I’m a literary consultant and have extensive experience in doing book-driven events. My company, The Literary Media and Publishing Consultants, has produced events all around the country under the banner of The Literary Café™ for adult authors. I looked around the community and saw wonderful book-driven events for adults, but nothing for our children. I asked around town and kept hearing that Black people don’t buy books for their children. I was horrified because I knew that in my circle, people bought books for their kids. This simply wasn’t true. I was on a mission .
Another issue is this myth that African Americans don’t read and won’t buy books for their children – especially hard cover. This is totally absurd. Access is the issue. Publishers and booksellers have to think out of the box. Go to the people – church bookstores, social and civic organizations. Here you will find a willing audience – willing to invest in their children.
African American consumers also need to be pro-active. When you walk into your local bookstore, if you don’t see African-American children’s titles on the shelves ask for some recommendations. Publishing is a business. Get your family and friends to buy at the location. If the bookstore knows they have an audience for African-American children’s books, you’ll see the difference.
The 29th Annual African American Children's Book Fair will be held virtually on Saturday, February 6, 2021. Hosted by the African American Children’s Book Project (AACBP), the African American Children’s Book Fair is one of the oldest and largest single-day events for African-American children's books in the country, with an average yearly attendance of more than 3,500.
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