Shelf Essentials: Diversify your bookshelf!

Shelf Essentials: Diversify your bookshelf!

Shelf Essentials: Diversify your bookshelf! -6

What is Shelf Essentials?

Shelf Essentials is a backlist publishing initiative presented by Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group to highlight picture books from beloved BIPOC Creators. With this program we lift up critically acclaimed stories, authors, and illustrators, and will encourage readers everywhere to celebrate different cultures and make storytime more inclusive. From tender family stories to important conversation starters, no bookshelf is complete without these essentials reads. Each season we will showcase five backlist picture books, all available in paperback, some for the first time.

To learn more about Shelf Essentials, check out our sales sheet here
and keep reading to preview our Spring 2023 Shelf Essentials selections!

Learn more about our
Spring 2023 Shelf Essentials:

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I Love You More Than… by Taye Diggs, illustrated by Shawn W. Evans
Ages 4-8
Paperback On Sale April 4, 2023

My child.

I am not always with you
as much as I’d like.

But you are always in my mind
and my heart.

Some families look different than others. A father who doesn’t live full-time with his son tells him all the ways he misses and loves him.

I Love You More Than … by Taye Diggs, illustrated by Shane W. Evans, is perfect for families who are separated, whatever the circumstances. Its message of love underscores the bond between parent and child in ways that little ones will understand.

Praise for I Love You More Than..:

“This book is more than just a beautiful love letter from a father to his child, it also provides the reassurance so many children need when they are separated from their parents. …a true gem.” —School Library Journal, starred review

In this affirmation of paternal love by the creators of Mixed Me!, an African-American man addresses his child, lamenting that though “I am not always with you as much as I’d like… You are always running around in my mind and chilling inside my heart.” Pictured more often apart than together—it appears that travel often separates them—the two participate, on facing pages, in analogous activities as the narrator lovingly reminds his child that he’s seen and adored: “I love you more than I love the beach… I love the footprints your little feet make when I’m chasing you through the sand.”–Publishers Weekly


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Sing, Don’t Cry by Angela Dominguez
Ages 4-8
Paperback On Sale April 4, 2023

Once a year, Abuelo comes from Mexico to visit his family. He brings his guitar, his music—and his memories.

In this story inspired by the life of Apolinar Navarrete Diaz—author Angela Dominguez’s grandfather and a successful mariachi musician—Abuelo and his grandchildren sing through the bad times and the good. Lifting their voices and their spirits, they realize that true happiness comes from singing together.

Praise for Sing, Don’t Cry:

“With its uplifting message and smiling characters, Dominguez’s story reminds readers that life’s woes are inevitable but can be mitigated by a song in the heart.” —Bookliststarred review

“Authentic, heartfelt, and relatable. . . . A wonderful choice for group sharing.” —School Library Journalstarred review


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How Jelly Roll Morton Invented Jazz by Jonah Winter; illustrated by Keith Mallett
Ages 5-8
Paperback On Sale April 4, 2023

In this unusual and inventive picture book that riffs on the language and rhythms of old New Orleans, noted picture book biographer Jonah Winter (DizzyFridaYou Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?) turns his focus to one of America’s early jazz heroes in this perfectly pitched book about Jelly Roll Morton.

Gorgeously illustrated by fine artist Keith Mallett, a newcomer to picture books, this biography will transport readers young and old to the musical, magical streets of New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century.

A Neal Porter Book

Praise for How Jelly Roll Morton Invented Jazz:

“While this book isn’t one of Winter’s strongest works, there is a dearth of material on this star jazz musician, making it suitable supplemental material on the Jazz Age or a possibility for biography collections.” —School Library Journal


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This Is Our House by Hyewon Yum
Ages 4-7
Paperback On Sale April 4, 2023

A tree has bloomed on a city block outside a house for many years. Inside that house, several generations of a family have grown up. Grandma and Grandpa arrived at the house from a country far away, and Mom and her brothers played on the steps on warm summer days. This little girl learned how to walk on that street, too. Hyewon Yum’s This is Our House is a warm story with spare text that follows a family through seasons and generations, from the early days of immigration to the times that made their house into a home.
A Frances Foster Book

Praise for This Is Our House:

A lovely, unassuming paean to place and belonging.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“The intergenerational household may not be familiar to many modern American kids, but the idea of close family ties and treasured memories and places is universal. This quiet book could be an effective conversation starter about personal history at home or in the classroom.” —School Library Journal


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Grandmother’s Nursery Rhymes/Las Nanas de Abuelita: Lullabies, Tongue Twisters, And Riddles from South America/Canciones de cuna, trabalenguas y adivinanzas de Suramérica (Bilingual) by Nelly Palacio Jaramillo; Illustrated by Elivia Savadier
Ages 3-5
Paperback On Sale April 4, 2023

A stunning bilingual picture book collection of nursery rhymes, perfect for bedtime, learning time, or playtime, Grandmother’s Nursery Rhymes/Las Nanas de Abuelita.

Grandmothers and grandfathers, uncles and aunts, parents and friends–everyone can share these rhymes, riddles, and lullabies with little children.

This bilingual collection introduces young children to the sounds of two languages. The verses work in both English and Spanish: read the poems in English to trip the tongue or tickle your fancy; read them in Spanish to practice rolling “r’s”–or just sound out the syllables for the fun of it.

Nelly Palacio Jaramillo’s spirited text is matched by Elivia Savadier’s warm, whimsical illustrations. Perfect for bedtime, learning time, or playtime, this collection will satisfy curious children every time.

Abuelos y abuelas, tíos y tías, padres, madres y amistades—todos pueden compartir estas canciones de cuna, trabalenguas, y adivinanzas de Suramérica con las niñas y los niños pequeños.

Esta colección bilingüe es ideal para presentarles los sonidos de dos lenguas a los niños. Los versos funcionan en inglés y español: lea los poemas en inglés para divertirse con un trabalenguas; léalos en español para practicar decir la letra “r” o simplemente pronunciar el sonido de cada sílaba.

El texto energético escrito por Nelly Palacio Jaramillo es la pareja ideal para las ilustraciones tiernas y fantásticas de Elivia Savadier. Grandmother’s Nursery Rhymes es perfecto para la hora de dormir, de jugar, o de aprendizaje. Esta colección satisfará la curiosidad de los niños y las niñas cada vez.

Praise for Grandmother’s Nursery Rhymes/Las Nanas de Abuelita:

“This delightful book blends English and Spanish texts with fanciful watercolor-and-ink illustrations. The parallel versions of these lullabies, tongue twisters, and riddles from South America take advantage of word play in both languages….Perfect for family sharing, especially where children are helping their parents learn English as a second language.” —School Library Journal

“A bilingual challenge to Mother Goose…fun-to-read rhythm in both Spanish and English.” —Publishers Weekly