Given the prevalence of disabilities and chronic conditions, it is likely that you either have or know a child with a disability. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to find adequate and/or accurate representation of characters with disabilities in children’s literature. The following resources can help if you are on the lookout for books for your child, their siblings, or peers.
The American Library Association uses the Schneider Family Book Award to “honor an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences.” You can find lists of both current and past awardees on their website.
We Need Diverse Books/OurStory
After creating a free account for OurStory online or through their app, an interactive quiz can help you find the book you are searching for. In addition to searching for books based on types of disability (i.e. Sensory, Physical, etc.), you can also search by age, genre, and even story elements such as sports, music, animals, etc.
Rethinking Kid Lit/Representation Matters
The Representation Matters project of RethinkingKidLit.com, from Ball State University, contains reviews of books featuring characters with disabilities. Rewriting the Story features free, online original stories or retellings of classic stories featuring disabled characters.
Disability in Kidlit features reviews of middle grade and young adult books with a focus on the disabled perspective. All of the site’s contributors identify as disabled. While they are on a hiatus from new submissions, past reviews and their “Honor Roll” of recommended books can lead to some great finds.
Teaching Books features author interviews, lesson plans, book trailers, and other resources. They feature lists of books in various cultural collections, including a Disability Collection featuring over 1,000 books.
If these lists have given you some ideas feel free to browse or catalog or ask a librarian to help you find what you’re looking for. GPL’s Children’s Department also has a Childhood Experiences section featuring books on disabilities. Come in and browse, or let us help you find your next great, inclusive read!
