cotemp especially) as a learning tool -> fiction definitely has the capacity to start conversations etc but again this feels like a reductive selling point unless you are in a context where you are specifically only selling to teachers parents and librarians

anywayyys i agreeee medicore white writers in particular seem to be everywhereeee and these are usually the writers who do a poor job depicting other experiences, whilst even with diverse books by diverse authors it's like we can't have too much overlap even though we can have twenty feminist greek tragedy retellings and then the book needs to be 'universal' and/or have a 'message' and also it doesn't matter if the book is polished or even well-written we should be happy because it's diverse it's quite frustrating. sorry that most of this is quite tangential i do have a lot of thoughts. we need diverse books by diverse authors who also get care and attention throughout the process so that they can release books that are good and not just ways for a penguin random house imprint to generate buzz and sell books </3

#anon #💌

[medusahades]

Reviewing a Queer Young Adult Novel.

Chosen Activity:

The activity that was chosen for this blog post was to review a young adult novel that focuses on diversity. Because diversity can be a broad subject, I believe it to beneficial to narrow the scope down to only focus on young adult novels that portray characters of the LGBTQ+ community. After narrowing down the scope, I search the local library OPAC for Queer young adult novels that could be appealing to teenagers. After searching Moreton Bay Regional Council Library OPAC I found a Queer young adult romance fantasy novel called ‘Spell Bound’ by F.T. Lukens. While searching for a novel was an important step in the selection process the majority of time was spent reading the novel, highlighting key moments, major plot points, and character development. By taking this approach I was able to write a book review that gave a reader a detailed description of the novel.

What was Learnt:

Authors of the 2018 article ‘Don’t Talk About the Gay Character: Barriers to Queer Young Adult Fiction and Authors in School and Libraries’ Emily Booth and Bhuva Narayan, discuss the lack of diversity within the young adult genre concerning queer representation and the challenges that are faced when getting queer young adult books into libraries and schools. These challenges come in the form of the school curriculum not supporting the use of LGBTQ+ fiction in the classroom and gatekeeping by staff. While it is interesting to learn about the gatekeeping that is still thriving within educational and community spaces; it was surprising to learn that within Australia young adult novels that focus on a diverse cast of characters within the LGBTQ+ community are published less and as a nation we are behind America and the United Kingdom when it comes to publishing LGBTQ+ books, Emily and Bhuva state that in 2017 only eight LGBTQ+ young adult novels were published within Australia. This is compared to the 123 heterosexual novels published in the same year (Booth & Narayan, 2018, p. 3).

While we do have organizations that are pushing for more diverse books within the publishing, education, and library industry; one of these organizations pointed out within the article is Diversebooks.org (WNDB) which provide access to information and resources about how we can increase more diverse books within spaces (Booth & Narayan, 2018, p. 4).

Is it relevant to the library industry:

Reviewing books is an effective tool that librarians can use to gain insight into the interests of patrons. Librarians will be able to build and maintain collections that will assist with attracting new patrons that will encourage engagement and meet the needs of existing users.

Because of this benefit to libraries and patrons, reviewing novels that embrace diversity; can increase awareness of young adult novels that feature LGBTQ+ characters, librarians will then be able to provide access to information, books, and resources where they feel represented or included.

References:

Booth, E., & Narayan, B. (2018). 'Don't Talk about the Gay Character': Barriers to Queer Young Adult Fiction and Authors in Schools and Libraries. English in Australia, 53(2), pp. 40- 49

Schechter, S. (2023). Spell Bound[Book Cover]. Simone & Schuster. https://www.simonandschuster.com.au/books/Spell-Bound/F-T-Lukens/9781398521476

Artemis, N. (2022). Gay LGBTQ flag[Pride Flag]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/vectors/gay-lgbt-flag-homosexual-intersex-7258750/

[staybookish]

The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee by Ellen Oh

I’m part of the book tour for The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee! Author Ellen Oh is a former adjunct college instructor and lawyer with an insatiable curiosity for ancient Asian history. She loves K-pop, K-dramas, and eating good food that someone else cooks for her. She is fueled by Diet Coke and Krispy Kreme donuts are her kryptonite. Ellen is a founding member of We Need Diverse Books (WNDB), a…

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#Blog Tours #Young Adult

[sashakielman]

It's that time of year again! For the fourth year in a row I'm so proud to be writing and fundraising with The Mighty Pens during National Novel Writing Month. This year, our fundraising efforts benefit We Need Diverse Books. I would be honored if you considered a donation through my fundraiser!

#writeblr #national novel writing month #we need diverse books #the mighty pens #fundraising

[amithaknight]

PLEASE check out the We Need Diverse Books holiday auction (closes tomorrow, 12/12 at 9pm EST) , which will also support their Books Save Lives campaign. There are tons of great manuscript and query critiques still up for grabs (including a query critique from yours truly)!

#weneeddiversebooks #bookssavelives #queryletter #manuscript critique #writers #authors #agents #auction #nonprofit #charity

[mizamour]

This delightful book is a joyous ride in itself, rolling through comp-sci concepts with clarity and humor - and inclusive representation! Pearl, a fun-loving, problem-solving girl, is at the amusement park with her robot, Pascal, and can't wait to ride the Python roller-coaster! (comp-sci puns abound) But the line is so long! Cleverly, she creates a variable to keep track of her ride tokens, and an If-Then-Else to check the coaster line length. If ShortLine is true, they'll ride the coaster - else, they'll do something else fun! While they enjoy the park, readers will laugh at the interactions between Pearl and her literal-minded robot (like when Pearl says "let's do something fun on the map," Pascal starts juggling on top of the map), while taking in the details in the cheerful illustrations (I was excited to see a family with two dads riding the ferris wheel!). This second coding picture book book from Josh Funk and Sarah Palacios is educational and fun, showing coding as a natural part of problem-solving! Perfect for younger siblings of kids who like Layla and the Bots or Secret Coders - or anyone! #steambooksforkids #steam #coding #codingbooksforkids #picturebooksofinstagram #picturebooks #wndb #diversepicturebooks #girlsinsteam #librariansofinstagram #librariansfollowlibrarians #schoollibrarian #schoollibrary https://www.instagram.com/p/CeJWN2Suh5D/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#steambooksforkids #steam #coding #codingbooksforkids #picturebooksofinstagram #picturebooks #wndb #diversepicturebooks #girlsinsteam #librariansofinstagram #librariansfollowlibrarians #schoollibrarian #schoollibrary

[reveal-the-news]

Ormond Beach's Revive Fitness & Lifestyle Management Offering Free Training to Vets | WNDB

Ormond Beach’s Revive Fitness & Lifestyle Management Offering Free Training to Vets | WNDB

Ormond Beach, Fla. – Revive Fitness & Lifestyle Management, an Ormond Beach-based fitness center, is offering free training to veterans in November. In honor of Veterans Day, those who have served their country now have the opportunity to hit the ground running with their fitness and lifestyle goals without worrying about the cost. “We’re so unique, voted #1 in health and fitness countless times…

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[heartstoppernews]

Today we’re pleased to welcome Alice Oseman to the WNDB blog to discuss her young adult novel Loveless, picked up by Scholastic for publication in the U.S.!

Source: We Need Diverse Books

Date of Publication: Feb 1 2022

Link: https://diversebooks.org/qa-with-alice-oseman-loveless/

#alice oseman #blog post #interview #author #loveless #aroace #hs #heartstopper #netflix #lgbt #osemanverse

[logicpublishers]

Apply for We Need Diverse Books Mentorship Programme 2023

Apply for We Need Diverse Books Mentorship Programme 2023

The Mentorship programme aims to support writers and illustrators by pairing them with an experienced professional in the field. The mentors work one-on-one with a mentee and their completed draft of a manuscript over the course of a year, offering advice to improve craft and to better understand the publishing industry. In 2023, WNDB will offer fifteen mentorships split among the following…

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[newjenns]

you’re the alligator wndb We’re the butterflies on your head

widepeepoHappy

#this is awesome guys #cirque.du.soleil

[alphareader]

How do you ruin someone's childhood?

Ellie Marsden was born into the legendary Lovinger acting dynasty. Granddaughter of the infamous Lottie Lovinger, as a child Ellie shared the silver screen with Lottie in her one-and-only role playing the child monster in a cult horror movie. The experience left Ellie deeply traumatised and estranged from people she loved.

Now seventeen, Ellie has returned home to Hobart for the first time in years. Lottie is dying and Ellie wants to make peace with her before it's too late.

When a chance encounter with a young film buff leads her to a feminist horror film collective, Ellie meets Riya, a girl who she might be able to show her real self to, and at last comes to understand her family's legacy.

#book #loveozya #yalit #danielle binks #writing #young adult #young adult book #aussie ya #author #the monster of her age #themonsterofherage #queer ya #queerya #wndb #sapphic fiction #bisexaul #bisexual fiction #book cover #ya

[quietya]

Most Anticipated 2022 YA Books

Do most people start with recapping 2021 when making these kinds of lists? Sure they do! But I still have ten days left to get my reading on, so we’re gonna start by talking about 2022 books I cannot wait to dig into.

Disclaimer: Most of the links in this post are affiliate links for Bookshop.org. If you purchase through these links, I get a small commission, at no extra cost to you. And if you’re in the US or the UK, Bookshop is a great alternative to Amazon that allows you to support indie bookstores across the country. (The rest of the links are goodreads links because the books aren’t available on Bookshop)

Without further ado: my most anticipated 2022 YA books

Hollow Fires by Samira Ahmed A Thousand Steps Into Night by Traci Chee Violet Made of Thorns by Gina Chen Princess of Souls by Alexandra Christo Edgewood by Kristen Ciccarelli Reader, I Murdered Him by Betsy Cornwell Cake Eater by Allyson Dahlin Debating Darcy by Sayantani DasGupta Aces Wild by Amanda DeWitt Pretty Dead Queens by Alexa Donne The Kindred by Alechia Dow Killing Time by Brenna Ehrlich A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw The Summer of Bitter and Sweet by Jen Ferguson The Agathas by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson Moon Dark Smile by Tessa Gratton Valiant Ladies by Melissa Grey Finding Her Edge by Jennifer Iacopelli All the Best Liars by Amelia Kahaney As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh Murder for the Modern Girl by Kendall Kulper Only a Monster by Vanessa Len A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke No Filter and Other Lies by Crystal Maldonado The Darkening by Sunya Mara Mirror Girls by Kelly McWilliams Nightrender by Jodi Meadows The Ones We Burn by Rebecca Mix The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh Being Mary Bennet by J.C. Peterson Alone Our Here by Riley Redgate A Far Wilder Magic by Allison Saft Castles in Their Bones by Laura Sebastian An Echo in the City by K.X. Song The Stars Between Us by Cristin Terrill This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede Fire Becomes Her by Rosiee Thor Sofi and the Bone Song by Adrienne Tooley Nothing Sun and Nothing Spoken by Nita Tyndall The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder Silver in the Mist by Emily Victoria This Golden State by Marit Weisenberg

#book list #this is your mod speaking #ya books #wndb #mogai #book recs