The Mansfield Public Library is introducing a new book collection meant to educate families on what it means to arrive in new cultures from the perspective of new arrivals.
The I’m Your Neighbor Welcoming Library is the latest addition to the library. The traveling collection features 30 books that are part of an initiative started by I’m Your Neighbor Books. Books such as “Where Are You From?” by Yamile Saied Mendez, “I’m New Here” by Anne Sibley O’Brien and “In My Mosque” by M.O. Yuksel will be featured in the welcoming library.
Mansfield Public Library is hosting the collection through July and August for summer reading. Library Director Beth Crooker said she anticipates the books will positively impact the Temple community.
“It’s just a great opportunity for patrons and kids to have access to the books,” said Crooker. “These are high-quality books that I think the kids will enjoy.”
Crooker also said the new books will teach children to welcome and celebrate cultural diversity in the community.
“It’s very important for [the kids] to hear a variety of stories in a small town,” said Crooker.
The New Hampshire State Library Welcoming Library was made possible with support from the Hesed Foundation. Crooker said NHSL received positive feedback from communities across the state, leading them to purchase a second collection to be passed around for New Hampshire libraries to have for two months at a time.
Deborah Dutcher, youth and adult services librarian for the NHSL, said the collection is a success for many libraries and schools across New Hampshire.
“The books are circulating really well,” said Dutcher. “They open the community to a more-diverse population.”
The purpose of the welcoming library is to raise awareness and express empathy for new arrivals in order to help them feel more accepted in their communities. Dutcher said she hopes readers will be able to relate to the lessons and stories through their own experiences.
“I want the new arrivals to see themselves in the literature they read and engage with the characters,” she said.
Welcoming Librarybook list“Alma and How She Got Her Name” by Juana Martinez-Neal.
“Auntie Luce’s Talking Paintings” by Francie Latour.
“Big Red Lollipop” by Rukhsana Khan.
“A Different Pond” by Bao Phi.
“Dreamers” by Yuyi Morales.
“Four Feet, Two Sandals” by Karen Lynn Williams and Khandra Mohammed.
“Here I Am” by Patti Kim.
“I’m New Here” by Anne Sibley O’Brien.
“In My Mosque” by M.O. Yuksel.
“In the Small, Small Night” by Jane Kurtz.
“Joseph’s Big Ride” by Terry Farish.
“Mama's Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation” by Edwidge Danticat.
“Mustafa” by Marie-Louise Gay.
“My Friend Jamal” by Anna McQuinn.
“My Name is Sangoel” by Karen Lynn Williams and Khandra Mohammed.
“Nieve en la Jungla/Snow in the Jungle” by Ariane Hofmann-Maniyar.
“Marigolds and Masala” by Meenal Patel.
“Someone New” by Anne Sibley O’Brien.
“Somos Como las Nubes/We Are Like the Clouds” by Jorge Argueta, Alfonso Ruano (illustrator) and Elisa Amada (translator).
“Stepping Stones” by Margriet Ruurs and Nizar Badr (artist).
“Story Boat” by Kyo Maclear.
“The Suitcase” by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros.
“That’s NOT How You Do It!” by Ariane Hoffman-Maniyar (illustrator).
“Together We Grow” by Susan Vaught.
“Two White Rabbits” by Jairo Buitrago.
“Unexpected Friend: A Rohingya Children’s Story” by Raya Rahman.
“Watercress” by Andrea Wang.
“Where Are You From?” by Yamile Saied Mendez.
“Wherever I Go” by Mary Wagley Copp.
“Wishes” by Muon Thi Van.