The Power of Female Protagonists - Seeing is Believing

I'm in Houston this weekend for the NCTE Annual Convention. It's been amazing so far and I'm excited for today and my two sessions. One session is on innovative non-fiction and the other is called "Becoming the Leaders: The Power of Female Protagonists to Empower All Student Voices." I already know it's going to be a fantastic conversation with Molly Brooks, Alex Gino, Mae Respicio, Laura Shovan, and Linda Williams Jackson.

I'm honored to be part of this amazing group and can't wait for the conversation we are going to have. On the plane ride here to Houston, we had a female pilot. I overhead a woman on the plane say, "And we had a female pilot. I've didn't know there were female pilots. I mean, I knew there were, but I didn't really know."

It stood out to me because I could hear the importance of representation and believing something when you see it. I couldn't remember ever having a female pilot before so it made me stop and think too. There is power in seeing yourself. There is power in seeing a variety of people and knowing truly seeing that each person is unique and valued and in then truly seeing that you are unique and valued.

Below I have a list of recommended reading to share from the amazing authors that I'll be talking with today: Molly Brooks, Alex Gino, Mae Respicio, Laura Shovan, and Linda Williams Jackson. My contribution is this wonderful video from Bomba Estéreo. Their song Soy Yo is a celebration of being yourself and a reminder to love who you are. I hope you enjoy it!

Recommended Reading

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman

Escape from Aleppo by N.H. Senzai

Ernestine, Catastrophe Queen by Merrill Wyatt

Evangeline of the Bayou by Jan Eldredge

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

George by Alex Gino

Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve

The House That Lou Built by Mae Respicio

The Laura Line by Crystal Allen

Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson

The Mad Wolf’s Daughter by Diane Magras

The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl by Stacy McAnulty

Nadya Skylung and the Cloudship Rescue by Jeff Seymour

Patina by Jason Reynolds

Peasprout Chen, Future Legend of Skate & Sword by Henry Lien

Sanity & Tallulah by Molly Brooks

A Sky Full of Stars by Linda Williams Jackson

Skylark and Wallcreeper by Anne O’Brien Carelli

Spin the Golden Lightbulb by Jackie Yeager

Takedown by Laura Shovan

The Unforgettable Guinevere St Clair by Amy Makechnie

Unidentified Suburban Object by Mike Jung

The 11:11 Wish by Kim Tomsic

Recommended Listening

Kidlit Women Podcast 

Episode from 10/22/18: “Jennifer Ziegler discusses with Alvina Ling how adults gender-limit children's reading without realizing it.”