Peters, Katie. Clothes We Wear My World (Pull Ahead Readers – Nonfiction Series). Lerner, 01/2023.
16pp. Reader. GRADES Kindergarten – 2. $25.32. 978-1-7284-7594-3. Paper $ 7.99. 978-1-7284-7886-9. SERIES REVIEW: LOW ADDITIONAL .
Color photographs with diverse children and familiar settings make this series for the earliest developing readers appealing; however, greater effort at representation should be made. Each spread has one or two simple sentences and fullcolor photographs that match the text very closely. “I wear my dress. It has flowers.” Short, repetitive sentence structures are well suited for very early readers. “I ride in a van.” Although familiar settings will engage children and provide jumping off points for conversations, it is noticeable that only mainstream items are included. We All Need Food describes eating bread and toast, but there is no mention of rice, noodles, or different types of bread,such as roti. We Wear Clothes reinforces gender stereotypes and does not include clothes from a variety of cultures. Holiday Fun focuses on common features of holidays (“We have holiday food”), yet it features photographs from mainstream holidays, such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Fourth of July, instead of including more diverse holidays. This is especially problematic because the accompanying fiction series is particularly inclusive.
Mary Ann Scheuer—Independent
