Pushing Forward

We’re navigating a challenging time, but so many things keep us pushing forward. Among them are these words from Frederick Douglass:

“If there is no struggle, there is no progress…This struggle may be a moral one; or it may be a physical one; or it may be both moral and physical; but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.”

The struggle for freedom and justice always continues. It does not rest on any one event, whether successful or not.

As kidlit creators, educators, librarians, parents, and supporters, let’s continue to use our gifts and talents to positively impact the lives of our young people. Our books make a difference. Our teaching makes a difference. Our example makes a difference. Our guidance, mentorship, the time we spend listening, supporting, pouring into — it’s all valuable and needed. Especially now. 

Let’s find meaning and purpose with others who know that we MUST continue. 

And when we need a reminder, may we find encouragement in each other and the young people who deserve our best.  

Good Trouble

One of the most popular questions we get at speaking events, after “how do I get my book published” is: “what can I do to better support Just Us Books and diverse children’s books in general?”

We appreciate the question. It signals that people know they can help drive the change they want to see. At the 2024 Children’s Institute in New Orleans, I spoke to a group of people who are in a unique position to ensure these books are available: booksellers. But the spirit of my message applies to us all, and I’d like to share a few lines with you:

“I encourage all of you to be involved in helping to make sure books that can enrich, inform, uplift, inspire, sometimes rescue, and yes, entertain our youth in this too often challenging and difficult world are available to them."

It takes all of us: booksellers, parents, extended family members, educators, librarians, program directors, community members. Buy the books, borrow them from your library, ask for them at bookstores, share them with young people, push for them to be considered for school and summer reading lists, share them on social media and talk about them in person. We must all play a more active and intentional role in supporting diverse books and ensuring they are accessible.

Kudos to the American Booksellers Association for playing their part in this work. They made a concerted effort to ensure the Children’s Institute was more inclusive and that more BIPOC publishers and booksellers had platforms to be seen and heard, such as the Spotlight on Black Publishing panel, where Cheryl spoke. This year’s workshops and panels also tackled important issues we’re facing, including book banning, which has removed thousands of books — many by BIPOC and LGBTQ creators — from library shelves and school curricula.

During my talk at the Rep Picks Luncheon, I spoke about book banning and how we can fight back, quoting the great John Lewis’ call to make “good trouble.” A number of publishers and booksellers thanked me for my words. What’s clear is this work is about more than sales and profitability, although both are important to sustain any business. It’s about ensuring our children are represented and affirmed in the books they read and that they can see themselves in history, the present, and the future. I’m glad to see more of us are in for the good fight and I hope even more join.

Wade Hudson
CEO and Co-Founder
Just Us Books

Read more about the 2024 Children’s Institute in Publishers Weekly. 

Just Us Books to Host Writing Our Future: A Celebration of Black Children’s Literature

In honor of our milestone 35th anniversary and Black History Month, Just Us Books is proud to present a program that will bring together a dozen acclaimed Black children’s book authors and illustrators. 

Writing Our Future: A Celebration of Black Children’s Literature will be held Saturday, February 17, 2024, 12 - 2:30 pm at the Montclair Public Library, 50 South Fullerton Ave. in Montclair. It will also be streamed online.

Sponsored in collaboration with the Montclair Public Library and local independent bookstore Watchung Booksellers, the event will feature panels, book readings, autograph signings and literary performances. 

Guest authors and illustrators include: Rita Williams-Garcia (One Crazy Summer), Valerie Wilson Wesley (Willimena Rules series), Denise Lewis Patrick (Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson), Sharon Dennis Wyeth (Something Beautiful), Eric Velasquez (Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library), Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich (Operation Sisterhood); Torrey Maldonado (What Lane?), George Ford (The Story of Ruby Bridges), author-illustrator-educator Toney Jackson who will deliver a spoken word performance, as well as authors and Just Us Books founders, Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson.

“Books play such an important role in preserving and sharing Black history and culture. We can’t think of a better way to commemorate Just Us Books’ 35 years in publishing than by bringing together a talented group of authors and illustrators for a Black History Month literary celebration,” said Wade Hudson, CEO of Just Us Books.

“We’re hoping to reach the entire community with this event,” explains Cheryl Willis Hudson, Editorial Director of Just Us Books. “It’s a great opportunity for children to meet published authors and illustrators; for aspiring creators to learn about building careers in publishing; and for parents, educators and readers of all ages to get some wonderful books.”

Panels include:

·       Our Literature’s Legacy, a conversation about the path to more diversity in children’s publishing and how we continue the progress

·       Putting it All Together: Creating Books for Young Readers about the author and illustrator creative process, developing your craft, and how to break into and succeed in the industry

·       The Power of the Pen highlighting the power of children’s literature to inspire change

The event is free and open to the public, including children of all ages. 

Registration is encouraged for in-person attendance: https://montclairlibrary.libnet.info/event/9975696 and is required for virtual attendance: https://montclairlibrary.libnet.info/event/10147473 

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A Note of Thanks

There are so many people who have helped us over the years. We thank our parents, Wade Hudson, Sr. and Lurline Hudson, and Hayes and Lillian Willis for providing a firm foundation that made it easier for us to embark on this journey. It is a foundation built on faith, love, service, responsibility, commitment, and a firm belief in hard work.

We thank the many people who have served on our staff over the years, especially Willie Hudson, director of sales, and Major Hudson, shipping manager, for their support, hard work and dedication. Both Willie and Major have been with Just Us Books almost from the beginning.

We thank owners and operators of Black book stores and individual vendors who carried our booksand sold them in stores, at street fairs and conferences and other events. We thank our family and friends and Imani church family for their loveand support. We thank parents, teachers, librarians, and children for buying our books and encouraging us with warm wishes. We thank our talented authors and illustrators who have worked with us tirelessly to create authentic stories and images that resonate with our community and reflect our heritage and our history. We thank all of our volunteers and interns who are always willing to help in any waythey can.

Last but not least, we thank our children Katura and Stephan. They have been on this journey with us since they were little. Both hold important positions at Just Us Books and in other projects we have undertaken. They were and will continue to be our inspiration. They are also integral parts of the legacy we will leave. This legacy links us to the past, the present and thefuture.

What started with us as a mission has become a ministry and we know we've demonstrated that good books do make a difference. Frederick Douglasssaid it even more succinctly:

It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.

From 1988-2008 has been twenty years! That's a long time and the road hasn't always been a smooth one. But we love what we do and we thank God for the gift of this ministry of encouraging, enlightening, informing and empowering young people through books.

Wade and Cheryl Hudson

founders and owners

Just Us Books, Inc.

October 25, 2008

Why Multicultural Literature is Good for All Children, by Cheryl Willis Hudson

The concept of "multicultural literature" can present challenges to mothers and fathers who want to raise well-rounded children prepared to function in the 2008 global village. How does a well-intentioned parent find and select good books for his/her children? What kinds of stories affirm that child's place on the planet? Folk tales? Fairy Tales? Nonfiction? Biography? What kinds of picture books prepare children for the complex world in which they live? What kinds of stories open a window of possibilities for that child's future? What kinds of books help children to dream of a better world for all peoples? Can books help us to make new friends and know our current neighbors? Must other races and creeds be represented for a book to be truly multicultural? What specific titles should form the core of a child's personal library?

Publishers, librarians, booksellers, educators, and parents (in particular) of all philosophies, budgets and ethnicities play important roles in this conversation. Since books provide a conduit of exposure to people, places and worlds both similar and different from our own, it makes sense to expose our children to books that embrace a diversity of cultures, interests, values, nationalities, and hues, right?

When I was a child growing up in segregated schools in Virginia, none of my school books contained "colored children" who looked or acted like me. The main public library in our town was not open to "Negroes" as we referred to ourselves at that time, and all of the "good" books--meaning new ones--were there. The "colored" library was a tiny cramped space that contained mostly used and discarded books. Why then would any child want to read them?

When I became a parent I was determined that my children have a collection of wonderful books. And yes, like many parents I believe that seeing and experiencing diversity in children's literature is a good thing. But how can a parent know what is good? What is fair? What is authentic? What is stereotypical? What is to be avoided?

This space is dedicated to exploring how children's literature can inform our world--how effective presentation of the written word and visual images can help us as parents to guide our children toward empowerment and discovery of their inner selves and their ultimate possibilities. This space is dedicated to exploring diversity in children's literature and to finding ways to get good books in the hands of children for their information and their joy.

Why is multicultural literature important? Here's my top ten list:

1. Multicultural literature confirms that we live in a global village and that the world is pluralistic and made up of many different kinds of people.

2. It helps to develop self esteem in all children through inclusion rather than exclusion.

3. It provides knowledge and information about people from all parts of the world.

4. It can change the way students look at their own particular society and the world by offering varying perspectives or different ways of viewing the same situations.

5. It can promote/develop an appreciation for diversity.

6. It can help children think critically and to ask questions.

7. Like all literature, it can provide enjoyment and appreciation for unity and variety in the human experience.

8. It can reflect the cultural diversity within the classroom and community

9. It can provide positive role models.

10. It can create a bridge between student's real-life experiences and intellectual learning.

Why is multicultural literature important to you and the children in your life? We welcome your thoughts. And be sure to check future posts for book recommendations, tips on how to encourage the children in your life to read, and suggestions on what to look for when selecting multicultural literature.