Different Differenter is an activity book for children, that thoughtfully addresses everyday skin color consciousness and bias in a way that's easy to understand.
Children’s rich observations and questions about color, caste, and race elicit accurate yet straightforward responses. Jyoti’s art-and-craft-based book takes you on a playful and creative discovery to find answers that work for you and your family—while creatively introducing facts of history and 15-plus new words. Make art. Perform a play for the nanas when they’re in town. Eat a yummy homemade dessert. Ooh! and aah! about how each member of the family has a different skin color.
It’s really a beautifully-illustrated, educational tool that sets the context for hard conversations about self-awareness, color, and identity. Subjects in the book include biology of skin (e.g. melanin); culturally-related aspects (e.g. food); colorism's social impact (e.g. bullying) and solutions (e.g. bystander intervention).
Illustrated by Tarannum Pasricha, Different Differenter reflects the world of the child, in all its diverse exuberance. The book’s creators have worked hard to spawn a visual culture that centers cultures and children of color. Do away with the rhetoric, the baggage of what's taboo or political correct! Lead the dialogue with your children and help them embrace the values of social justice and equity.
..".designed to help parents talk candidly about colorism by providing them a skillfully written beautifully illustrated culturally relevant discussion guide."
Kristi Rangel
Chief, My Brother's Keeper, A City of Houston Health Department Initiative (Houston, TX)
..".language is warm and nourishing, and reading feels like being spoken to gently by a person with infinite patience and time for all of our questions. Soak up the beautiful, evocative illustrations of children..."
Anasthasia Higginbotham
Author/Illustrator, Not My Idea: A Book About Whiteness
"Books like Different Differenter one are key to celebrating diversity and difference."
Sailaja N. Joshi
CEO and Founder of Bharat Babies (Somerville, CA)
..".creatively weaves scholarly understandings of race as a social (not biological) construction that is based on history, social context and imposed ideologies (including stereotypes) into the activities."
Wendy Luttrell
Professor and Executive Officer, Ph.D. Program in Urban Education
and Professor of Sociology and Critical Psychology, CUNY (New York NY)
"I liked looking at the picture of the map, and I learned about stereotype."
Kaashvi
Student, Third Grade, Elementary School
"Engaging children on such issues will create a more equal and sensitive world. I think Different Differenter will trigger many important discussions."
Nandita Das
Actor, Director, Activist, and a supporter of Dark is Beautiful campaign
..".speaks to the dual worlds immigrant families often inhabit, maintaining the cultural practices of their ethnic identity with life in the United States."
April Kim Tonin
Director of Visual Education
The Nightingale-Bamford School (New York, NY)
..".does not shy away, instead she developed activities that pique a child's interest and offer teachers and parents the opportunity to use teachable moments..."
Olga Flores Chen, LCSW
Former school counselor
..".subtle yet powerful introduction to the concept of colorism... provocative and sensitive activity book about skin color."
Ed Greene, PhD
VP, Children, Youth and Digital Media Literacy Initiatives
Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network (Brooklyn, NY)
