by Abelardo de la Pena Jr.
WHAT’S HAPPENING
- Science fiction and fantasy literature written for children and young adults is white-hot — and, for the most part, populated with white heroes. Tu Books is out to change that, starting with the publication of its first set of books featuring multicultural characters.
- Book editor Stacy Whitman, concerned about the lack of diversity in science fiction and fantasy for young readers, raised $10,000 via Kickstarter, an online funding method, to found Tu Books (io9.com, 5 November 2010). This got the attention of independent press Lee & Low, which acquired Tu Books as an imprint.
- Coming in 2011: Galaxy Games by Greg Fishbone, a space adventure about an alien spaceship visiting Earth to recruit a team of kid athletes to compete in a tournament, with a Japanese American as the main character. Also Wolf Mark by Joseph Bruchac, whose main character is Native American.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO BUSINESS
- Young readers who see their race or ethnicity reflected in the stories they read can become avid, lifelong book consumers, no matter the genre.
- Readers of fantasy and science fiction are adept at immersing themselves in worlds completely unfamiliar to them. Introducing multicultural main characters can add real-world context to far-out fiction.
RESOURCES
