The Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison (CCBC) has counted the number of books published by and about people of color every year since 1994.

In 2016, NPR reports, the CCBC found that there were 427 children’s books published that were written or illustrated by people of color. Slightly higher, thankfully, was the number of books about people of color. Out of the 3,400 children’s books published last year, 736 — or 22 percent — were about people of color.

CCBC defines people of color as being black, Latino, Native American, Asian or Pacific American; together, these groups make up 38 percent of America.

And yet, not even 38 percent of narratives are about them. Fortunately, things are looking up. 20 years ago, the CCBC’s annual census showed that only nine percent of children’s books were about people of color.

The CCBC’s director, Kathleen Horning, acknowledged the progress, but lamented attitudes prevalent in publishing, “There’s no problem with publishing five or six books in a season about bunnies, but if we’re talking about books about black boys?”

This week, one children’s book on The New York Times’ bestseller list features a protagonist of color — a black girl named Ada Twist who wants to be a scientist.

One book is certainly better than none, but let’s hope more publishers adopt Stacey Barney’s attitude. A senior editor at Penguin Putnam Young Readers, Barney told NPR that she believes, “books that are about black people or about Muslims or about Asians can also find a home and be loved by people who are not that culture.”

If black children enjoy reading about hungry caterpillars and white boys who find out just where the wild things are, then certainly children of all colors can get behind Ada Twist and other girls like her.

Cooperative Children's Book Center

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