Stories About People of Mixed Ethnicity. an Annotated Bibliography. PUB DATE Sep 95 NOTE 14P
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 390 951 UD 030 755 AUTHOR Gartenberg, Dildar TITLE Stories about People of Mixed Ethnicity. An Annotated Bibliography. PUB DATE Sep 95 NOTE 14p. PUB TYPE Reference Materials Bibliographies (131) EDRS PRICE MF01/PC01 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Adolescent Literature; Annotated Bibliographies; Children; *Childrens Literature; *Ethnicity; Fiction; Nonfiction; *Picture Books; *Reading Materials; Young Adults IDENTIFIERS *Mixed Race Persons ABSTRACT This annotated bibliography provides a comprehensive list of fiction dealing with mixed ethnic heritage for children and young adults. A few nonfiction items of quality are included. The bibliography is divided into four sections to match frequently used public library divisions:(1) picture books (early childhood)(22 books);(2) juvenile and school age (30 citations);(3) young adult (31 citations); and (4) adult (25 citations). The adult titles were selected for their interest for young adults and only represent a portion of titles available for adults. (SLD) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best. that can be made * from the original do,7ument. * STORIES ABOUT PEOPLE OF MIXED ETHNICITY AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY BY DILDAR GARTENBERG SEPTEMBER 1995 tr) "In all of us there is a hunger, m-..row deep, to knowour heritage.To know who we are and where we have come from.Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning. No matter whatour attainments in life, there is the most disquieting loneliness." Rom Alex Haley's Roots. U-1 Today there is a growing interest in stories about people ofmixed ethnicity. Many new books are being published with positive depictions of people of mixed ethnicity,just as current research is bringing to light examples of "lost" mixed-ethniccultural heros.This has not always been the case, however.As a result of the historical invisibility of mixed ethnicity, books on the subject can be hard to find, and library catalogingsystems do not indicate the mixed-race heritage of characters in most books.This bibliography provides the most comprehensive list available of fiction dealing with mixedheritage for ch.,dren and young adults. As of this date, I have included all fictions for children andyoung adults which deal with mixed ethnicity that I have been able to locate. Mostare fiction, though a few good non-fiction works were added. The bibliography is divided into four sections to match frequentlyused public library divisions:picture book, juvenile, young adult and adult. The adult titleswere selected for their possible interest to mature young adults, andonly represent a portion of available titles. I solicit additional listings.Please send any comments, suggestionsor requests regarding this bibliography to:Dildar Gartenberg, c/o I-Pride, P.O. Box 11811, Berkeley,CA 94712-11811. Or call 510-653-1929. A suggested future project, for anyone interested, wouldbe to create an anthology of the frequent accounts of mixed-race families extracted frombiographies, such as Beyond Uhura, by Niche Ile Nichols, or Having Our Say, by Sarah andElizabeth Delany. ....J s or Proil ?or tn 01 E DUCAT10.'1 F MK: AT IONAL REPRODUCE THIS !If- SOLI/if Fq r.if-I)Fil.114TIO.; Pr RMISSION TO Cf_t4ITFi If IFIC ic.Ifi,.. ,I., ,i0.-1ho 1. /, phl i.. tC( raL LI M...,i .1+,H 11 ,, , ,,, ,,,I. - '01l.111C c, 1(1 III Uut .AI( INAt NI OIMP I IONt NICIF Bibliography of the Literature of Mi\ed Ethnicity 2 BEST COPY AVAILABLE Older titles may only be available through libraries by special request.Many new books are available at Cody's Books in Berkeley. To order, contact Ira at (510) 845-3752 and mention I- Pride. By contacting Ira and mentioning I-Pride our members receive a 20% discount. I-Pride (Interracial/Intercultural Pride) is a non-profit goup of people sharing an interest in the well-being and development of individuals and families who are of more than one racial/ethnic heritage.I-Pride is a founding chapter of the Association of Multi Ethnic Americans, which links together other local groups similar to I-Pride. The bibliographer authorizes reproduction of any part ofthislistfor non- profituses. This document was created and edited by Gary N. Gartenberg. Contributing editor, Vicki Nelson. This bibliography was begun as a project for Terry Wilson's Ethnic Studies course given at U.C. Berkeley in the Fall of 1991. Since then many additions have been suggested by my fellow librarians, notably, Martha Shogren, Karen Madigan, Linda Phillips, and Maya Kennedy, as well as by my fellow I-Pride members Marilyn Drame, Jan Goodwin, and Jan Weisman. *About the compiler of this bibliography. My father was a Sikh born in a North Indian farming village who traveled to the United States in the 1920's with the financial sponsorshiP of Sikh farmers in the California Central Valley. He met my mother, who was of English descent, from a small town in Oregon, while both of them were students at U. C. Berkeley. When 'I was seven my father returned to India leaving me to grow up in America. .1 did not meet my father again until 33 years later when Itraveled to India with my husband and sons to visit him.That trip, in 1970, inspired my return to school at Berkeley to complete a BA in Art History and an MLS in Library Science.In working for these degrees I took classes in the language, art, history, and anthropology of India. The knowledge I gained from my studies of India helped me to answer many questions about my father's world.Reading about the Anglo-Indian community described in Bhowani Junction helped me to understand how my life might have been had my father taken me home to India with him. Han Suyin's autobiography made me consider what my mother's life would have been had she accompanied my father. Neither of these tales exactly mirrored the circumstances of my heritage, but by reading these accounts my comprehension of the intricate nature of racial and ethnic politics expanded, as did my sense of not being alone in facing the quandaries and challenges of mixed ethnicity. "Once you see yourself depicted, you have a sense of your right to be in the world." -novelist Pau le Marshall, in a 1992 National Public Radio Interview An asterisk (*)precedes books I recommend as gift selections. Bibliography of the Literature of Mixed Ethnicity PICTURE BOOKS/EARLY CHILDHOOD (These books are for reading aloud tovery young children.) Adoff, Arnold. Black Is Brown Is Tan. New York: Harper andRow, 1973. A celebration of the colors of an interracial family in radiantwatercolor and free verse. The family, a white father, black mother and their two children,mirrors Adoff's own marriage to Virginia Hamilton. Ahlberg, Janet and Allan.Starting SchooL New York: Viking Penguin, 1988. In this tale set in England, about the first day of school, childrenof many different colors are depicted through illustrations. One child's family is of mixed-ethnic heritage. Bradman, Tony and Eileen Brown. Through My Window. London:Mehuen, 1986. Wait and See. New York:Oxford University Press, 1987. These two stories, by the same author and illustrator,are set in England and portray the life and adventures of a charming girl named Jo, who lives withher black father and white mother in a multi-ethnic community. Davol, Marguerite W.Black, White, Just Right!Morton Grove, Illinois:Albert Whitman and Co., 1993. A lovely, simple, picture book about a child of mixed-ethnicheritage and her sense of being "just right." Garland, Sarah.Billy and Belle. New York: Viking Penguin, 1992. An amusing story about Billy and Belle's day at school while theirmother is in the hospital having a new baby. Illustrations show a black father anda white mother. Hananaka, Sheila. All the Colors of the Earth. New York: Morrow JuniorBook, 1992. Lovely illustrations include a portrait of a couple of different ethnicbackgrounds with their baby- "Love is amber and ivory and ginger and sweet." Themessage is "children come in all of the colors of the earth and sky and sea."- Excellent Gift Book! Heath, Amy. Sofie's Role. New York: Four Winds Books, 1992. A day in the family's bakery as seen through theeyes of a child.Superb illustrations depict a family that appears to be of mixed black/whiterace. Hoffman, Mary. Nancy No-Size. New York: Oxford UniversityPress, 1987. Nancy is the middle child of an interracial family who learnsthat being in the middle is a good place to be. Kuklin, Susan. When I See My Doctor. New York:Bradbury Press, 1988. A photo picture-book for small children, aimed at demystifyingvisits to the doctor's office. Photographs of the mother and son show a child of Asianappearance with a white mother. Lionni, Leo.Little Blue and Little Yellow. New York: Obolensky, 1959. This outstanding abstract picture book is not about childrenof multi-ethnic heritage but the image of color blending as a metaphor of friendship is delightful. Loh, Morag.Tucking Mommy In. New York: Orchard Books, 1987. A beautifully illustrated picture book withan amusing twist where a mother, attempting to put her daughters to sleep, instead falls asleep herself. The motheris Asian and the father is white. Bibliography of the Literature of Mixed Ethnicity/ EarlyChildhood- I 4 3ESTCOPYAVAILABLE Mandelbaum, Pi li.You Be Me I'll Be You. Brooklyn, New York:Kane/Miller Book Publishers, 1990. Translated from the Belgian French original, this tale depicts a biracial European family. The story plays with and provides commentary on racial characteristics. Charming illustrations portray a black mother and white father. McKee, David.Tusk Tusk. New York:Kane/Miller Book Publishers, 1990. A funny and upbeat story that pokes fun at a conflict between black and white herds of elephants.