Diverse Book Finder - Analyze Books
Diverse Book Finder is a searchable catalog that has analyzed picture books since 2002 for stories with human characters representing black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC). The project is funded by the Institute of Library and Museum Services in partnership with the Bates College Ladd Library in Lewiston, ME. It is predominantly for books targeted towards Kindergarten through third grade. It is unlikely that books for older students or board books will be included.
- From Diverse Books Finder's Search the Collection, scroll down and search for your book by title.
- Scroll through the results list to see if your title is included. If it is, click the title.
- If your book has a red flag, once you click on the title you will see a message stating, "This title has been critiqued for misrepresentation by one or more experts who belong to the racial/cultural group portrayed. Learn more." Critically consider how to move forward.
- Look through the themes to learn more about your book. Most of these make sense without explanation, but Diverse Book Finder uses different Categories to communicate what type of story a book is, such as Beautiful Life. I recommend clicking on the category to see the relevant definition.
