My Reflection Children’s Bookstore has taken steps to increase Indian representation in children’s books to include a wider range of children’s books with Indian main characters.
The mission of our bookstore is to make a powerful impact on children in Trinidad and Tobago by allowing them to see themselves in the books they read. To this end, we are thrilled to offer books in which Indian children can see themselves in such cool roles as an Avengers superhero, a fearless activist and even a science-loving mermaid!
You can see the full range of books with Indian main characters here: Indian Main Characters – My Reflection Children’s Bookstore (myreflectiontt.com)
Why Representation Matters: Mirrors and Windows
Books are meant to be both mirrors and windows.
Children get the ‘mirror’ experience when they see someone similar to them in the books they read, with regard to their ethnicity, cultural background and belief system. This helps children feel affirmed, validated and inspired. The ‘mirror’ experience is therefore very important for a child’s self-image.
Due to our colonial history and the fact that we import the majority of our books, many children from our local Indian community rarely see characters who look like them in the books they read. In fact, U.S. Publishing statistics reveal that the vast majority of characters in children’s books are either Caucasian (50%) or Animals (27%). Only about 7% of characters in children’s books are of an Asian background. This 7% statistic includes characters from all parts of Asia and the Pacific Islands, such as Korea, China, the Phillipines, Cambodia, India and others. As such, very few Indian children in our country have a wide array of books with characters of their particular ethnic or religious background. This is especially a concern for those of a Hindu or Muslim background growing up in the Western world where Christianity is celebrated and other religions are often misunderstood or reviled.
Children get the ‘window’ experience when they read books with characters different from them. The ‘window’ experience is essential for a child to be open-minded, compassionate and see the world from another person’s point of view. In addition, children truly enjoy reading about characters from a wide variety of cultures and backgrounds. The issue is that when Indian children are only exposed to books with Caucasian or animal characters, they never benefit from the ‘mirror’ experience.
Both parents and educators should take note of this and ensure that all children in their homes and schools are exposed to a wide range of books that would allow them to benefit from both the mirror and window experience. This will ensure that children have a great self-image and also the required perspective and empathy to successfully navigate our beautiful, multicultural world.
For more on why representation matters and building self-esteem and empathy in children, read the following posts:
A Powerful Perspectives on Representation
A consideration of the importance of Indian representation in children’s books would not be complete without the perspective of an Indian-Trinidadian author who has made bold steps to decolonize our bookshelves by producing content with Indian characters :
Katrina Khan-Roberts: Children’s Books Author and Mother
As with many other ethnicities, the South East Asian community and diaspora are faced with preconceptions and stereotyping. As young people, especially in my experience with a love for reading, these stereotypes show through in the books and media we have available to us. It is hard enough to deal with our identity distortion within our own families, far more so to not be able to seek strong examples in literature.
Dealing with colourism, hair texture, eye shape and colour and all the range of physical features we associate with being attractive is only one part of it. We also face the pressures of choosing a career path, to be a doctor, lawyer or engineer as the preference while being a writer, artist or environmental scientist are looked upon with disdain.
We are now seeing an emergence of local and regional authors who are people with the voice and the bravery to use it in a time where we need it most. There is always more to do, but the more we take the opportunity to communicate, the better we will understand ourselves and our place in this world.
For myself, I hope that the mermaid I always wanted to be can live in the pages of my book to inspire young people who may look like me and even those who don’t. We must all live together in a beautiful melanin spectrum, equally reflected.
You can learn more about Katrina here: Wonderful new Caribbean Author: Katrina Khan-Roberts – My Reflection Children’s Bookstore (myreflectiontt.com)
Keep in touch with Katrina here: www.instagram.com/mertrinatt
About Us
My Reflection Children’s Bookstore provides children’s books with diverse main characters to promote self-love and a love for reading among children.
Shop online at www.myreflectiontt.com for delivery to any address in Trinidad & Tobago.
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