I See You See by Richard Jackson and illustrated by Patrice Barton
As a teacher I’m always mindful about reading lots and lots of incidental diversity stories to my students. When I think of incidental diversity, I think of a story that has a character (main character) from an underrepresented community, where the story is not about the character overcoming who they are or their identity. Many times, it has been difficult for me to find stories that represent different abilities in an incidental way.
This story, I See You See by Richard Jackson and beautifully illustrates by Patrice Barton, is a wonderful example of an incidental story where imagination and wonder are the focus of Maisie and Jonah’s afternoon walk with their dog. My students poured over the pages and couldn’t wait to share what they might see on the walk if they were walking with Maisie and Jonah. From start to finish this is a small moment tale that is packed with many possibilities and opportunities for lively discussion and talk.
