Where Are the Diverse Families in Australian Children’s Literature? Impacts and Consideration for Language and Literacy in the Early Years

Abstract

A lack of representation of diverse families in children’s books can affirm insecurities and contribute to a sense of “otherness”. This study reports on the representation of family diversity in award-listed Australian children’s picture books. A critical theoretical framework was employed to analyse both texts and images. This study found a lack of diverse family structures in children’s books, especially LGBTIQA+, foster, step and blended families. This paper argues that to ensure inclusive and equitable literacy learning opportunities for all, educators need to go beyond award-listed books when selecting books for early literacy environments.

1. Introduction

Children’s literature is seen as a central component of high-quality literacy and language environments, especially in the early years of education. Quality literature forms a cornerstone of educator-led book sharing, contributing to children’s development of key early literacy skills, including vocabulary, phonological awareness, oral language skills, content and background knowledge, and language comprehension—all essential to the development of children’s ability to read and write for themselves and to build a lifelong love of reading.

Importantly, children’s literature is also widely recognised as contributing to children’s understanding of the world in which they live and of their place in society [1,2,3,4,5]. When children see characters in books that reflect their own lives and backgrounds, their own sense of identity and belonging is affirmed. Conversely, the absence of representation of children, their families, and their identities can affirm insecurities and a sense of “otherness”. When children do not see themselves or characters like their own culture, community, family, or gender, their sense of personal value and identity can be damaged or diminished. Furthermore, children’s books play a vital role in either affirming or dismantling prejudice, racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination [6,7,8]. In picture books, “children can see the reflection of the world…learn to accept themselves and respect each other, meaning that the picture books are essential media to facilitate the development of children’s awareness of various social problems and … [for] children to know and understand about real life” [1] (p. 20).

Exposure to diverse literature helps disrupt the development of prejudice and develops empathy and a positive understanding of diversity and difference [2,3,4]. This, in turn, impacts children’s world views and, later, their position and that of others in society. Thus, exposure to diverse books is important for all children. Children from diverse and often minoritised backgrounds must see positive representation of themselves and, as importantly, all children must see positive and equitable representation of those different to themselves [5,6,7,8].

The representation of diversity in children’s picture books has increased over recent years, although much progress is still needed [9,10]. However, there is still a notable lack of diverse family structures, including; foster, step or blended families; intergenerational families raising children or living together [9,11], and families with LGBTIQA+ parents or children (For this paper we use the acronym LGBTIQA+ taken from the Inclusive Language Guide of the lead author’s institution. “The LGBTIQA+ acronym refers to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer and questioning, and asexual people, as well as anyone who is diverse in sex, sexuality and/or gender, regardless of the term they use. While there are many ways to describe the community as a whole, Edith Cowan University uses ‘LGBTIQA+’ to encompass the full range of diversity that exists within the community. LGBTIQA+ captures a broad range of diverse and complex human experiences as it can be difficult to capture this fully with just one word”).

This paper reports on part of a larger study of diverse representation in Australian picture books shortlisted for book awards in 2019 and 2020. This study was funded by Herbert and Valmae Freilich Project for the Study of Bigotry. A previous article [12] reported on the representation of cultural diversity in these books, and a second article reporting on the representation of diverse abilities is under preparation, while this paper reports on the representation of diverse families and gender identities and the implications of this for dynamic and diverse early learning contexts.

1.1. Author Positionality

Here, the authors of this paper highlight their positionality in this study.

Author One identifies as a white cis-gendered female. She was in what could be considered a traditional nuclear family/marriage for 23 years, now divorced, she has been a single parent for 16 years. Her six adult children are in relationships that include blended, nuclear, mixed race, single parent, and queer-identifying partnerships and families.

Author Two identifies as a white cis-gendered female. She was in what could be considered a traditional nuclear family/marriage for over 30 years. She is now separated. Her adult children have identities and relationships including nuclear, queer, and neurodivergent dimensions.

Author Three identifies as a white cis-gendered female. She is in what could be considered a traditional nuclear family/marriage for 32 years. One of her adult children is neurodiverse, identifies as queer and is in a nuclear relationship.

Author Four identifies as a Muslim Somali-Australian cis-gendered female. She comes from a large family with seven siblings raised by a single mother after the end of a nuclear marriage of over 20 years. Three family members are living with disabilities.

1.2. Background

The term diversity is widely held to encompass a broad range of differences, including age, race, colour, religion, ethnicity, gender, language, and sexual orientation [13]. It can also include characteristics such as socio-economic background, education, work experience, and physical and mental capabilities [14]. Families take various forms within societies, and the diversity of family structures has significantly increased in recent years across many Western countries, including the United States and Australia. One of the most obvious changes is the rise in single-parent households. However, the spectrum of family diversity extends far beyond this. It encompasses families of different races and ethnicities, including interracial families, as well as various parental and caregiver combinations, such as single parents, LGTBQIA+ parents and/or children, siblings or grandparents as primary caregivers, and intergenerational families cohabitating. Additionally, there are families with members of differing abilities or those with neurodiverse children, parents, or caregivers. For some families, a shared religious belief is central, while others may consist of members with diverse religious affiliations or none at all. Moreover, these forms of diversity often intersect with other factors, such as variations in family roles and responsibilities. Essentially, families are as diverse as the individuals in our communities and the world [3].

However, children’s literature often presents a much narrower portrayal of what constitutes a family with most children’s books reflecting hetero-nuclear family structures [1,15,16,17,18]. This limited representation fails to reflect the rich diversity found in real-world families, thereby perpetuating a constrained view of family structures and identities.

1.2.1. Books Send Powerful Messages to Children

There is growing recognition of the significance of diversity in children’s literature, accompanied by an expanding body of research highlighting the importance of representing diverse races and cultures in books [8,19,20,21,22]. When examining the presence of diverse races and cultures, it is relatively straightforward to observe either the inclusion or, more commonly, the absence of such diversity in children’s picture books. This allows discerning educators and caregivers to actively seek out a broader range of inclusive literature to include in their book collections. However, the representation of family diversity is often less conspicuous [3].

Certainly, there are books explicitly crafted to address family diversity, promoting a socially conscious agenda that highlights various family structures. These books are easily identifiable due to their clear purpose and message, advocating for inclusivity and awareness. Such literature reinforces to children that their family shares similarities and differences with other family types, facilitating conversations that foster empathy and understanding. Two examples of such texts are Love makes a Family, by Sophie Beer [23] and, My Perfect Family by Alisha Burns and Rebecca Mignone [24].

Nonetheless, most children’s books are designed primarily to entertain and engage young readers through stories of imagination, adventure, love, loss, joy, pain, and the full spectrum of life experiences. Typically, children’s books feature a child protagonist, with other family members sometimes playing significant roles and sometimes appearing as background characters, often only depicted in illustrations. Consequently, family diversity, or the lack thereof, may be less apparent. These books constitute the core of what children are exposed to. This makes it crucial for adults, who often provide these books, to critically evaluate the representation of family within their collections.

Very young children tend to focus more on images than written text when engaging with books [25]. They use these images to comprehend the accompanying text. Thus, while adults may overlook the depictions of family structures and the subtle reinforcement of nuclear family models or traditional gender roles, children implicitly absorb these representations over time. Repeated exposure to depictions of nuclear, cisgender, able-bodied, monocultural families conveys messages to children about what is considered “normal” and what is deemed “different”. The effects of this exposure are not immediately evident; rather, they accumulate over time, potentially influencing the development of attitudes that persist into adulthood [6,7].

1.2.2. Challenges for Educators

Bedford and colleagues assert that “The evidence for entrenched conservatism of children’s picture books, particularly those used in Australian early childhood classrooms, is compelling” [26]. Studies show that educators are often reluctant to use books reflecting diverse families and, especially LGBTIQA+ characters, out of fear of parental objection [27]. However, Bedford and colleagues [26] highlight that books that deal with complex issues such as LGBTIQA+ representation do so with “great care and frequently display a marked effort to operate within a middle ground rather that offer anything that could be perceived as radical”. Malins and Witty [28] found that families are comfortable sharing books with LGBTQIA+ content with their children and often use such books as an “entry point to family discussions about diverse gender and sexual identities” (p. 119). This evidence suggests that educators’ fear of parental objection if they share such books may, at least in some contexts, be unfounded.

However, despite the evidence of scholars, such as Bedford and colleagues, as well as the efforts of authors of diverse books, there is a significant backlash against diverse books, resulting in increasing book bans and censorship in the United States [US], with similar trends emerging in the United Kingdom [UK] and now, growing calls in Australia [29]. Book bans and censorship impact educators’ book selection practices and, thus, have the potential to further reduce children’s exposure to diverse characters. In turn, this can contribute to an increase in prejudice and bias towards diverse families and groups. Sadly, the evidence shows that those books most frequently banned or challenged are those depicting LGBTIQA+ characters and those depicting Black, Indigenous or People of Colour [BIPOC].

In 2018, the American Library Association listed the eleven most challenged books of the year, five of which contained LGBTIQA+ depictions [30]. Similarly, the 2017 list also featured five books with contested or banned LGBTIQA+ content, including And Tango Makes Three [31], which was one of the most challenged books over a ten-year period [30]. Since that time, calls for book bans in the US have escalated rapidly, with the American Library Association reporting [32] that 4240 unique book titles were targeted for censorship in 2023, and books “representing the voices and lived experiences of LGBTIQA+ and BIPOC individuals made up 47% of those targeted in censorship attempts”. In Australia, while on a smaller scale, there are growing calls for book bans and censorship [29], and like the US, these most often centre on books containing LGBTIQA+ characters and characters of colour.

Despite these challenges, in recent years, there has been an increase in the visual representation of LGBTIQA+ themes in children’s picture books in Australia. Hedberg et al. [30] suggest that this increase is partly due to “queer rights activism, legislative reform, and the increasing visibility of queer families within the Australian media landscape” [p. 198]. This suggests that books containing diverse genders and families are increasingly available. However, Hedbeg [30] and colleagues also caution that

“while there is a significant number of children’s literature featuring rainbow families, only a relative few are consistently visible and discussed, so that stakeholders may find it challenging to access a diverse range of resources”.

(p. 198)

Adding to the complexity of what books are used by educators in early literacy and language environments is evidence, including that of Author One, repeatedly showing that educators often prefer classic books or books that were their own favourites as children [17,33]. This often results in the book collections in early learning settings predominantly containing books portraying outdated and stereotypical representation of gender identities, gender roles, family structures, and racial and cultural groups.

1.2.3. Educator Responsibilities

With growing awareness of the need to provide children with diverse books, the importance of diverse literature is increasingly recognised in early childhood education and care policies, highlighting the importance of providing diverse books for young children [34,35]. This places an important obligation on parents, carers, and educators to seek diverse books and to critically consider the books they share with and place in the hands of children.

To address this need, evidence shows that award-listed or winning books are often sought out by librarians, educators, and parents and, because of their award listing, are considered quality books for use with children [15,36,37]. Award-listed books receive widespread promotion through awards announcements, media coverage, and further promotion by authors and publishers. Subsequently, this can contribute to the perception or assumptions of such books being the best to purchase for children. Further, given that it is publishers who nominate these books for awards, these are arguably representative of what publishers consider their best publications for children.

Further increasing the likelihood of award-winning books being purchased for, and thus used in, educational settings is that professional educational bodies such as Ochre, Primary English Teachers Association of Australia [PETAA] and often publishers themselves, develop author notes and units of work for educators to implement in their teaching, which naturally increases the appeal of such books for educators and schools to purchase.

Thus, it is important to understand the representation of diversity in award-winning books, which are arguably the books likely to be purchased for use in educational settings.

This study builds on previous work of Author One investigating diversity in children’s books in early learning settings and the book selection preferences of educators and preservice teachers [13,33,38,39,40,41].

2. This Study

2.1. Materials and Methods

For this study, book award lists of shortlisted and winning books in Australia from 2019 and 2020 were selected as a purposeful sample. This sample consisted of picture books, which were included in the lists for one or more of the following awards in 2019 and 2020: the Book Council of Australia [CBCA] Notables list for Early Childhood and Picture book categories; the Australian Book Industry Awards [ABIA], picture book category shortlist; the Prime Minister’s Literature Awards, Children’s Literature category shortlist; the New South Wales Premier’s Literary Awards, Patricia Wrightson Prize for Children’s Literature Shortlist; the Queensland Premier’s Literary Awards, Children’s Book category shortlist; and the Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards, Premier’s Prize for Writing for Children shortlist. Where a category was open to both picture books and longer book formats, we selected only the picture books from that category. These awards were chosen because they are open to books published in Australia and authored/illustrated by Australian creators. This resulted in a purposeful sample of 90 books. We note that this paper does not examine the criteria and processes of these awards, though that may be the subject of a future paper. Rather, we use the awards as a mechanism for a purposeful sample of children’s picture books published in Australia for children.

2.2. Methodological Framework

This study employed a critical theoretical framework. Implicit in this conceptualisation is a probe into how literacy education, including literature, “mediate/s messages that children receive about their cultures and roles in society” [6] (p. 943). Short, ref. [42] gives a “definition of critical as a stance of locating power in social practice in order to challenge conditions of inequity”. Thus, researchers use “a specific critical lens as the frame from which to develop the research questions and to select and analyze the texts” (p. 5). Within this perspective, we sought to identify how families are represented in award-listed children’s books. Thus, we employed a critical discourse analytic methodology to analyse both the text and images in the books to identify any prevailing representation of families and the inclusion or absence of diverse family structures.

2.3. Data Analysis

To ensure the reliability and validity of the results, we used research-informed and tested tools developed from the works of seminal scholars in multicultural children’s literature. Further we employed an experienced research assistant [Author Three] to cross check our data analysis.

For this paper, we first examined all 90 books for the representation of children as main characters in which one or more adults were present in pictures and/or the accompanying text in a parental type of role. This sample included books with human characters and those with anthropomorphic animals as characters. We note that when selecting books for children, there are often misconceptions that animal stories can negate the need to consider or seek out diversity in books. This is particularly relevant to racial diversity. Such misconceptions are problematic as animal stories are often a proxy for whiteness, mostly portraying white, middle-class storylines, events and activities, thus further contributing to the invisibility of minority groups in book collections [6,11]. However, given that Author One’s studies and those of others have shown that animal stories often make up 50% of books in early learning settings, it is important to this study to consider the representation of families within these books.

Through this initial examination, we identified a subset of 34 books meeting the criteria of child/children with parent/s and/or another adult carer/s in a parental-type role. We analysed the representation of family diversity in the illustrations and text of these books. This was especially important as evidence shows that for young children, illustrations attract more visual attention than print [25]. Further, children use their working memory capacity to interpret illustrations and link the story content with them [25,43].

For this paper, the representation of diverse families was identified through visual and non-visual [i.e., textual] depictions of family structures. This includes identifying nuclear families, single-parent families, intergenerational families living and raising children together, mixed-race or intercultural families, and LGBTIQA+ parents.

We also referred to the Australian Bureaus of Statistics Census data from 2021 to compare the portrayal of families in the books with the families present in the wider Australian population [44,45].

3. Results

3.1. Representation of Family Diversity in the Books

In this study, there were 34 books portraying representation of a child as the main character in which one or more adults was present in pictures and/or the accompanying text in a parental type of role. We defined these as books portraying families.

To categorise family representation, we selected the definitions used by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in the 2021 Census [46,47]. However, we added the term carer to that of one parent, to encompass books in the study with an adult other than a parent playing a parental-type role in the book. We also added the term multigenerational family as the analysis progressed, and a number of books reflected this type of family.

Table 1. Family structures in the books.

Family Structure	No of Books
Intact families *	13
One parent/carer	14
Multigenerational	5
Other	2

* The authors acknowledge and believe that the term Intact carries connotations of the superiority of two-parent families over other, which is problematic to goals and principles of equity. However, we reiterate we have used the terms currently utilized by the ABS when reporting family data.

shows the family structures found in the 34 books.

The two books identified as other were books focusing on close family relationships with an adult extended family member in the story, but without those members having parental responsibility on a day-to-day basis. These are detailed in

Table 2. Other family member in caring role.

Other family member—Uncle	1
Other family member—Grandparent	1

and will be commented on further in the Discussion section.

The books in the one parent/carer category were further broken down into categories based on the person in the parent/carer role. For each of these, we determined whether the one parent/carer represented in the story was explicitly identified as a sole parent to the main character, implied as a sole parent, or simply as the only parent represented in the story.

These results are shown in

Table 3. Single-parent roles.

One Parent/Carer	No of Books	Explicit	Implied	Present Only
Mother	10	3 *	6	1
Father	3	2		1
Other family member—Grandparent	1		1
Total	14	5	7	2

* One book identified as explicitly portraying a single-mother family also portrayed an older brother of the lead character as being the head of the household. This will be commented on in the discussion.

and will be explained further in the Discussion section.

Not noticeable in the books were stepfamilies, blended families, foster families, and LGBTIQA+ families.

3.2. Australian Statistics on Family Structures

Table 4. Australian Census statistics on family structure for children 0–14 yrs.

Family Structure	Percentage of Children Aged 0–14
Intact	72.7
Blended	4.7
Step	4.7
One Parent	17.9

shows the percentage of children aged 0–14 years living in each type of family as reported in the 2021 Australian Census.

The Australian Census does not report the number of same-sex families with children as a proportion of all families with children. However, the 2021 Australian Census shows that 1.4% of all couples are same-sex and that 17.3% of same-sex families have dependent/non-dependent children. Given that there were 78,425 same-sex couples in the 2021 Census, this suggests that there are 13,494 same-sex families with dependent children. In addition, “as the Census did not collect gender, variations of sex characteristics, or sexual orientation” [45], the full range of relationships of LGBTIQA+ families is not reflected in the ABS data.

4. Discussion

The results of this study provide an interesting insight into the representation of families and family diversity in award-listed children’s books in Australia. These have implications for the selection and use of children’s picture books in early literacy and language learning environments. In our diverse society, it is important that all children can see characters and families like their own represented in the books they are exposed to. “The ability for children to see themselves represented in literature should be a right, not a privilege” [48].

However, in this study, while there are some positive inclusions in the diversity of family structures evident in the books, there are glaring omissions that leave some of Australia’s children unable to see families like their own represented in books. These omissions can have powerful impacts on how children see themselves and their place in the world. In turn, these can lead to a lack of engagement and interest in books, with flow on effects on the development of literacy and language skills. It is equally important for all children to see family structures and representation different to their own. This increases understanding and appreciation of the diversity within our communities and world.

4.1. The Positives

Firstly, this sample of books suggests that the historical prevalence of nuclear or intact, heteronormative families in children’s books may be gradually giving way to a greater representation of family structures. This is evidenced by the number of sole-parent books accounting for 14 of the 34 books, with a further 5 portraying multigenerational families.

With 17.9% of Australian children living in one-parent households, these results show a possibly increasing equitable representation of sole-parent families in children’s books. However, it is important to highlight that of the 14 books identified as single-parent representation [Table 3], only 5 were explicit in identifying these families as single-parent within the book itself. For example, in the book Three, by Stephen Michael King, “Fern asked her mother if Three could stay forever so that Fern, her mother and brother and Three would make a perfect four” [49], and as another example, in The Gift by Michael Speechley, “Rosie missed her mum” [50].

We argue that these are important stories that give children from single-parent families the opportunity to see families like theirs as visible and “normal”.

We draw specific attention to Sonam and the Silence [51] by Eddie Ayers. In this book, the main character’s mother is the sole parent, “Sonam lives with her mum, her big brother and sister in a tiny house in Kabul”. However, the older brother is clearly portrayed as the head of the household, with statements in the storyline such as “her big brother orders her to cover her hair and begin to work”. While this book is set in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and would require sensitive use and discussion by an educator, this book provides a reflection of a family structure that may be familiar to some children, and thus provides an opportunity for some children to see familiar family structures visible.

A further seven books were classed as implying a single-parent household. An example of this is Goodbye House, Hello House by Margaret Wild [52]. In this story, the main character is saying goodbye to one house and hello to a new one as she moves house. Images portray her mother in the kitchen, glancing at the child around a door and driving the child to the new house. There is no evidence of other family members making this move. Unlike the explicitly classed texts, this type of text implies the family structure through images and activities portrayed. Such books also provide children from single-parent families the opportunity to see familiar family representation, as well as for children from other family structures to make connections themselves and to foster understanding of the diversity of families in our world.

In two other books in the category of single-parent representation, we identified the parent being present but not necessarily implying a sole parent. An example of this is Dinosaur Day Out by Sarah Acton [53], in which the children in the story are taken on a visit to the museum by their father. While the father is the only parent present in the story, it is open to interpretation as to whether there may be another parent in the lives of the characters. Such books provide representations of children enjoying the company of and activities involving a parent and would present many children with relatable storylines.

The two books portraying a close family relationship with a family member other than a parent [Table 2] were included in the study as we believe many children could connect with the family relationships portrayed in these storylines. While the character of Grandpa, in Dear Grandpa [54] by Kate Simpson, is not physically present with the main character Henry, Grandpa is the only adult present in the story, and the importance of Grandpa’s role in the life of Henry is the focus of the story. In A Stack of Alpacas [55] by Matt Cosgrove, Macca the Alpaca has the care of his nieces and nephew “when the trio came to stay”. As with Dear Grandpa, this story presents the importance of key adult family members in the lives of children. Again, these types of stories present important messages and relatable storylines to children about roles and the nature of extended family.

Another positive in this study is, with 335,000 multigenerational families reported in the 2021 Australian Census [56], the five books in this study portraying multigenerational families, provide children from multigenerational families the opportunity to see families like their own represented positively.

4.2. The Negatives

The 2021 Australian Census data show that 9.4% of Australian children live in step or blended families. These children and their families are not noticeably represented in the books in this study. This invisibility can contribute to a sense of otherness or difference for these children. In addition, as of 30 June 2022, there were 8700 foster carer households in Australia [57]. However, none of the books in this study noticeably represented foster families.

While the books in this study, as award-listed books, are considered high quality and do portray positive family relationships, the absence of clear representation of step, blended, and foster families leaves many children with no opportunity to see their families as part of the fabric of society.

Mokrzycki [48], a foster carer herself, highlights that in Australia, booksellers that actively promote books with diverse family structures, such as step, blended or foster families, often have to rely on international publications. She calls for caution on seeing this as a solution to finding such books due to differences in contexts and the “nuances and cultural and social difference between countries”, making it unlikely for such books to offer Australian children a “complete picture of their experience” (p. 39). This adds to the complexity of book selection by educators.

Of great concern is the complete absence of any LGBTIQA+ families in the books in this study. With 1.4% of all couples being same-sex and 17.3% of same-sex families having dependent/non-dependent children, the absence of even equitable representation in these books of same-sex or other LGBTIQA+ families is problematic. LGBTIQA+ children and children of LGBTIQA+ parents are more likely to experience bullying and harassment at school, with the Australian Human Rights Commission reporting that 80% of homophobic bullying occurs at school [58]. This makes it imperative that educators seek ways to disrupt the development of such prejudice and to create safe and inclusive environments where issues of difference and diversity can be openly and supportively addressed. The considered use of diverse books is one practice known to assist in building empathy, tolerance and acceptance of difference and diversity. As such, diverse books positively portraying the full range of family diversity are not only vital for children from diverse families but for all children. Not only does this benefit children’s sense of inclusion and identity, but also their educational outcomes. Evidence to support this is shown in a recent study conducted in the USA by the not-for-profit group First Book, “for every 1 additional LGBTQ+ book that educators added to their classroom library, student reading assessment scores improved by 4.5 points on average” [59].

Finally, when considering the gaps in family representation in this study, it is important to note that in the broader study from which this paper has come, there was a strong lack of racial and ethnic diversity [12]. Of the 82 books that had a main character, 36 main characters were white, 36 were animals, 1 each were Aboriginal, Afghan and Asian, and another 7 were people of colour with no specific identification of ethnicity [12]. When considering those results, along with those presented in this paper, it is apparent that children from intersectional backgrounds, e.g., an Aboriginal child from an LGBTIQA+ family, would be even less likely to see themselves represented.

5. Conclusions: Implications and Recommendations

Children’s books are central to early literacy and language environments. Educators often use books as the basis for language and literacy learning and to create extended conversations with young children, including making links to children’s own lives. Therefore, the results of this study point to important considerations for educators, requiring them to ensure they are mindful and inclusive when selecting and using books.

Such an approach involves examining not only the narratives present in books themselves but also the subtler stories conveyed through illustrations and the representation—or lack thereof—of diverse family structures. Award-listed books, including those in this study, are certainly seen to be of high quality and well written, often containing valuable messages and themes that resonate with children’s lives. It is little wonder that award-listed books are often a source for book selectors. However, limiting book selection for early learning environments to a canon of award-listed books should be avoided. As this study has shown, it is important for educators and other adults to carefully assess the overall representation of family and other diversity within their book collections for children. Assuming that award-listed books are the best or only books to purchase can, as this study suggests, contribute to narrow family representation in book collections. This, in turn, can impact the learning and development of children from diverse family structures.

To avoid this, educators should actively seek out books that portray the full diversity of families in their community, society, country, and world. Scholars such as Mokryzycki [48], Bedford and colleagues [26], Hedberg and colleagues [30], and [Lead Author] [3], among others [18,27,60], provide suggested books in their respective scholarly works, which can support educators in their book selection.

Further, when working with books that may lack equitable representation of diversity, such as some of those in this study, educators can ensure they create opportunities to sensitively extend conversations and opportunities for children to share and discuss their varied and rich lives. Such inclusivity will contribute to fostering a more empathetic and understanding world.

Through considered and intentional book selection, educators can give all children the opportunity to see themselves represented and to understand and appreciate the lives of those different from their own.