Black History Month Children Book Recommendation Part 3 : The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson

 As we continue to celebrate Black history month, this week I would like to share another one of my favorite picture books written by a brilliant black author. The book I would like to discuss this week is The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson.  

The Day You Begin Illustration by Rafael Lopez

The Day You Begin is a 32-page picture book written by Jacqueline Woodson. The picture book was published in 2018, and it is a number one New York Times bestseller for young children between the ages of 5 - 8 years old. 

The Day You Begin tells the story of celebrating everyone's diversity within the classroom; each person comes from a different background and experiences, in which everyone can learn from each other by sharing their stories. This is illustrated in the picture book when the readers meet Angelina for the first to share her story about her summer vacation. 

After reading this picture book, the book tells a powerful message as it touches on essential themes like self-esteem, inclusiveness, embracing our differences and similarities, positive friendships, and celebrating diversity, identity, and culture. For the most part, Woodson makes it a mission to remind us we are all different in our own way, making us feel like an outsider at times — whether it is our race, cultural differences, appearances, what we eat, our actions — but once we have the courage to share our personal stories and experiences to others, it gives them the opportunity to learn and appreciate our differences and accepting us for who we are. 

Lastly, the picture book is beautifully illustrated by Rafael Lopez. The book was presented with the use of various mediums to reinforce Woodson's story. Rafael used many traditional mediums like watercolor, pencil, acrylics, and wood to create texture and uniqueness to the character's story. The illustrator also uses a lot of rich, bright, vibrant colors to capture the overall meaning and message of the story.