Join us Saturday July 30th at 2pm in the Tarea Hall Pittman South Branch library for an empowering afternoon of Black & Asian solidarity. Dr. Mishi Booker and Ko Kim, authors of Brown Boy Joy and We Are Gems, children’s books aimed at targeting racism and inspiring children of color, join together in conversation to uplift, empower, and inspire. They will both do a reading of their latest works followed by a children's activity about affirmations and embracing our identities. Children attending will engage in age-appropriate anti-racist conversations and concepts.
Please RSVP on Eventbrite. This event will be held outdoors, in the Tool Library Parking Lot. It is often quite sunny this time of day in front of the Tool Lending Library so you may want to bring a hat or sunglasses.
Copies of Brown Boy Joy Fros, Braids, Fades & Waves and We Are Gems will be available to borrow from the library and for purchase at the event as well as in-store at our co-hosts for this event, Eastwind Books of Berkeley and online at www.asiabookcenter.com.
About Brown Boy Joy:
This book is filled with all the things little brown boys love. From dinosaurs to gardening there are no limits to what little brown boys can enjoy. This book shows the world what Brown Boy Joy looks like. Brown Boy Joy is an empowering story filled with affirmations. Inside you will find vibrant illustrations and rhyming text designed to capture the attention of children.
About Fros, Braids, Fades & Waves:
Fros, Braids, Fades, and Waves is a celebration of Black boy hairstyles. Black boys can wear their hair in any style that makes them feel good and confident. This book elevates Black joy! Using African American Vernacular English the story is delivered in a poetic style. Inside you will find vibrant illustrations and rhyming text designed to capture the attention of children. This book puts Black boys front and center.
About We Are Gems: We Are Gems helps readers to critically question microaggressions against Asian Americans while embracing self-love and solidarity with Black and Indigenous-led movements for healing and justice. It is a joyous celebration of Asian Americans and our history.
We Are Gems covers six common microaggressions faced by Asian American children and young people and offers empowering ways to think about/ respond to these slights. A supplemental guide for caregivers and educators is attached at the end of the book to provide deeper explanations of each microaggression -- to help adults to understand a challenging topic since our children are learning, after all, by reading us.
The book is written and illustrated by Asian Americans -- available as an ebook, softcover, or hardcover. Find out more at justwordsjustdeeds.com.
Themes
-Asian American self-love
-Asian American microaggressions
-historic and ongoing solidarity among Asian American and African American/ Black American communities
About the Authors:
Thomishia Booker is a self-published author and CEO of Hey Carter! Books. She launched Hey
Carter! Books which is inspired by her son, in 2016 after being disappointed in the lack of
representation for Black boys in children’s books. Her background as a licensed therapist and
mother serves as the foundation for writing children’s books focused on building self-identity in
young children. She is passionate about ensuring Black children feel seen and heard in every
space they enter. Thomishia’s book “Brown Boy Joy” was featured in the Netflix original series
Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices featuring Jill Scott, Common, and Tiffany Haddish.
Additionally, her brand Hey Carter! Books has been featured in Forbes, The Today Show, and
The Steven Colbert Late Show. Her books are filled with affirmations and speak life into children
as you read them. She is committed to showing the world “Happy Black children, living their
happy Black lives!”
A former classroom teacher and reading coach, Ko Kim cherishes that moment when a book “clicks” for a young reader.