This Book is Anti-Racist Journal

by | Apr 29, 2022 | Book Review, Illustrated book, Non-Fiction

This book is anti-racist journal (cover)

Book Details

This Book is Anti-Racist Journal
Tiffany Jewell, illus. Aurélia Durand. London: Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, pb, 978 0 7112 6302 4, 2021, £6.99, 96pp.
Illustrated book, non-fiction, 11+ years

This Book is Anti-Racist Journal is by the same author/illustrator team who penned and illustrated the book This is Anti-Racist.

The Journal builds on the initial book and sits nicely as a companion to it. It has over fifty activities within its pages and develops the anti-racist journey from cover to cover in a clever and questioning way. The book serves as a toolkit, opening its pages to the reader where activities allow one to learn and grow. The activities discuss family, disruption, history, privilege, identity, art, expression, oneself, diversity and many other topics whilst giving time for the reader to reflect on the issues and ask more questions.
 
The reader embarks on a journey of discovery, not just about themselves, but in discovering the diversity within their own lives on a local and more national and international scale. By completing the activities and making a plan, the reader understands what they stand for and how they might react and act when confronted by racist comments, actions and policies.
 
The ultimate vision of what our society might look like without racism and how the reader and wider society might get there is a strong incentive to complete the activities. Used in tandem with the original book This Book is Anti-Racist, one can only admire Tiffany Jewell’s work and the ambition to educate youngsters and those around them by asking questions and allowing them time to understand what racism is. Aurélia Durand’s vivid illustrations make this book an absolute stunner and provide an excellent tool to explore race, ethnicity, and racism.
 

Review by Dr Karenanne Knight