Promising Practices Reflections of the Caribbean in Children’s Picture Books A Critical Multicultural Analysis Zaria T. Malcolm & Ruth McKoy Lowery What were your experiences like als of the Caribbean region. Lynch-Brown, their representations of the Caribbean and growing up in the Caribbean? What is Tomlinson, and Short (2011) assert that its people. the Caribbean like? Why do Caribbean multicultural literature should reflect the We wanted to see what aspects of folks come to America if life is so hard diverse cultural representations that are Caribbean life are readily available in for them here? Why do we not see more normal stories about Caribbean in our society and that all children should picture books to young children as well as children in these picture books? “find their lives and cultural experiences to others curious to understand the life of reflected within classrooms and the books Caribbean children. Because Caribbean During a children’s literature class they read” (p. 214). Children need to see immigrants, particularly Jamaicans, are discussion about the representation of their lived experiences in the books they the largest Black immigrant group in the Caribbean children, the above questions read. United States (Banks, 2009; Waters, 1999), sparked our interest. Two students had In this article, we argue for a criti- we posit that books representing this group just shared their findings of realistic pic- cal analysis of the books that are used to of children should be available within ture book stories about Caribbean children. represent different cultural groups in the multicultural literature for all children. One student was concerned because the United States. We advocate exposing pre- only stories she could find articulated service teachers and others to the diverse Caribbean Children stories of poverty, “Stories about the Carib- experiences of young children in books, to in Picture Books bean always seem so depressing but when the ways in which these books can be used I visited Jamaica and the Bahamas, I saw in classrooms, and we argue that the stories Wanting to know more about the types varying levels of people.” presented should reflect the diverse nature of children’s books representing Caribbean The issue of multicultural literature of the cultures being represented. children that were available in the local in classrooms is a prominent one in con- Books, then, should be queried to see library, we did a general search using key temporary educational environments, how they fit in the overall representation of terms such as Caribbean, West Indies, and particularly in its application within urban a particular cultural group, looking closely Islands and gathered all that we could find. schools (Lalas, 2007). This can be attribut- to see if they provide one side or many This extensive search of the local libraries able to the increasingly diverse nature sides to understanding that culture. One yielded very few books portraying contem- of our society and the influence of a pro- fundamental issue in the analysis of any porary experiences of Caribbean children. gressively globalized learning space that literary source is the cultural sensitivity Although the selection of books was endorses cultural competence, tolerance, and authenticity of the material. A con- limited in scope, we found several books and an appreciation for social justice. sideration of the interplay between text that were available in multiple copies across In light of these considerations, edu- and illustration in its ability to represent the library system: Monica Gunning’s A cation stakeholders are more cognizant of historical elements, cultural details, and Shelter in Our Car (2004) and Not a Copper the application of multicultural literature regional authenticity are viewed as central Penny in Me House (1993), Regina Hanson’s and critically oriented multicultural ap- to its success in this regard (Mahurt, 2005). A Season for Mangoes (1995) and The Tan- proaches in the teaching and learning Botelho and Rudman (2009) contend that gerine Tree (1995), Rachel Isadora’s Carib- environment. These cultural representa- critical multicultural analysis allows read- bean Dream (1998), and Jeanette Winter’s tions are also inclusive of diverse portray- ers to assess representations of power and Angelina’s Island (2007). unmask dominant ideologies so they may We decided to focus on these books that connect textual messages with issues of were available in multiple copies since they Zaria T. Malcolm is a faculty member social change and justice (p. 9). were dispersed across various branches of at Excelsior Community College, In the remainder of this article, we the library system and thus were available Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies discuss our search for Caribbean repre- to a wider audience of readers. We read and Ruth McKoy Lowery is an associate professor sentations in children’s literature, looking the books to determine the “story” they in the School of Teaching and Learning, particularly at books that are available represented about the Caribbean to young in the College of Education in our local libraries. The picture books readers. Several thematic trends are noted at the University of Florida, discussed in this article offer multiple in the picture books generated through this Gainesville, Florida. opportunities for such critical analyses in search. MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION 46 Promising Practices Thematic Trends in Caribbean utilize such reading as validation of their readers. Though both Not a Copper Penny Children’s Picture Books experiences (Lamme, Fu, & Lowery, 2004). in Me House and Caribbean Dream utilize One central theme in the available Thus, it is critical that authenticity be vibrant imagery, both texts represent only books found in our search was the tran- ensured in depictions of cultural experi- one view of Caribbean life. There is a clear sition experiences of young Caribbean ences. The text and imagery in these books disassociation in these images from the children. These transitions occurred either do depict aspects of the bright colors and diverse and mixed racial heritage that via immigration or death of a loved one. A the strong family connection, food, sounds, actually characterizes the Caribbean, and Shelter in Our Car, The Tangerine Tree, and sights of the Caribbean throughout the this constitutes a neglect of the urban de- and Angelina’s Island all target the impact narratives, which may connect with young velopment that characterizes much of the of immigration on the child. Caribbean readers whether immigrant or contemporary Caribbean existence. A Shelter in Our Car depicts the nonimmigrant. struggles of an immigrant single mother Hanson’s A Season for Mangoes (1995) Critical Multicultural Analysis and daughter forced to live in their car is the story of a young girl’s (Sareen) at- tempt to come to terms with the death of From a critical multicultural perspec- based on financial struggles due to the tive there are several considerations to be death of the father figure and adjustment her grandmother at the traditional “nine- night” celebration held to assist spirits to made about the inherent representations to their new homeland. The mother is por- within these texts. Botelho and Rudman trayed as a strong, patient, hardworking transition to the other side. Through the love and support of her family and her par- (2009) suggest that picture books provide female in her quest to make a better life for dual sources of information and emotional herself and her daughter, Zettie, through ticipation in the ceremony, Sareen is able to better adjust to her loss and hold onto response through the combination of visual menial jobs and impoverished lifestyles. image and text, and that children are never Zettie is depicted as fearful and anxious happy memories of her grandmother. The images in the text are vivid and authentic. too young to be influenced by ideology or the of this new lifestyle while yearning for the transmission of existing norms that lead to pleasures of her island home. Assimilation Once again, food and family are core ele- ments represented in the storyline, with internationalization without question. is also addressed in her mother’s removal Therefore, it is critical that authors of the national flag of her native land in the additional emphasis on traditional folklore and practices. Contemporary Ca- and illustrators recognize the power of an effort to make Zettie more comfortable their productions. Additionally, children about her transition and avoid teasing ribbean readers may not readily connect with the practices identified in the text, should be encouraged to become critically from classmates. literate from an early age. The represen- In The Tangerine Tree, Hanson ad- but it serves as an attempt to validate and maintain knowledge of these practices for tations we have identified in the books dresses Ida’s adjustment to her father’s discussed here should be viewed in light immigration to the United States for work younger generations. Another dominant theme in the read- of these considerations. opportunities. The story portrays Ida’s Among the children’s books discussed, attempt to understand the need for the ings was stories depicting the scenery of typical Caribbean life. Gunning’s Not a Cop- A Shelter in Our Car, Not a Copper Penny separation, chronicled as an inability to in Me House, A Season for Mangoes, and find job opportunities on the island instead per Penny in Me House (1993) and Isadora’s Caribbean Dream (1998) clearly portray The Tangerine Tree seem most authentic of in the United States, and the search for a in the duality of text and imagery. In connection to her father in their tangerine this theme. Not a Copper Penny in Me House uses poetic prose to depict different these texts one or both contributors are tree and the hope that he will return by originally from the Caribbean. In contrast, the time she is able to read his gift to her experiences such as Christmas, hurricanes, laundry day, shopping, festivals, and school Angelina’s Island and Caribbean Dream of her own reading book.