Book subscription service for children of minority backgrounds

Books are carefully curated to represent different genres and cultures, and children receive two books monthly

Spotted: The UK-based Woke Babies is aiming to tackle a lack of diversity in children’s books by offering £20 per month subscriptions to black and minority families, with the characters in the books representing a range of diverse backgrounds. The books are carefully curated to represent different genres and cultures, and children receive two specifically tailored books monthly, according to their age and educational level. 

Spurred on by the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests, more and more attention is being given to the need for systemic change in the way society thinks about race. Attention is being paid to education and whether minority children see themselves reflected in the world around them. The company has found that only 1 per cent of books feature characters from a black, Asian or minority background.

The company is also careful to feature new and self-published authors too, as well as more established ones. Games and educational activities are also included in the monthly package. 

A spokesperson from Woke Babies said: “I believe that when a child connects with a book it can help to transcend boundaries, enhance imagination and empower them to believe anything is possible…nowhere is this more important than in the black community.” 

Indeed, the aim of the subscription is two-fold: not only will children see themselves reflected in the books they read, but they will benefit from the act of reading itself. It is well known that reading is paramount to a child’s educational and personal growth, and studies by Woke Babies show that a child who is read to will know 1.4 million more words than those who aren’t as it matures. 

Woke Babies is hoping to extend their work to schools, to tackle larger groups of white and minority children and, of course, to encourage children everywhere to read more.

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