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Why You Should Never Judge A Book By Its Cover!!

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Yes! That line is so cliché but it is so true and I learned its valuable lesson when I eventually bought the amazing book “I’m A Pretty Little Black Girl” by Betty K. Bynum. Purchase book here! Okay, so I have walked past this book a thousand in times in Target and really wanted to purchase it! A book like this would have been soooo ooo perfect for me during my childhood because I rarely saw characters in books and media that represented me.

To be completely honest, at a time this lack of representation was very detrimental to my self-image, especially living as a minority within a predominately majority population.  Of course, my parents instilled a love for self etc..but when I would leave home, this love was rarely reinforced by the populous.  So, when I had my daughter, I wanted to ensure that she had a positive self herself. I want her to be able to see herself as the main character or the star and NOT the best friend or sidekick.

However, my daughter is biracial.  So, I would see this book and completely judge it! 🙈(Ooops! My bad.) I want my daughter to see herself as a pretty little black girl, but I also don’t want to diminish her Latin roots as well.  I try to ensure that she has a positive understanding that she is both.  A piece of me felt that by purchasing this book, I was only highlighting half of her beautiful roots.  But one day, I walked past it and said to myself, she is pretty little black girl because being black is not one thing or another, it is a plethora of many things!! And bought it and I am sooo oooo glad that I did.

As we read through the book, Betty K. Bynum does a beautiful job of illustrating the variety of a “pretty little black girl” with the numerous characters in the book. It is a book about having a positive self-image, friendship, and being whatever you want to be. It was wonderful.  It also rhymes, so it is fun to read.

My daughter fell in love when she saw Anna!! Her eyes lit up!

bynum black girl active anna

My lil firecracker was totally represented and she loved it! I actually had to refer to this book because she randomly said to me one day, “Mom, I want to be brown like you” and I replied “You are brown like me.  Brown comes in various shades like in the Pretty Little Black Girl book” and she smiled! Moral of this story…never judge a book by its cover lol!!

Also, this book is not just for black people, I would encourage ALL parents to read this book to their children.  Instead of saying “I’m”, you can just change the word to “She” and change other pronouns to represent you and your family. It is important for children to learn from an early age that all shades are BEAUTIFUL!

Have you ever totally judged a book by its cover and ended up loving the book?  Do you think you will read this book?

<<<<<< Maya PS. I just found out she has a book, I’m A Lovely Little Latina

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28 Comments

  1. I totally agree, representation is huge! We all need to see somebody that looks like us. This is very important for children. I love the idea of everyone reading this and changing the pronouns.

  2. I try to tell my daughter people judge first based on your appearance, color of your skin, how you enunciate words and for black girls their hair. Unfortunately, it will always be that way but hopefully I’ve done a good job of instilling values in her

    1. That is why I recommend all parents to read a book like this to their because it does not have to be that way. 😊

  4. I really wish there was more of this when my girls were little. I now have a beautiful 2 month old grand daughter who I can’t wait to buy books like this.

  5. I wil” be buying this book for my niece. I so wish these images and level of representation were available to me in my younger years.

    1. Yes! This book would have been so perfect when I was one of two black kids in my kindergarten class in Iowa!

    1. It is a great book. Each character is a different shade and likes different things. Its great

  7. This seems like an awesome book. I feel like books like this played a huge role in my personal development. It would make a good gift for my niece.

    1. Yes! It is definitely a needed part of parenthood that I think can be overlooked at times. Love for self is critical.

  9. When I was a girl I would have loved to see more chapter books and series based on brown characters. As much as I loved my books, I always felt like I couldn’t relate to their lives other than the fact that we were children.

    1. My sentiments exactly! I enjoyed the books but never felt truly connected to the characters. My daughter connected with the characters and other books with children of color. It is great to watch as a parent.

  10. I know of a lot of adults who need to read this book. I love that it shows the world that it’s okay to be mixed and be called a pretty little black girl.

  11. There was a time during my childhood when representation was detrimental to my confidence and self-image. I wish there were more books like this when I younger.

    1. I struggled with self image very early. I grew up in predominately white neighborhoods and never felt truly connected but also unsure of myself. A book like this would have been perfect growing up.

  12. Cute story. I can remember my daughter proclaiming her beautiful blackness. She has always been more confident than I was as a child.

    1. I love how girls now are so sure and confident with who they are ! It is a beautiful thing.

  13. This sounds like a perfect book. I had never heard of it prior to reading your post. Thanks for sharing your experience. I’m going to get this book for my niece.

  14. I love that so many authors saw a need to create books like this that represent little black girls. I’m glad that she enjoyed the book! Glad you are introducing books and reading to her at a young age.

    1. I am glad that sections of the literary world are being met for our children. Reading is so much fun.