Book Bonding: Building Connections Through Family Reading

Horn Book contributor Lambert (consultant, EmbraceRace; curator, Our Shelves; A Kid of Their Own) shows how books shape lives by sharing her experiences of being a white mother to her “multiracial, queer, blended family” of seven children, ages four to 25. This colorful, evocatively illustrated work explores themes of parenting, race, and adoption. It indicates the author’s belief that healing conversations can be inherent in literature discussion. Books are windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors, and rereading can bring about a different response in the same reader. Prioritizing books both by and about people of color in a course of study is the first step in teaching empathy and creating an anti-racist curriculum. The book would’ve been even more beneficial to readers if it had included more guidance about ways to implement these ideas. In the concluding pages, Lambert includes an extensive list of books.