black is brown is tan

Bought this for my daughter. We read this almost every day when she was little!

We got this for our children to help them better understand our multicultural family. The phrasing of this book is too hard for our very literal children. There are some beautiful phrases in the book that do paint a beautiful picture of how different skin colors look and react to sun. Other parts of the writing feel very clumsy. Maybe we didn’t get the cadence right. I don’t like the parts about both parents yelling their children into bed. Attaching pictures to show some beautiful parts and some of the parts that didn’t work for us.

When our sons were preschoolers, this story provided a natural way to introduce them to a multicultural family that they didn't see in our small town. Later I read it in the classroom; I'd recommend it for shared reading in kindergarten - gr. 3. Through high school, it can be studied from other perspectives. For example, a teacher might include this story in a writing class, a poetry unit, or sociology/family life.The author describes some of his writing as "singing poems." Actually, it was the pictures that first enticed us to pick up the book, then we remembered poetry is meant to read aloud! The current edition is terrific, too, and I highly recommend it for homes, schools, and libraries.

This was a gift to my 3yo nephew and 1 yo niece. They are beautiful biracial babies. As they come to better understand what that means in a nation fraught with racial conflict I want them to recognize and love all the parts that make them who they are. My nephew loves lyrical books with musical cadences and this is a perfect fit. Beautifully written and beautifully illustrated.

I originally bought this book 13 years ago for the first mixed baby in our family & I loved it so much I bought it again when I had my son! The pictures are wonderful & it really brings some understanding of the situation for a child.

I purchased this book for a pregnant co-worker. I always give books to expectant parents and try to find something that is relevant to them. As she is African-American and her husband is white I thought this would be great. Since she and I are also teachers I was a little nervous that she would already have it. Fortunately, she didn't. She has since told me that it was the most thoughtful gift she received.

I read this book to my two daughters when they were growing up and now I have a granddaughter. My daughter read it to her this weekend, and they BOTH enjoyed it! It's such a sweet story.

We are a mixed family too. I love the art work and poetry. My 2 year has memorized some of the pages. I am very thankful that she can see images that she can see a reflection of herself in.

This book is a little bit on the nose. Too much emphasis on the colour of their skin all the way throughout... sheesh, I think the representation is obvious in the photos. I brought this for my nephew whose family is the exact composition and I wanted a book with her image in it. On that score this book is excellent.

charming, delightful, brought tears to my eyes..i wish everyone would buy and read this

Children love the illustrations.

Fantastic book, we all love it! Great read and long enough to carry on the following evening (bed time story) I will be buying more to give as presents and to donate our local library.

My nephew loves this book! Bought it for his older sister who is now 7 but she didn't care for it. instead my sister in law reads it to my two yr old nephew and he has memorized the whole book. so cute!