Issues of Representation in Books

One of the biggest wonders of reading is that we can empathize with the characters and feel the story. What happens, however, when the books that we read do not represent us? How are we to relate to them? In this New York Times article, Where Are the People of Color in Children's Books? Walter Dean Myers talks about issues of representation in literature: "Of 3,200 children's books published in 2013, just 93 were about black people..." Books are about shared experiences, yet the stories that are published tend to exclude people based on economic strata and race. The piece articulates why representation is so important in the works that are published today. This article has really stuck with me...