on diversity in literature:"I don't think that anyone should underestimate
the importance of all children being able to see themselves in the literature intended for them -- to identify with characters that look like them and ones that don't. I think there's a dire need to see more diverse characters portrayed in stories that are not necessarily about "race" or "multiculturalism," for example, but that we encounter and accept these differences among characters in stories, as we do in our everyday lives -- as natural elements of the world we live in. Our societal fabric consists of a cornucopia of people, familial structures, and religious and ethnic backgrounds; I would love to see the stories that we tell reflect this." |
"I have very early memories of words before I knew what words were. I was always drawn to their magic, I suppose. I would walk around the house with a book tucked under my arm, even before I could read. Some kids had teddy bears; I had books.”