Almost a third of school-age children are from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. But they will still struggle to find characters who resemble themselvesBooks can show us the world both as it is, and as it could be – “mirrors and windows”, as the author Malorie Blackman notes. For children, they are currently falling short on both counts. In the pages of a picture or chapter book, readers have their experience affirmed or glimpse exciting new possibilities: mastering a fear of the dark, or travelling through space. Yet a young black or Asian child picking up a book today is more likely to encounter a rabbit than a protagonist who looks like them, says the expert who has led a new review of representation, Reflecting Realities. This is astonishing in an age when 32% of school-age children are from black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds; and is bad news not only for them but for all young readers. Publishers are offering a dated, narrow and skewed picture of the complex, diverse, interconnected world around them.Don’t blame Beatrix Potter. This is not a historic, cumulative problem; the new research covers only books published in 2017. The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education asked publishers to submit titles with BAME characters and received fewer than 400, set against the roughly 9,000 books published for children aged three to 11. Quality and sheer variety are as important as quantity. Only 1% of titles featured a BAME lead character; in a quarter of... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2018-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's publishing emerged relatively unscathed from a recessionary 2011, with 13 of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Want to replace your traditional library with ebooks? Here are some sites and tools that can help you make your physical books disappear. Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2012-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Journalist and TV researcher Hester Abrams has been appointed to the role of director of literary... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The actress Jennifer Lawrence in a scene from the movie adaptation of "The Hunger Games." Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2012-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Today's Wall Street Journal takes a look at a new lineup of "enhanced" digital books that incorporate music, video and high-tech graphics. But as one Wharton expert notes, the market for these elaborate productions remains to be seen. Continue reading at Knowledge@Wharton
[ Knowledge@Wharton | 2012-01-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For an indie publisher to launch its first line with a $300 art book takes guts and vision, but that’s what Ammo Books’ founders Paul Norton and Steve Crist did in 2006 when they published 3,000 copies of Gonzo by Hunter S. Thompson and sold out in less than a year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Book Depository’s IT director Will Jones is departing the company after four years.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stationery retailer Viking has reported a “promising” start to its bookselling... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Michael Morpurgo's War Horse (Egmont) was comfortably the bestselling book in the UK last... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones has launched a "book club" promotion, with the strapline: "Books you... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The earnings of German book retailer Thalia's parent group Douglas Holding will be hit by the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Illustrated publisher Thames & Hudson is to expand its children's list with new non-... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Independent publisher Saqi Books is to launch a new non-fiction imprint, with plans to publish... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Print books sales in the US fell 9% in 2011, with strong growth in digital sales appearing to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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F+W Media, a Blue Ash, Ohio-based media company serving enthusiasts in about 20 verticals including antiques and collectibles, crafts, writing and horticulture, has acquired World Tea Media, organizer of the World Tea Expo. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2012-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A group of Chinese writers has filed a lawsuit against Apple, alleging that the company's App Store sells pirated versions of the authors' works. Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2012-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An imprint of Penguin Group USA discovered Kerry Schafer after she posted samples on Bookcountry.com, a site that lets writers share their work. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2012-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hodder & Stoughton has acquired music star Sir Elton John's first book, Love is The Cure... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Penguin Children's Group has created the role of acquisitions manager for its media and... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ever since Algonquin used the American Booksellers Association’s Winter Institute to get booksellers to read and fall in love with Sara Gruen’s Water for Elephants, which sold more than a million copies before being turned into a film, publishers have been using the winter bookselling confab to... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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