I saw Tangled. (And loved it! Very empowering for young women and great music)

In my counter narrative text I changed the location to help relate the story closer to myself. By having Cinderella be Irish I showed that this story can apply to all kinds of people. By using Irish words like Lass and incorporating Leprechauns I was able to add a little Irish lore to the classic story.

After observing a bookstore and a library I am saddened by the lack of diverse books for children.

Racially I saw two races, white and black with no mention of people of Asian on Latino decent. This is problematic for children because they need to see themselves represented in a positive light in literature. This helps self confidence and the development of self worth.

I also saw a lack of socio economic diversity. A little girl I babysit for once actually asked me why no one in books lives in apartments like her. The books I saw depicted traditional, middle class American live with a mom, dad, brother and sister.

Overall if you aren't a white, middle class American child you may have a hard time finding books that depict something similar to your reality. This is a sad state of affairs as this is a crucial time for child development and seeing examples of your identity in literature may help you become a confident and secure person.