Sunday, December 30, 2018

2018 — A milestone year for Just Us Books

2018 was an exciting year for Just Us Books. We thank all of our friends and supporters for our success. 

We kicked off a celebration of our 30th year of continuous publishing, with an event at the Schomburg Center,  saw the release of We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices, published in partnership with Crown Books for Young Readers. We published four titles under JUB and sister imprint, Marimba Books and received several honors recognizing our contributions to children's literature and diversity. School visits and speaking engagements enabled us and many of our authors and illustrators to engage with students, parents and teachers around the country. We thank all of you who helped to spread the word about our efforts and purchased, reviewed and recommended our books as resource tools. There could be no Just Us Books without all of you. We look forward to partnering with you in 2019. 


And we continue… 

  


Wednesday, September 26, 2018

Just Us Books and Black Classic Press Announce Joint Printing Relationship


(September 26, 2018) – Black-owned publisher Just Us Books, which marks the beginning of its 30th year this October, and BCP Digital Printing, the printing arm of Black Classic Press, which is also Black owned and celebrating its 40th year, have announced a joint printing relationship.

Just Us Books will use the printing services of BCP Digital for its middle reader fiction and non-fiction titles. BCP Digital has already begun printing five Just Us Books titles: Book of Black Heroes: Great Women in the Struggle; Poetry from the Masters: The Pioneers, and three books in its Kid Caramel mystery series: Werewolf of PS 40, Case of the Missing Ankh and Ghost Ranch.

Wade Hudson, president and co-founder with his wife Cheryl of Just Us Books, says attending Black Classic Press’ 40th anniversary celebration this past May is what sparked the idea for the printing services of BCP Digital.

“We’ve known Paul for decades and have worked together on initiatives to make both our publishing community and cultural communities stronger,” says Hudson. “We knew BCP Digital as a great short run printer. But when we toured the facility in May and saw how much their operation and printing capabilities have expanded – we knew we had found the right company to print our middle reader titles.” 

“Just Us Books partnering with BCP Digital is another way for Black businesses to continue high quality work while supporting each other,” Hudson adds.
Paul Coates, owner of Black Classic Press and BCP Digital Printing is also pleased with the new partnership. “Working with Just Us, the largest and oldest of our young adult and children’s book publishers is great honor. Just as important - it’s a continuing example of how Black businesses can support each other,” says Coates.

BCP Digital prints for publishers, self-publishers, and organizations large and small.  The company currently prints books for several other Black owned publishers including Third World Press Foundation, founded by Haki Madhubuti, and Africa World Press/The Red Sea Press, founded by Kassahun Checole. Together with Black Classic Press and Just Us Books, the companies comprise the few remaining “legacy Black publishers” that are still operating in the US.

About Black Classic Press
Founded in 1978,
Black Classic Press is devoted to publishing obscure and significant works by and about people of African descent. It specializes in republishing works that are out of print and quite often out of memory. The company began publishing because it wanted to extend the memory of important books that have helped in meaningful ways to shape the Black diasporic experience and our understanding of the world. BCP Digital Printing was launched in 1995 as a short run press.

About Just Us Books
Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year,
Just Us Books is an independent, Black-owned publisher of books for young people that focus on African-American history, culture and experiences. Founded in 1988 by husband and wife team, Wade and Cheryl Hudson, the company’s titles range from concept books for Pre-K to novels for young adults. Just Us Books’ titles can be purchased at booksellers and via its website: justusbooks.com  

Connect with Just Us Books on social media: Twitter: @JustUsBooks and Facebook.com/JustUsBooks

Pictured:
1) Legacy Black publishers: Paul Coates of Black Classic Press; Cheryl Willis Hudson of Just Us Books; Haki Madhubuti of Third World Press Foundation; and Wade Hudson of Just Us Books

2) Wade and Cheryl Hudson tour the BCP Digital facility

Saturday, August 18, 2018

Meet Authors/Publishers Wade and Cheryl Hudson (Fall 2018 appearances)

Wade and Cheryl Hudson, founders of Just Us Books, will speak and sign at a number of events this fall in support of their new anthology We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices, being published in collaboration with Crown (available Sept 4, 2018).


Thursday, July 5, 2018

Just Us Books & Marimba Books Announce Fall 2018 Releases



Just Us Books and Marimba Books, leading independent publishers of multicultural books for young people, will release the following titles this fall:


I’m A Big Sister Now
by Katura J. Hudson
illustrated by Sylvia L. Walker
$8.95, ages 3 - 7
ISBN: 978-1-60349-022-1
(companion book to I'm A Big Brother Now)

Being a big sister is a big job. It takes a lot of work, and patience, but it’s a lot of fun, too. This charming picture book explores the anticipation, excitement, and pride a young girl experiences as she helps to welcome a new baby to the family.



AFRO-BETS Kids: I’m Going to Be!
by Wade Hudson
illustrated by Nancy Devard
$8.95, ages 4-8
ISBN: 978-1-933491-49-3

 Do you know what you’re going to be when you grow up? The AFRO-BETS Kids have lots of ideas! There are so many exciting careers: astronaut, publisher, fashion designer, educator, surgeon, movie director and more. And there are many Black leaders in those fields, including Mae Jemison, John Johnson, Tracey Reese, Mary McLeod Bethune, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams and Ava DuVernay. Learn about these great achievers, their careers, and more as the AFRO-BETS Kids explore what they’ll be when they grow up.


Great Women in the Struggle (revised edition)
$12.95, ages 8 -12
illustrated with photos
978-0-940975-26-2

Learn about the inspiring lives and contributions of 86 historical and contemporary Black women in this updated edition, which includes a new entry on Michelle Obama.





Also coming this fall: We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices! - an anthology co-edited by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson (Crown, Sept. 4, 2018) with original work from more than 50 diverse authors and artists, including Kwame Alexander, Sharon Draper, Andrea Pippins, Jason Reynolds, Rita Williams-Garcia and Jacqueline Woodson.
























Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Just Us Books Collaborates with Random House Children's Books on Multicultural Anthology to Inspire Young Activists

We Rise. We Resist. We Raise Our Voices will feature original works from such diverse authors and artists as Kwame Alexander, Sharon Draper, Ellen Oh, Andrea Pippins, Jason Reynolds, Rita Williams-Garcia, and Jacqueline Woodson and will publish on September 4, 2018. New York, NY

(January 17, 2018) —  Random House Children’s Books will publish WE RISE. WE RESIST. WE RAISE OUR VOICES, an empowering collection of poems, letters, personal essays, art, and other works from over 50 diverse, award-winning children’s book authors and artists in collaboration with Just Us Books, a Black-owned publisher committed to exclusively producing Black and multicultural children’s books, it was announced today by Mallory Loehr, SVP, Random House Books for Young Readers Publishing Group. Phoebe Yeh, VP/Publisher of Crown Books for Young Readers, acquired World rights for publication from Just Us Books co-founders and anthology compilers Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson. The beautiful, full-color keepsake collection will be available on September 4, 2018.

In an increasingly polarized world, parents are looking for tools to discuss the difficult political and global challenges that their children will one day inherit. In WE RISE, WE RESIST, WE RAISE OUR VOICES, the industry's foremost children's authors and illustrators share their perspective, encouragement, hope, and inspiration to help parents, educators, and young readers ignite lasting change in their communities.

In an increasingly polarized world, parents are looking for tools to discuss the difficult political and global challenges that their children will one day inherit. In WE RISE, WE RESIST, WE RAISE OUR VOICES, the industry's foremost children's authors and illustrators share their perspective, encouragement, hope, and inspiration to help parents, educators, and young readers ignite lasting change in their communities. The collection features a dynamic lineup of contributors: Arnold Adoff, Kwame Alexander, Jabari Asim, Stephanie Berger, Tonya Bolden, Roy Boney, Jr., Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Tameka Fryer Brown, Joseph Bruchac, Ashley Bryan, Lesa Cline-Ransome, Evelyn Coleman, Floyd Cooper, Nina Crews, Pat Cummings, Nancy Devard, Sharon M. Draper, Zetta Elliott, Margarita Engle, Zamani Feelings, Sharon G. Flake, Bernette G. Ford, George Ford, Laura Freeman, Chester Higgins, Jr., Ekua Holmes, Cheryl Willis Hudson, Curtis Hudson, Stephan J. Hudson, Wade Hudson, Hena Khan, Rafael López, Kelly Starling Lyons, Tony Medina, Mansa K. Mussa, Innosanto Nagara, Marilyn Nelson, Ellen Oh, Denise Lewis Patrick, Andrea Pippins, James E. Ransome, Jason Reynolds, Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich, Edel Rodriguez, Charles R. Smith, Jr., Javaka Steptoe, Eleanora E. Tate, Eric Velasquez, Carole Boston Weatherford, Jeffery B. Weatherford, Rita Williams-Garcia, and Jacqueline Woodson, the 2018 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.

 “There is tremendous power in words and images,” says Wade Hudson. “WE RISE. WE RESIST. WE RAISE OUR VOICES uses that power to help our young people navigate a world that’s full of challenges, complicated issues, and uncertainty. It’s one of only a few collections to bring together such a large and diverse group of children’s book creators and we are thrilled to partner with Random House Children’s Books to bring this important book to readers everywhere,” he says.

“Our young people need comfort, guidance, inspiration and hope in these difficult times we’re facing, and caring, passionate words and beautiful art in the form of a thoughtfully curated treasury can go a long way in helping them learn about empathy, respect for one another and standing up for one another,” says Phoebe Yeh. Crown Books for Young Readers is an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House LLC, a Penguin Random House Company.

Random House Children’s Books is the world’s largest English-language children’s trade book publisher. Creating books for toddlers through young adult readers, in all formats from board books to activity books to picture books, novels, and non-fiction, the imprints of Random House Children’s Books bring together award-winning authors and illustrators, world-famous franchise characters, and multimillion-copy series. The company’s website, Kids @ Random (www.randomhousekids.com) offers an array of activities, games, and resources for children, teens, parents, and educators.

 Just Us Books was founded in 1988 by Wade and Cheryl Willis Hudson. Wade, President and CEO, is the author of more than 30 published books for children and young adults, and has received numerous honors for his contributions to children's literature, including the Stephen Crane Literary Award. Cheryl, Publisher and Editorial Director, has authored more than 25 books for children, and is a member of the PEN America’s Children’s/Young Adult Book Authors Committee. They have been widely recognized for their pioneering work in children’s publishing, and have been inducted into the International Literary Hall of Fame for Writers of African Descent, received the Ida B. Wells Institutional Builders Award, the Phillis Wheatley Award, and The Madame CJ Walker Legacy Award for entrepreneurship. Today, Just Us Books is a recognized leader in multicultural publishing, and in October 2018 the company will celebrate 30 years of continuous publishing.

Visit Just Us Books online at @JustUsBooks | Facebook.com/JustUsBooks | justusbooks.com


Thursday, January 4, 2018

Celebrate Our History and Heroes Year-Round

Have you heard of entrepreneur/philanthropist Biddy Mason; Bishop Daniel Payne; or the U.S. Lifesaving Services - the only all-black rescue crew of the Outer Banks? How much do you and your young readers know about the contributions of political leader Barbara Jordan, activist Bayard Rustin, or poet Quincy Troupe? Learn about these and other important Black trailblazers in books from our non-fiction collection. Let’s celebrate our heroes - well-known and unsung - all year round.


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