Books for children

MY hair, my crown

WRITTEN BY TONYA ABARI AND ILLUSTRATED BY TABITHA BROWN

My Hair, My Crown Board Book (ages 0-5) from Mudpuppy features sweet rhyming words and bold, colorful illustrations that highlight a beautiful and diverse range of Black hairstyles. A surprise mirror on the last page encourages children to celebrate their own beautiful hair!

Available for purchase at Barnes and Noble, Bookshop, and Mudpuppy. *Due to their company’s stance on ideologies that do not align with my values, I have removed purchase links from Target, Walmart, and Amazon from this website.

Let’s Celebrate Juneteenth!

WRITTEN BY TONYA ABARI AND ILLUSTRATED BY TABITHA BROWN

Introduce children (ages 0-5) to the history and traditions of Juneteenth with the Let’s Celebrate Juneteenth Board Book from Mudpuppy. Featuring rhyming text and colorful, bold artwork, this board book is a beautiful celebration of this important holiday. A wonderful addition to your child’s bookshelf!

Available for purchase at Barnes and Noble, Bookshop, and Mudpuppy.

locs, not dreads

WRITTEN BY TONYA ABARI AND ILLUSTRATED BY CHASITY HAMPTON

Selah can't wait to show off her newly loc'd hair at school, but when she bounces off the bus, her classmates react with whispers and a word Selah hasn't heard before: dreadlocks. The word dread makes her uneasy: is there something scary about her hair? Selah's family shares stories about standing up to hair discrimination and why they love their locs, helping Selah return to school with confidence, because there's absolutely nothing dreadful about her hair!

LOCS, NOT DREADS celebrates the rich history and beauty of naturally loc'd styles. Perfect for readers of CROWN: An Ode to the Fresh Cut and Hair Love.

Available for purchase at Bookshop.

A powerful and vibrantly illustrated account of the resilience and dedication of the unsung Black heroines who played a major role in World War II. Perfect for fans of Hidden Figures, Opal Lee and What It Means to Be Free, and Tyler Perry’s blockbuster film The Six Triple Eight.

In 1943, the United States was facing a unique wartime crisis—too much mail! Millions of letters and packages, stacked from floor to ceiling, sat unsent in cold, dark warehouses, with no one to sort through the backlog and no way to deliver mail to the troops.

Enter the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion.

Formed of Black women who had advocated fiercely for their right to enlist in the U.S. military, the “Six Triple Eight” battalion had one special task: sort and send the mail. It wasn’t easy, but the Six Triple Eight got to work!

Putting in long hours to send out each piece of mail in record time, they had a four-word motto that powered them through: “No mail, low morale!” As they helped deliver support to the soldiers on the frontlines, these women proved there was nothing they couldn’t do! 

Former teacher turned multigenre writer and editor Tonya Abari and debut illustrator Lance Evans honor these women with a stunning nonfiction picture book sure to educate and inspire future generations.