It's A Wrap! | Dive Into Diversity

I can't believe that this post is the last one of the year! We've come to the end of Dive Into Diveristy and I must say as a host, it's been quite the ride. Lots of learning, growing and reading good books. I hope you've enjoyed the challenge, our posts and most of all, that it encouraged you to expand your TBRs and read more diversely. For our last post, Estelle and I wanted to reflect on the challenge and year, so we've interviewed each other for some fun. I hope you enjoy her answers below and if you'd like to read my interview, click over here.

Lastly, thanks to all the participants and awesome people who have followed along. Keep reading diversely because we still need diverse books and they matter. And to Estelle and Magan: thanks for co-hosting with me! I couldn't have done it without you <3

Hosting Dive Into Diversity has been a learning curve for me, as I’m sure it has been for you, too. What’s been the biggest challenge for you?
Honestly? Keeping up with the movement. There is *so* much going on beyond We Need Diverse Books, and all of it is so important. It’s almost a bit overwhelming because when you are planning a challenge like this one, you want to be knowledgeable and have the time to do research, but there are so many different avenues – it would take forever. I’m so glad to see this conversation is happening so frequently though. It’s great.

Time to rewind and reflect: Favourite DID post of the year?
Of yours, I loved: how diverse are your shelves? For ours, I had so much fun with my YA Diversity Book Club interview.

Recommendation time: Top three favourite diverse books you’ve read this year. Plus, an underrated pick we should all bump up our TBRs.
A toughie! The Boy in the Black Suit by Jason Reynolds (who is a genius); The Secret Side of Empty by Maria E. Andreu; Cut Both Ways by Carrie Mesrobian. I think all of these are underrated but I’m all for recommending a fourth book: Kinda Like Brothers by Coe Booth.

From reading diverse books and listening to marginalised groups voice their thoughts, it’s been a year full of learning and growing for me. What’s something you've learnt over the past year?
There are so many ways to look at “diversity”; no one story is alike. I hope that these campaigns and conversations reach those who are outside of the “book bubble” and readers start asking questions about why their experiences aren’t reflected in the books they are reading. It’s one thing for all of us to be blogging about it and for there to be articles in trade magazines, but I hope the reader in a classroom realizes they have the power to question the lack of diversity in the stories they are seeing at school and in their library.

We’ve seen good progress since the We Need Diverse Books campaign launched and this past year has seen a number of diverse titles published and do well - but we’ve still got room to improve. What do you think is next for diversity in lit?
I think I sort of answered it in the above question. Going beyond what has happened so far is important. The diversity conversation has the power the engage young kids who are curious about others, want to learn about the world, and also want to feel like their own story is important and worth telling. Everyone deserves to pick up a book that speaks to them.

Dive Into Diversity: Robin Talley Interview

Welcome back to another Dive Into Diversity post! This month I'm interviewing Robin Talley to celebrate the release of What We Left Behind. Enjoy and don't forget to leave your reviews in the link-up below!

Your upcoming release, What We Left Behind, is about Gretchen, who identifies as a lesbian and Toni, who identifies as genderqueer. Firstly, could you please explain genderqueer for those who aren’t familiar with the term? Secondly, how was it writing these characters? Were you ever scared of not doing the characters justice or offending people? (Yes, this is me jumping right in the deep end.)

For Toni, neither end of the binary gender spectrum ― male or female ― feels quite right. Toni spends much of What We Left Behind exploring gender identity and expression, and uses several different labels for gender over the course of the book, including genderqueer. I should note, though, that this is just Toni’s experience. Other folks who identify as genderqueer may have experiences totally different from Toni’s ― as is the case with labels for gender across the board.

And to your second question, I loved writing these characters. Loved, loved, loved it. There’s always a fear element to writing anything, of course, but I tried to be as authentic as possible in the writing of this story and these characters, and creating What We Left Behind was above all a joyful experience.

You said on your blog Toni and Gretchen are "two of my favorite fictional people ever”. What do you love most about them and what does their story mean to you?

Toni and Gretchen have been with me for a long, long time. They started out as secondary characters in the very first book I wrote, back when I was first teaching myself how to do this whole novel thing. That book wasn’t very good and it will never leave my hard drive, but Toni and Gretchen were my favorite things about it, so I wound up writing another book where they were front and center. And now I’m incredibly thrilled that their story is entering the world. Both of them feel so real to me I sometimes forget I made them up.

From my knowledge, What We Left Behind will feature one of the first genderqueer characters in YA. Along with that, I’ve heard the book will also include a diverse cast who identity somewhere on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum. Are you excited about the conversations that your book will encourage? What do hope readers take away from it?

I’m always happy for my writing to spark conversations! At its heart, What We Left Behind is a story about coming of age ― about figuring out your place in the world and in relation to the people you love, and about how that place changes as you grow and change as an individual. So that’s what I hope readers will take away.

I’m not a writer myself, but I would like to think each book you write would teach you something along the way. What did you learn in the process of writing What We Left Behind?

Because What We Left Behind is told in alternating chapters between Toni and Gretchen ― it’s the only book I’ve written in that format ― I had to carefully balance my plot and structure in a new way. It really forced me to look closely at exactly what had to happen when, to make sure I was keeping a fair balance between the two points of view and that the story was moving along at the right pace. It was a challenge, but it definitely taught me some useful lessons about structure.

As someone who is passionate about writing diverse books (particularly LGBTQIA+), what advice do you have for those wanting to write diversely, but are afraid to incase of getting it wrong?

If you’re writing about characters whose experiences are different from your own, your first step is going to be research, research, research. I think a lot of writers who worry about getting things wrong are at the very beginning of the writing process ― conceptualizing a story ― and if they’re too afraid, they might not ever get further than that. But research is an essential part of conceptualizing, no matter what you’re writing about. So my advice is to start there, so you can learn what you need to know before you can dive into the writing itself.

What was the path to publication like for you? Any tips or advice for LGBTQIA+ writers that you wish you’d been privy to back then? (Maybe about what finding an agent was like, and any tips for the process? Or general helpfulness.)

I followed the standard process of querying literary agents when I was first starting out. With the first book I queried (that was the one I mentioned above, featuring Toni and Gretchen as side characters), I didn’t wind up getting representation. But I got a lot of very encouraging rejection emails (for real, those are a thing!). So the very first query I sent for my next book was to the agent who had sent me the most encouraging rejection the first time around. He’s also the one I wound up signing with, and he still represents me today. He’s awesome, and I feel so lucky that he sent me that encouraging rejection years ago! As for LGBTQIA+ writers who are at the beginning of the query process, every YA agent out there seems eager to represent more books with queer characters, so my advice is to put it all out there ― be direct in your query about your characters’ orientations and identities.

And last but not least, recommend us a diverse book (or two!) you think we all need to read and why. I think we can all agree that readers can never have enough good recommendations!

Two books that I read recently and that made me think a lot ― in very different ways ― are George by Alex Gino and The Unintentional Time Traveler by Everett Maroon. Both books have a lot to say about gender identity, but George is for a younger audience and made me weep with joy, and The Unintentional Time Traveler is for an older crowd and is a fascinatingly twisty sci-fi tale.



Author bio:
Robin Talley, author of Lies We Tell Ourselves (September 2014) and What We Left Behind (October 2015), grew up in Roanoke, Virginia. A Lambda Literary Fellow, Robin now lives in Washington, D.C., with her wife, plus an antisocial cat and a goofy hound dog. When Robin’s not writing, she’s often planning communication strategies at organizations fighting for equal rights and social justice. You can find her on the web at www.robintalley.com or on Twitter at @robin_talley. 

Dive Into Diversity: How Diverse Are Your Shelves? (Bookshop Ed.)

A few months back I did an experiment called, How Diverse Are Your Shelves? It was eye-opening, a lot of fun and not only did you enjoy it, but it got you guys thinking, which was great to see. So for September's post, I decided to do it again, except this time, in a different environment - the bookshop! So here's take two, How Diverse Are Your Shelves? Bookshop edition!

The (estimated) facts:

- Four aisles of shelves equates to a LOT of books. My guess is 900 - 1000 titles in the YA section.
- After browsing the shelves, I found 27 books that counted as diverse (QUILTBAG, POC, authors of colour, nerodiversity, ect). I could only go off of books I knew, so this is an extremely rough estimate and I’m sure I missed at least another half of books that would have counted. Especially since fantasy, dystopian and paranormal aren’t my go-to genres. Add another ~30 books for any I missed and I think that would be about right.
- From a rough estimate, I calculate 6.25 % diverse titles.

Diverse titles I found browsing...

Now, you might be wondering... well, that's seem like a great selection of diverse titles there! And it is. But keep in perspective I searched for them through all these shelves:

Bookshelves in question...

Was I surprised by the results?

Yes, I didn’t actually think they’d have the selection and amount that they did of diverse books. Percentage-wise, it’s still really low, but I was glad to walk in there and be able to find diverse titles. The non-diverse titles obviously outweighed the diverse titles, but that’s to be expected. After all, you have to look at what’s being published and what’s already out there.

What did I learn?

If we want to be able to go into a bookshop and see diversity on the shelves, we need be showing interest and buying diverse titles in-store. This makes sense and is something I already knew, but it's a great reminder!

Overall thoughts:

Very different to the first time I did this experiment with my own shelves, in that I couldn’t be as precise and a lot was calculated guess work. Great to see bookshops stocking diverse titles!

I hope you enjoyed this experiment like you did the last one! So tell me: how diverse are your bookshops? Do you make a point to buy diverse titles in-store? Lastly, have you had any interesting conversations to the staff about books and diversity? I'll leave it there and let you take over in the comments... Don't forget to link up your reviews for this month!

Dive Into Diversity: Cover Chat

Just as all people deserve to read books and see themselves on the page, it’s also important for them to see themselves on covers. So today I'd like to chat covers - starting with authors who have taken matters (and covers) into their own hands, along with sharing favourites. Because who doesn't love a cover well done?

Authors who write diverse stories are also determined and passionate about their covers representing authentically. Take Dahlia Adler’s recent f/f Under the Lights, for example. If you’ve read the cover reveal post you’ll see how hard it was in trying to bring this cover to life. As Dahlia said: "So, two girls, who are clearly into each other, one of whom is Asian-American. Surely there’s an endless abundance of stock photos of that, right?” But thankfully with Maggie Hall’s (author and designer) help, as you can see, they got there in the end!

Another cover I want to mention is a recent cover reveal for More Than Fashion by Elizabeth Briggs. In case you didn’t notice from the cover, it’s NA ;) After unsuccessfully browsing stock sites trying to find an interracial couple, the author decided to take matters into her own hands and put on a custom photo shoot, which you can read about here.

While these were both successful covers, most authors don’t get much say in their covers, if any, and lot of it comes down to publishers and their choosing. The good thing I discovered after searching and putting a tweet out for others to have their say, was that I didn’t get much negative feedback (i.e.: whitewashing), apart from Nicole pointing out Immortal Rules original cover. But that’s not to say there hasn't been disappointment and white-washing in the past because I’m sure there has been.

All I can hope is that we’re becoming a more diverse, rich book community and covers will accommodate that. 2015 has been a pretty fantastic year of diversity and I hope this is just the beginning of many, many more wonderful diverse titles to come, along with that many, many more badass diverse covers!

As for my favourites? The Last Leaves Falling (US version) is my not only one of my favourite diverse covers, but one of my favourites in general. Oh, how I love it! It's stunning and eye-catching and it's so damn perfect for this book. And if I haven't read this yet, PLEASE DO. I haven't been able to review this yet, it's a bit too close and personal for me to put into words, but this book is so incredible and brilliant.

Dumplin is just downright fabulous. Her stance is bold and awesome and I have a feeling I'm going to love this book! Such a simple yet wonderful cover, don't you think?

I've been a fan of the Lies We Tell Ourselves since I first laid eyes on it. I love how it's a yearbook.

So now it's your turn to chat - sound off in the comments and tell me which diverse covers you love! Also, what would you like to see more of on covers? What's missing? As always, link up your diverse reviews below. I look forward to seeing what you've been reading!

Dive Into Diversity: Favourites of 2015 (so far!)

Hello there! If you're reading this, sorry for my absence, I've been in a slump and just haven't been able to bring myself to read or blog or do much of anything. Hopefully this feeling passes soon because it sucks. But on to better and brighter things, todays Dive Into Diversity post! Having been away, this post was rather last minute, but contains something all us book lovers love doing: chatting about books we've loved! And here today, I've gathered two lovely ladies to share their favourite diverse reads of the year (so far)!

My favorite diverse book I've read this year is TRUST THE FOCUS by Megan Erickson. It's a male/male romance about two best friends on a post-college road trip. One is out, but the other isn't. I loved watching Justin's growth! Seeing him find his courage. Seeing him and Landry find their way to each other. Justin is from a conservative family, which I identified with. Even though TRUST THE FOCUS is New Adult (with some sexiness added in), I feel like YA readers who love contemporaries with themes of self-discovery would love this book. -- Molli Moran, YA author of As You Turn Away

The Wrath and the Dawn is a mesmerizing and compelling debut written by Renee Ahdieh that is loosely based on the Arabic folk story, A Thousand and One Nights. In a genre that so often tends to follow a very specific mold, it was extremely refreshing to read a fantasy that incorporated a culture I had no real prior exposure to, so effortlessly. The details about the food, the clothing, and the language only made the story that more richer and fascinating. Shahrzad  was a fantastic endearing heroine. Feisty, sarcastic, and clever she brought a spark to the story that was complimented by Khalid, the Caliph of Khorasan whom I adored. Together, they were amazing. The ultimate royal power couple, their scenes together were filed with undeniable chemistry and an addicting romance. Overall, The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh is hands down one of my favorites of 2015 and a refreshing fantasy read that offers readers a look into a captivating culture. -- Kaina @ These Flying Pages

As for my pick? I think you know my favourite diverse book of the year, which is no other than Becky Albertalli's Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. I push this book so hard and I mean, I've even created a fan tee - it doesn't get more dedicated than that.

But to spread the book love, I'm going to go with None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio. If you haven't read this, you should. It's a brilliant, eye-opening book that sheds light on intersex, a topic that doesn't get talked about nearly enough and I hope that changes soon. This was my first intersex book, but I thought the author handled the subject matter with such care and respect and I definitely recommend it!

I love how diverse our list turned out to be - a gay love story, a book about intersex and a fantasy with a POC main character. I'd love to hear YOUR favourite diverse title of the year and why we need to read it. And if you're a challenge participant, don't forget to link up below! Happy reading!

Dive Into Diversity: Understanding Pride Month

After announcing Simon’s Most Holy Awesome Pride Month Agenda (if you're a Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda fan, check it out!) yesterday, I thought a post about Pride Month was in order. And here it is. Maybe you know a lot about what this month is all about, maybe you don’t. For me, I was the latter, having only heard of Pride Month in passing. So to fix this, I took to researching and discovering what I could. Here’s what I learned:

So...what is Pride Month?
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month (LGBT Pride Month) is currently celebrated each year in the month of June to honor the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan. The Stonewall riots were a tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States. In the United States the last Sunday in June was initially celebrated as “Gay Pride Day,” but the actual day was flexible. In major cities across the nation the “day” soon grew to encompass a month-long series of events. Today, celebrations include pride parades, picnics, parties, workshops, symposia and concerts, and LGBT Pride Month events attract millions of participants around the world. Memorials are held during this month for those members of the community who have been lost to hate crimes or HIV/AIDS. The purpose of the commemorative month is to recognize the impact that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals have had on history locally, nationally, and internationally. - taken from loc.gov/lgbt/about.html

What happens during Pride Month? Are allies allowed to join in?

There are a ton of amazing events, parades and festivals going on in the US, from a Pride pageant, to a concert for love and acceptance, to a Pride comedy night. And yes, allies are welcome to join in. If you’re an Aussie reading this post you might be wondering, do we have Pride Month here in Australia? We don't, but there are LGBT events held throughout the year. If you're interested, this list of worldwide events is helpful!

Apart from going to festivals and such, what are other ways to celebrate Pride Month?

Maybe you can’t get to an event or maybe you live outside the US, but still wish to join in and show support. Here’s a few suggestions, good for anytime of the year:

1. Learn the history and become more aware. Being informed is always a good way to show support. Here's a short video on Pride Month for visual folks. It's worth a watch!
2. Volunteer at a local LGBT youth centre.
3. Buy, borrow, read, discuss and share your favourite LGBT books.
4. Support LGBT bookstores. There aren’t many around, but there are a few in Australia. Giovanni’s Room in the US looks a great please to visit. Just look at that beautiful display!

Giovanni's Room is a landmark, the country's first LGBT bookstore. Proud to see @IWGregorio & @beckyalbertalli here. pic.twitter.com/uWTJmwK7yl

— Eric Smith (@ericsmithrocks) May 27, 2015

5. Support and follow great LGBT blogs like Gay YA. If you haven’t checked them out, they post fabulous guest posts, interviews, reviews and even run a book club!

I hope you enjoyed this post and learnt some new things, I know I certainly did! Here’s to a great Pride Month. Link up and happy reading!

Dive Into Diversity: How Diverse Are Your Shelves? Experiment

For today's post, I wanted to do a little bookish experiment. Basically, I wanted to examine my shelf with a critical eye and see how diverse they really are. After all, if we want more diversity, we have to support it, right? The results were certainly interesting...

The facts: 
- All up, I have 191 books. (This is only counting books I keep on my shelf. I also have others in cupboards that I’m finished with, on loan, ect.)
- After sorting through, I found 31 books that counted as diverse, including QUILTBAG, POC, authors of colour, nerodiversity, ect. I went off what I knew and Goodreads, so it’s a rough estimate, give or take a few.
- So to sum up, my shelves are 1/6 diverse.

Now for some picture evidence...

Now, the first picture is my shelf with any diverse titles removed. And the second drastic picture, where-did-all-the-books? go are the diverse titles I own:

Quite an eye-opener, huh?

Was I surprised by the results?
Yes, but also, sadly, no.
No, because you have to counter in the diverse books available/published vs. all the other books. That is, the latter dominates.
Yes, because I thought my shelves were more diverse than they are. So to see photos and numbers showing otherwise was quite a realisation.

What did I learn?
Well, my shelves are definitely not as diverse as I’d like them to be. I wouldn’t say I make a special note to buy them, but I’m learning it’s very important to do so. Because the bottom line is: If we buy and borrow and request them, publishers will print them, libraries will have them and bookshops will sell them. It’s as simple as that.

So…what did you think of my little experiment? 
How diverse do you think your shelves really are?

I spy with my little eye: Far From You and Prep School Confidential reviews

Today I’m reviewing two YA mysteries - one light and the other dark - so whatever you’re in the mood, I’ve got you covered.

Far From You by Tess Sharpe
March 10th, 2014 · Indigo
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 343

Nine months. Two weeks. Six days.

That's how long recovering addict Sophie's been drug-free. Four months ago her best friend, Mina, died in what everyone believes was a drug deal gone wrong - a deal they think Sophie set up. Only Sophie knows the truth. She and Mina shared a secret, but there was no drug deal. Mina was deliberately murdered.

Forced into rehab for an addiction she'd already beaten, Sophie's finally out and on the trail of the killer—but can she track them down before they come for her?

Far From You sat on my shelf for well over a year before I picked it up. And considering that it was one of my most anticipated 2014 reads? Well, that’s just quite sad. I put off reading it after hearing how dark and gloomy it was. While true, it was also a breath of fresh air to read; in the way it read and with its’ cast of flawed, interesting characters - along with Sophie, the first bisexual MC I’ve come across. So yes - if you ever think we have enough diversity in books, just read that last sentence again. Quite an eyeopener, huh? It even surprised myself. One thing I admired about Sophie was that she was messy, grappling with an addiction . I feel like a lot of characters these days are clean cut or perfectly perfect

Far From You is a murder-mystery done well; it certainly kept me on my toes. But it’s main focus, and where its heart really lies, is in the darker, deeper side of things, as we watch Sophie struggle with grief, loss and sobriety, all the while, fighting for justice to bring Mina’s killer to light.

Part of the reason I’ve been away is that I’ve been in a book slump. But thankfully, this book is very forgiving. It took me a while to read, but no matter how much time passed, whenever I picked it up, it was effortless to jump back into, which is a rarity. An impressive debut, it was exactly the book I’d hoped for; I look forward to seeing what Sharpe writes next. And if like me, this caught your eye when you first heard about it, but you haven’t got round to it? I think you may want to pick it up!

Prep School Confidential (#1) by Kara Taylor 
July 20th, 2013 · St. Martin's Griffin
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Page Count: 310

In this breathtaking debut that reads like Gossip Girl crossed with Twin Peaks, a Queen Bee at a blue-blooded New England prep school stumbles into a murder mystery.

Anne Dowling practically runs her exclusive academy on New York’s Upper East Side—that is, until she accidentally burns part of it down and gets sent to a prestigious boarding school outside of Boston. Determined to make it back to New York, Anne couldn't care less about making friends at the preppy Wheatley School. That is, until her roommate Isabella’s body is found in the woods behind the school.

When everyone else is oddly silent, Anne becomes determined to uncover the truth no matter how many rules she has to break to do it. With the help of Isabella’s twin brother Anthony, and a cute classmate named Brent, Anne discovers that Isabella wasn’t quite the innocent nerdy girl she pretended to be. But someone will do anything to stop Anne’s snooping in this fast-paced, unputdownable read—even if it means framing her for Isabella’s murder.

Another book I was highly anticipating from 2013 and guess what, it’s a murder-mystery. What can I say? I like my mysteries. That, and they also happen to be a great genre when you’re trying to get out of a book slump. Mysterious, engaging and entertaining, what’s not to love? Now, while Far From You was dark and gritty, this was the opposite. Fun and lighthearted, its the kind of book that uses words like shenanigans. Which you must admit, is a pretty great word, no? Shenanigans! Sorry, what was I saying again?

Anne reminded me of Veronica Mars, heavy on the snark, minus the prep. Determined and smart, when she set her mind to something, there was no stopping her. Haters of love triangles beware - there are two guys in the picture vying for Anne’s heart. Story of everyone’s life, right? But to honest, I never came to care for either much. I definitely feel the story led more with the mystery element, which worked in its favour.

Prep School Confidential was a pretty good story, but I felt like it started off stronger than it ended. Or maybe it was to do with my slump and in that case, sorry book for the accusation, my apologies. Either way, it was a quick read and provided some entertainment.

Have you read either of these? Let me know if you have or plan to.

And let me know your fave YA mystery's! Any I should add to my list?

Amongst the Shelves Interview - Dive Into Diversity

Hello there! I hope you’ve been reading some great books lately. I just finished Far From You and look forward to sharing a review with you guys. But you should know I really enjoyed it! I know I haven’t been around of late (hello, book slump), but I have something special for you guys today. Last month I got in contact with Lauren, a library worker for an interview on diversity and today I get to share it with you all! I hope you enjoy. 

From being a reader and working in a library, what’s your thoughts on diversity and the WNDB campaign?

For me personally I have spent most of my working life with books – either in the bookstore or at the library where I currently work. I greatly admire the motivation behind the WNDB campaign and it is something of great importance for discussion but I think it means something else/more to me.

 We recognize all diverse experiences, including (but not limited to) LGBTQIA, people of color, gender diversity, people with disabilities*, and ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities. Our mission is to promote or amplify diversification efforts and increase visibility for diverse books and authors, with a goal of empowering a wide range of readers in the process.

While I admire and support the aim of the WNDB campaign above, my interpretation of diversity means so much more. At the library, we have a responsibility to represent the needs/demands/interests of our local community. It is not only the responsibility of a public library to be a source of information and resources but to make sure they are relevant and most importantly, accessible. So from the point of view of a library, diversity also means materials produced in a variety of languages that reflect the various nationalities of the community. Not only must the languages reflect our clientele, but they must also be accessible to a variety of reading levels – English as a second language, beginner readers – and abilities – large print, audio, Braille – and I think that these can sometimes be areas where there is great potential to fail our goals.

We as a library are as affected by availability as a purchaser. We must ensure that we have a wide variety of large print books, of audio, and of books printed in a variety of languages and the smaller the client base the more difficult and more expensive it becomes to source such material. Balancing the demand for a particular genre or format from your clientele and what publishers are willing to provide can be quite difficult.

As I am a storyteller (and also because they are just awesome) I read a lot of picture books. I am very conscious of the content of these books. While I tend to select books that are full of crazy adventures involving aliens, monsters, pirates, Santa Clause and IMAGINATION, I am very keen to make sure those books include books with both boys and girls and books that are not reduced to gender stereotypes. My favourite books will have as many girls wrestling dragons as there are boys doing craft. But my ideal picture book would be one that isn’t tokenistic and doesn’t draw attention to its diversity. The greatest picture books are the ones that just ARE. That show kids of all nationalities that have varied interests, that have varied talents and abilities and that represent the different dynamics and makeups of a family unit without declaring loudly and proudly ‘I AM THE ISSUES BOOK! LOOK AT ME, BEING POLITICALLY CORRECT ABOUT ISSUES!’

"I also want to know that those books are well written and are about something more than ticking a box in an attempt to be politically or culturally aware.”

 Having worked in books for years, when did you first notice the lack of diversity? 

I think having my own blog and getting involved in all the social media was probably what made me question what I’d read and taken for granted. Probably the first big wakeup call would have been the scandal surrounding the casting of Rue in The Hunger Games. I hadn’t read the books until after the movie, but I remember being so fascinated by the unfolding drama surrounding people insisting Rue was a little white girl. The next was probably that the scifi book by Beth Revis had had the cover rereleased with a much less ethnically diverse couple than were represented in the story. 

We Need Diverse Books campaign is US-based, but hopefully spreading all around the world. Since then, have you noticed a difference in books being loaned or in readers requests?

I’m not sure that social awareness has been of great concern to our borrowers. In terms of the youth of our library, I’m usually so delighted when they DO borrow that what they borrow doesn’t really matter. As far as I can recall, I have not received a complaint about a lack of diversity in the content of our collections. As I said, social awareness hasn’t really cropped up in the conversations I overhear from the teens that come to the library. Perhaps, sadly, rather than make a complaint or request, such borrowers would simply stop using our services. 

One of the most common requests would be for books in other languages which I do count as a request for diversity and we cater to those requests by ordering material from the State Library in the language of their choice. The more we have promoted this service, the more awareness our borrowers have and we are certainly seeing more, not less, of these requests. 

"the concept of diversity will be so commonplace it won’t NEED mentioning."

For readers wanting to do their bit to support diversity in books, what can they be doing personally/in conjunction with their library?  

If people think that a certain section of the community or of a collection is being underrepresented or excluded, definitely raise that with the staff. A member can always put in requests for particular titles or collections and the library in question should do their best to fill that gap or purchase appropriate titles to the best of their budget ability. The aim of anyone working in a library is (hopefully) to promote knowledge and information, to be accessible and to make sure what’s in the collection is being put to good use.

If they find a particular book they think deals fantastically with a particular subject – PROMOTE IT – tell the staff, tell them they do a great job in selecting material, ask your teachers to include it as part of a reading list or on the syllabus, tell the staff how it relates to an HSC topic, check to see whether the subject headings appropriately reflect what the book is about, tell your friends to borrow the book, ask the staff if you can write a review of it somewhere. Libraries routinely look at what’s being borrowed as a measure of success, if a book has a lot of loans, we’ll buy more from that author or buy more copies for the other branches or make sure we buy more books like it. 

And last but not least, do you have a diverse book recommendation for us? 

I think one that I haven’t seen get much attention from bloggers is Ambelin Kwaymullina’s The Tribe series which is set in a post-Apocalyptic Australia and features an Indigenous girl as the main character and draws much of its strength and from the Dreamtime lore. It is a dystopian novel with a government determined to weed out those with powers and has the fear of the ‘Other’ story that has been so big the last few years but I found this story to be such a refreshing new take on the genre.

__________

Dive Into Diversity: Love Has No Labels

I recently saw this beautiful video on the weekend and it warmed my heart to say the least. It further goes to show why diversity is not only important but so, so great.

When I see this, I see in words:

happiness 

joy

acceptance

and most of all…

LOVE

There isn’t really much else for me to say, so I’ll leave it there. Enjoy it if you haven’t already had the pleasure of viewing it and if you have, why not watch it again and brighten your day! Until then, happy reading and don’t forget to link up your diversity posts and reviews. I can’t wait to see what you've been up to this month! P.S. Watch out for an upcoming interview with a library worker - I can't wait to share with you all!

Diverse Books That Changed Our Outlook + Feb Linky

No one likes books that have undying (or not so subtle) lessons and motives. But I’m always up for discovering a new side of things or go in with an open mind - in books and in life. And today, we have some readers (and authors) stopping by to share how a diverse book changed their outlook and impacted them. Happy reading and don’t forget to link up your reviews and more below!

The book that immediately jumps to mind when I think of one having changed my outlook is OCD Love Story by Corey Ann Haydu, which is a fantastic contemporary YA about a girl named Bea who suffers from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. A big gamechanger for me was actually when I heard Corey talk about the book at a panel, and she mentioned that OCD is an anxiety disorder, which I hadn't known. The book is so intense, I actually had to put it down several times, but having read it and knowing that about anxiety actually helped me put my own anxiety issues into perspective. For a long time after reading it, whenever my anxiety was really flaring up, I'd think, No, you don't have major anxiety; Bea had major anxiety. That's what that looks like. You are fine. You can handle this. And being able to have that thought process was indescribably huge for pushing through things I don't know that I could have otherwise. It also made me way more conscious of the way the term is thrown around to basically mean "a little neurotic" or "likes things orderly," and while I'm sure I misused it that way before reading it, I know I've never, ever done it since. Like, if you throw that term around casually, I pretty much know you haven't read it. You couldn't have. But you should. -- Dahlia Adler, author of Behind the Scenes

I recently read Hostage Three by Nick Lake (review), and it opened my eyes up to the other lives people lead. The main character’s family is on a summer vacation on their yacht, sailing around the world, when they are taken hostage by Somali pirates. While on board, we get to know a lot of the pirates in addition to the English characters. Their lives are so different and just as compelling, and it made me think about those who are in a situation that may lead to a life of piracy, crime, or anything else, and how it may not be their fault, or they may be doing it to protect loved ones. It was a wonderful eye-opener to how others live that I had never thought of before. -- Cassie, blogger @ Happy Book Lovers

When Rebecca asked me to talk about a diverse book that had an impact on me, I immediately knew I wanted to mention FAR FROM YOU by Tess Sharpe. Anyone who has ever asked me for a LGBTQI book recommendation knows how much I love this book. It's non-linear and follows the lives of two best friends. FAR FROM YOU features a disabled main character and LGBTQI characters. My experience reading it was singular.

Growing up, I wasn't able to put a name to what was different about me. I knew I wanted to read books with characters like me, but I was too afraid to ask. I think if I'd had FAR FROM YOU as a teen, I could have come out sooner. Even though I read it as an adult, I still credit Tess Sharpe's beautiful, tense, haunting book with healing part of that scared girl I used to be. -- Molli Moran, author of As You Turn Away

For me, one of my most recent reads comes to mind - The Secret Side of Empty by Maria E. Andreu. I’d never read a book on an illegal immigrant before this and it just completely opened my eyes to what they go through and face; especially the emotional turmoil, guilt and how they feel ostracised, even as they go undetected, like M.T does. I wasn’t particularly familiar with the subject or the in and outs, only things I’d heard on the news, but I actually couldn’t believe it was the first book I’d read on the matter. Again, this is why diversity in books is so important - it lends a look into the looking glass.

So tell me, which diverse book changed your outlook?

Dive Into Diversity: Taking the Good with the Bad + January Link-Up

Taking the Good with the Bad

Diversity in books is important. It’s why We Need Diverse Books has blown up the way it has, spreading like wildfire. Readers have sorely noticed the lack of race, sexual orientation, culture, religion, persons of colour, disability (and more) being underrepresented and decided it was time for change. But like the saying goes, no press is bad press. Or is it?

We want more diverse books, and in hand with that, shelves that prove it; that burst with all kinds of stories to tell. But in truth, just like with any book, we have no way of controling how truthfully and authentically a book will be portrayed. We hope it’s written by someone who either has experience or background in that matter or by someone who’s well researched and informed. But having been a reader all my life, I’ve come to know that sometimes that isn’t always the case.

A point I’d like to bring up is what happens when we read a diverse title that unfortunately, for reasons, get’s things wrong? But more so, what if we don’t realise how off point it is? Not because of lack of smarts, but because of simply being uniformed. What sparked this thought was when I was adding a diverse title on Goodreads a few months back and I scrolled down to check out the reviews. In one review, someone with background on the subject had said how it was a cliche, offensive, stereotypical portrayal. But then there were also positive reviews, and 4-5 stars from a few friends who’d read the book. It was confusing. In the end, I ended up adding it, but it made me very cautious and wary of whether I’d even give it a go or not. Thinking about it now, I think I will. Not because I think the reviewer is wrong, but because I’d like to read it for myself and see what I think. It’s not a culture or religion I’m familiar with, so I plan to equip myself with a site that was recommended and to give that a read, too.

Diversity is good, in all shapes and forms. But it’s even more important to make sure it’s written authentically, with care and knowledge. And I suppose the only way we can make that happen is to say we want more diversity; that we demand it. The truth is, whatever the story, diverse or not, there will always be a book that sometimes doesn’t get things right or offends or infuriates or puts its foot in it and chokes on it or makes a mockery. So what can we do? Firstly, discuss and talk about the books that don’t get it right and why. If someone is interested in one of those books, at least it will make them aware and they'll know that maybe it isn't the best representation available. Secondly, it’s our job as readers to let the amazing, magical books shine; for them to get the spotlight they rightly deserve. And another thing: to be aware and welcoming of what we aren’t familiar of. Read and enjoy a book on a specific matter ? Don’t just stop at one, read another and another. Or if you have questions and want to know more, research. Become informed. So with that: bring forth; share; chat; recommend and celebrate the books that get it right. Not only do they deserve our voice, they need it.

____________________

Hi there! Dive Into Diversity participant? Don't forget to check out Rather Be Reading's awesome post! If you review a diverse book or write a diversity post throughout January, link up! Simple as that. If you haven't joined the challenge and would like to know more, check out this post. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment, tweet or email me. Happy reading!

Dive Into Diversity: Challenge Announcement & Sign-Up

Earlier this year, the much needed, very awesome campaign for #WeNeedDiverseBooks took off in April and since then, it has been inspiring change in readers, bloggers and authors alike, who are demanding more diversity. And in the past month, through the money raised through Indiegogo, it's only further proven the fact just how passionate people are about this; I am, too.

Inspired by the campaign, one thing led to another and soon I had an idea - to host a diverse reading challenge in 2015. I was beyond excited, but I also knew I'd need some help to run it. So I reached out to one of my favourite blogs and co-blogger team, Estelle and Magan from Rather Be Reading. It turns out, they also liked the idea!

And so, Dive into Diversity was born and the rest is history.

(Also, special thanks to Rachel from Hello, Chelly for creating the button and banner!)

The challenge:

We want to keep this stress-free and fun, so all we challenge you to do is read and review diverse books in 2015. However many is up to you. But remember: the more you read, review, discuss, the better!

Books that count:

As for what counts as diverse, we like this definition taken from the We Need Diverse Books tumblr: "We recognize all diverse experiences, including (but not limited to) LGBTQIA, people of color, gender diversity, people with disabilities, and ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities."

How can I discover books to read throughout the challenge?

Check out this Diversity in YA/MG list or my diverse shelves:

Diversity --- QUILTBAG --- Racial, POC, Cultural

As for what I recommend? 3 of my favourite diverse books of 2014:

The Last Leaves Falling by Sarah Benwell - Japanese teenage; ALS disease; male MC. Sounds pretty diverse, right? Such a beautiful, thoughtful, heartbreaking book. This releases next year and boy, get ready to hear me talk about this one a lot. (Enter to win a preorder of this below!)

Jasper Jones by Criag Silvey - This book has YA/Adult crossover (I found my copy in the A section of the library) and the secondary character, who the book is actually named after, is Aboriginal. A wonderfully woven mystery with depth and character. Super cool fact: the author is from Western Australia (where I live) and is set in places I know of.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han - When I finished this book, I hugged it. It was just so enjoyable and sweet. It was also interesting to read about holding on to traditions and your culture, when it isn't always easy to. (my review)

Why join the challenge?

Why not? Not only is it going to be a fun, but it's going to support diverse books. Other cool things you can expect throughout the year: diverse posts, giveaways, maybe some challenges, lots of interaction.

How do I sign up?

First off, thanks for joining! To sign-up and show your participation:
- Write a post for your blog. In this post, link back to this sign-up post, include the button or banner and some of the books you look forward to reading for the challenge. If you don't have a blog, no worries! You can sign up with Youtube, Goodreads, Twitter and so on. Just remember you'll need a place to post reviews (Goodreads, Amazon, ect).
- Add your sign-up post in the linky below. This is a must to be eligible for any giveaways held throughout the year. 
- If you want to show your participation, feel free to grab the button to display on your blog. (optional)

I've signed up. Now what?

1. Come January, start reading diverse books!
2. Once you've written your diverse book review, add it to the monthly linky, which will post in the first week of every month.
3. Don't forget to use #DiversityDive to chat, share book recs, let others know what you're currently reading and more on Twitter.
4. Have fun!

Important challenge details:

- Dive into Diversity runs from January 1st, 2015 to 31st of December 2015.
- You can sign-up anytime throughout the year.
- Any book format is allowed - hardback, paperback, ebook, ect.

<div align="center"> <a href="http://ratherbereadingblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/DiversityDive-Challenge-Button.png" title="Dive Into Diversity Reading Challenge 2015"><img src="http://ratherbereadingblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/DiversityDive-Challenge-Button.png" alt="Dive Into Diversity Reading Challenge" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Who's ready to Dive into Diversity?