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Think Aloud Podcast: Why are children's books stuck in the past?

In this episode of our 2019 podcast series Think Aloud, recorded in February that year, Harriet Fitch Little is joined by paralympian, TV presenter and children’s author Ade Adepitan, and children’s book critic Imogen Russell Williams.

Podcast
Reading time 1 minute read
Originally posted Thu 18 Feb 2021

The trio came together, ahead of our Imagine Children’s Festival, to talk about the lack of diversity in children’s literature. Why is children’s literature so far behind when it comes to diverse characters? And who should be dealing with this – the authors, the publishers or the parents?

The episode also features children’s author and illustrator Nadine Kaadan, who answers the burning question: how do you create a character for children?

‘I suddenly started to get a perception that certain people did certain things, that main protagonists, that strong characters, that hero characters were all white, middle class.’

Ade Adepitan