black is brown is tan: A Joyful Picture Book About Multiracial Family Love for Kids

by Arnold Adoff, Emily Arnold McCully (Illustrator)

Brown-skinned mama, the color of chocolate milk and pumpkin pie. White-skinned daddy, not the color of milk or snow, but light with pinks and tiny tans. And their two children, the beautiful colors of both.

For an all-American family, full of joy, warmth, and love, this is the way it is for us / this is the way we are

When it was first published in 1973, black is brown is tan featured the first interracial family in children's books. Decades later, Arnold Adoff's and Emily Arnold McCully's picture book continues to offer a joyous and loving celebration of all the colors of the race, now newly embellished with bright watercolor paintings that depict a contemporary family of the twenty-first century.

And the chorus rings true as



black is brown is tan
is girl is boy
is nose is face
is all the colors of the race

Genres: Poetry, Picture Books, Family, Cultural, Childrens, African American, Race

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

Reviews

[LaDonna · Rating 3 out of 5]

🌟🌟🌟/ 5

As my youngest gets older, I find it necessary to make sure he understands how race is viewed in our country. I don’t want to take away his innocence but I need him to understand that race isn’t defined or referred to as colors you find in a Crayola box. More often than not, race isn’t the afterthought. It’s what people see first and often draw conclusions about. Yes, the conversation adds a sense layer to his world, but I must prepare my kids for the way things are. Nonetheless, I still make sure to leave the door open to discuss where we’d like the world to be.

The book, considered non-rhyming poetry, centers around an interracial couple and their children. My son and I enjoyed reading Black is brown is tan together. We spent more time talking about the similarities our families share versus the actual different shades we see in both. But, when it’s all said and done we had a good talk about race and how society defines it. Maybe, one of these days, we’ll move away from these artificial labels. But, until then, I need my kids to understand what race means in America. Arnold Adoff’s book serves as a good icebreaker.

[Errin Tucker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave this book 3 stars because I had some difficulty understanding the book in the beginning. It is considered to be in the genre of poetry. It wasn't until the end that I understood what the book was really about. This book is written for ages I and above.

The story was about a family where the mom is African American and the dad is Caucasian, therefore the children are bi-racial. It goes into more detail by showing the grandparents and showing how diverse the family truly is.

Overall the theme of the book was very good. I liked how they showed diversity in the family but how they all still loved each other. This is an important topic because so many families are diverse at this day in age. I enjoyed the pictures because it showed how everyone of all walks of life can get along. The textures used in the book were exceptional. I think that they word choice might be a little too hard for the some children to understand. But the overall story was good.

This can be a very important topic to be discussed in a classroom. Understanding diversity at a young age is important. Knowing that it's okay for someone to be a different race or look different. Also that families come in all different shapes and colors but that people should except people for who they are not based on what they look like.

[Ursula · Rating 5 out of 5]

 
A beautiful portrait of a family that has beautiful different parents that make even more beautiful children and how beautiful life is. :D

Read & share with your beautiful family!
 

[Abbery Milhouse-cunningham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This beautiful book depicts a multiracial family through poetry. The main characters are an African American mom, White father, and two mixed children. Throughout the book, they are seen doing typical family-oriented activities (ex.combing hair, kissing and hugging parents good-bye, sitting around the kitchen table). This story reiterates the idea that race is just a color and not a person. Meaning, we should see pass color. As a literacy teacher, I could use this story in various ways. For example, I could use it to introduce the genre of poetry to my students. I could also use it to talk about the concepts of family and race. Students can interact with this book by bringing in photos of their families to share with the class. Not only will this make the book come alive, but they will be able to see more racial and family diversity. The author, Arnold Adoff, relates to the content of the story, because he is a White male who married an African American woman. The two of them married during a time in which African Americans were considered inferior (1960s). Therefore, it took guts for them both to stand by each others side in the name of love. His life story in itself teaches bravery, courage, and stress the importance of standing up for what is right. His life-story could also serve as a history lesson for the students. It is always a plus when two subjects can be addressed in one lesson. It is certain to say that Arnold Adoff knows first hand the reality of race and its impact on marriage. I applaud him for nicely transitioning his personal experiences into a children's book that can help not only children but adults, as well. The illustrator, Emily Arnold McCully, is very talented, as well.

[Cassidy Goddard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black is brown is tan, is a great children's book to use to talk about race with students. This book is about an African American mother, a Caucasian father, and their two children. This book is in the form of poetry, so it was a little harder to understand, but overall it was a great book. Arnold Adoff uses the kind of "I am" form of poetry throughout this book. This book describes who the mother is, and the color of her skin. I like the fact they relate it to certain shade of browns and whites instead of just thinking their is one shade of each. The mother says her skin is like chocolate milk, while the father says his skin is not as quit white as snow. I think this shows an awesome point to the students that the color of peoples skin does not matter. Everyone can and should be loved no matter the color of skin. This book was beautifully illustrated and properly portrays the cultures of the family. This is a great book to read with students to talk about race and accepting everyone no matter the color of their skin.

[Mackenzie]

This book is about a bi-racial family with a white dad and an African American mom. The two children are mixed. I think this book would be appropriate to use in the classroom, because it does a nice job explains and showing how race doesn't matter. The pictures depict laughter and happiness, even in the midst of a two race household. The grandparents on both sides sit together, happy and in tune with one another. The storyline shows how each member of the family is different in their own way, yet the come together as one family. These characters and this situation is real life, which is why I think this book can be relatable to many students. It's important to show diversity in the classroom, and this book does a great job of doing that.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a poem with illustrations. It's a strange poem and I wasn't a fan of it at all. I wish there were more books with black woman + white man couples that didn't focus on race or skin color. There need to be more books with this combination where the couple is just a couple and the skin colors HAPPEN to be different, no commentary on it necessary. Four stars purely because it's hard to find books with black woman + white man couples.

[Renae Williams]

This book features an interacial couple with two beautiful children. It is a great family book and it shows that families come in all colors. It also proves that children are a blend of both of their parents taking on their unique features. This would be great to read to biracial children who are struggling to find their identity.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very lovely poem, very loving and inclusive message. May be a little above the reading level of a 3 year old, though. The artwork is playfully stylized, although I noticed that there are slightly different pictures for the two editions of this book.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took a little bit for me to figure out how to approach reading this book, but once I did I loved it!
It's always great to see a family that looks like yours depicted in a children's book. This was an engaging read for me and my daughter.

[Annette Wimmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Revised Review:
This book is about a white father, black mother, and brown children. There is a common theme of "This is the way it is for us, this is the way we are" indicating that their family is common even though it may be different from others. This story is a great way to introduce children to the fact that families come many forms and many colors. The book shows interaction and love between the family members as they play, learn, live and grow together, with black, white, and tan aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins.

The text is written in an unusual pattern and poetic form. Much of the spacing between the words are uncommon with more space between some words than others (not the typical typed paragraph form). There are no capital letters (all are lowercase, including the personal pronoun "i”), and it has rhythmic and rhyming phrases. Poetic license is given to authors to write in the manner in which they believe tell their stories how they wish; students may recognize the unconventional pattern of writing and ask questions. In preparation for this read-aloud, the teacher should predict questions and be ready to answer them. This read-aloud is recommended because students will enjoy how the unusual style and words come together to tell the story. After the read-aloud, a rich discussion can be had regarding inter-racial families and how the children relate to the story. Exposure to other types of families is important in teaching children to embrace others’ backgrounds and cultures regardless of their differences.

[Cassidy · Rating 5 out of 5]

ALMOST cried a little while reading this for my last book analysis assignment in children's literature. This was a great one to write about especially with it being a staple in diversity. I borrowed a copy from the library and it must be an updated version because there were notes in it about its history. It was the first children's book to include interracial characters which is super cool. This is the kind of representation kids need to see. The illustrations were so cute and the colors were awesome, they paired well with the visual language used to describe their looks and the sweet family moments! Awesome poem picturebook (:

[Cheryl]

Look for more by Adoff; I enjoyed so much Today We Are Brother and Sister.

[Mikaela Robbins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black is Brown is Tan follows the story of a multiracial family. One parent is white while the other is African-American. It follows the family as they go about their days together. It addresses how the two parents are of different color, but does not make a difference. It follows the family as they do activities together and enjoying life. It would be a great book to have in the classroom, as kids can relate to the message. I think that this book is meant for younger elementary.

[Kate Novack · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a non-rhyming poetry book about a biracial family where the mother is black and the father is white. This book shows that skin color does not make a family, love makes a family. The text is a bit hard to understand at first because it is a poem and uses a lot of metaphors but once you finish the text it is clear the message it is trying to portray. With this being said, I think this book would be hard for a child to understand and would be more suited for an adult reading to a child and then talking about what it means and about the illustrations. Also the edition I have is written in a format that does not read left to right with perfect spaces in-between each word, which would also make it difficult for an early reader.
I think the best part about this book is the watercolor illustrations. The illustrations are accurate in terms of plot, setting, and characters and are very detailed. They are all brightly colored, which would keep a child's interest. They definitely enhance the story and the features of the characters are very detailed. The color of the character's skin would make for an easy conversation with a child about how even though the mom and dad are different, they still love each other and are a family.
The characters in this story, like I mentioned before, definitely represent a variety of cultural groups. The mother is black, the father is white, and the children are mixed. The book even shows both sets of grandparents, one set being black and one set being white as well. The book shows all of them together, smiling and having fun. This shows children that all people can enjoy time together and will teach them to not see color in terms of skin. The author also belongs to a bi-racial family as he is white and was married to a mixed women before her death in 2002.

[Theresa Reifon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Format/Length: Picture book; 40 pages

Award(s)/Distinction(s):
1973 School Library Journal Best Children’s Book
School Library Journal Best Book

Theme(s): Family , Importance of Self, Individuals differences, Sense of home

Review:

Arnold Adoff wrote this poem in 1973. I was surprised to find out that this was the first children's book to feature an interracial family in it. I also found out that Arnold Adoff, who is a Jewish man, married to a woman of color himself (Virginia Hamilton), and they had two children who were multiracial.

The illustrations on each page, show a beautiful, loving family taking part in their everyday life- eating dinner around the kitchen table together, children hugging their parents, doing outdoor chores together, the parents telling the children to drink their milk, the children playing in the snow and having a pillow fight inside, the dad yelling at the children and later the dad reading them a book, and relative from both sides of the family visiting. Even though this family has parents with different skin colors and cultural backgrounds, the family is like any other family- each family member has their own unique differences, but together they are a loving, whole.

The words of the poem are as beautiful as the illustrations on each page. The words flow in such a natural way that seems to invite the reader inside the family's home. There isn't many words on the pages or in the book altogether, but the book is full of descriptions and emotions. Adoff did not use punctuation or capitalization either, instead there is differentiated spacing between words and phrasing, which seemed to guide my pacing when I read it.

[Jabria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black is Brown is Tan, is a story poem, about a mixed family with a chocolate or black mother and a white father, but not the same color of the milk or the snow. It tells about their family dynamics and how they have both black and white members. It ends with saying a poetic quote, that means that everyone is together and that there are really no differences between being black, brown, or tan. This book relates to my topic because it is dealing with a mixed family with different races.

I think that this story is age appropriate for all ages K-5, because as older students read it, they can look deeper into the story and find the true meaning behind the words. It offers students a lot to think about, question, or consider, such as having a mixed family and how they might think that it feels, or do they see any differences between having a mixed family and a family of the same race. It also utilizes style and language that are appropriate for the students ages and interest, and includes realistic, convincing characters.

The illustrations in my opinion are accurate in terms of setting, plot, and character, and also corresponds to the text. They also hold the children's interest and enhance the story by the different expressions that characters show and also the colors and the style of illustration.

This book has many different culturally background elements. The characters in the book represent more than one cultural, and the students are also exposed to more than one perspective and value, both black and white. I don't think that there are any negative stereotypes being shown, and the character's lifestyles seem to be genuine and not oversimplified.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Review: Children's Literature
"Black is Brown is Tan" is a beautifully written poem by Arnold Adoff. First published in 1973, this delightful story marked the first acknowledgment of an interracial family in children's book publishing. With an African American mother, the skin color of chocolate, and a Caucasian father, who's skin is not white, but light in color with tans and pinks and all the colors of the rainbow, this story blends colors in such a way that the beauty of this family truly shines through. The two children, one light, one darker, exude the beauty of both parents. This book comes a long way in making a point of the unimportance of skin color. Right on the first page, the author says "black is brown is tan, is girl, is boy, is nose, is face." Skin is merely one of many descriptive elements of a person, an individual; and the author is like a composer with his descriptions. Their utter happiness and the comfort of their daily routine are no different from any other family. It is a joyous occasion to see a book that shows such wonderful harmony and acceptance in the hopes that it will bring those feelings to those who read it. A delightful book, well worth reading with your children in the hopes that they, too, will see color as merely that. 2002 (orig. 1973), HarperCollins Publishers,
— Emily Cook

Recommendation: ages 4-8

Notes: does a good job of addressing race without going into specific details.

[Christina Koester · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book Black is brown is tan by Arnold Adoff is an award winner of the 1988 National Council of Teachers OF English Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children, for ages four to eight years old. Black is brown is tan is about a multie-culture family. Where they have a African American mother and a Caucasian father. The reason I rated this book the way I did was because the book is basically saying that they are a normal family, just have two different races in one. I the book the mother compares her skin tone to different things, such as chocolate milk and dad would compare his self to white milk. The characters in the book are Mom, dad, the children, dad's sister Florence, mom's tan man brother, granny white and also granny black. The themes in the book were like daily living, different things mom and dad does and what they tell their children. The illustrations in the book were drawn to understand what each illustration is. The illustrations were easy to tell which each object in each page was. The colors in the book were all different colors on the pages. The colors had made the pages pop just a little. The color on the pages were very light and not too dark, even if was a dark color presented on the page. I would say that this book is appealing to young readers because it would be great for them to see a family of two different races having a family together and doing everyday living, just like any other family.
April 21, 2016

[Megan Piero · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author, Arnold Adoff, did a fantastic job at weaving his personal life story of being in a bi-racial marriage with bi-racial family into a beautiful poem. The words flow eloquently across the page (ex. “black is brown is tan/ is girl is boy/ is nose is face/ is all the colors of the race”). At the time Adoff and his wife got married in 1960, it violated segregation laws in 28 states. Although the topic of bi-racial marriage seems a normal part of society today, it was a very controversial topic when the book was first published in1973. It was very risky not only for Adoff to write the book, but for the publishing house to release it. Adoff was able to use his artistic ability and creativity as a writer to stand up for his beliefs. As a teacher, I will use this book to teach students about how literature can be used as a tool to fight against social injustice. I will tell my students that when we see something in the world in unfair or unjust, we can use our words to make a difference. As an extension activity, we can talk about things in our community we may not agree with, and I will show the children how to write letters and poems to express how we feel. I will have my students write letters to our mayor about things they think should be changed in the community. This will help my students understand the many different purposes of literature.

[Juso · Rating 5 out of 5]

This poetic narrative tells about an interracial couple Arnold (white), Virginia (black), and their two kids. The kids are assured by their father that they are beautiful just the way they are (ex."black is brown, is tan, is girl, is boy, is nose, is face, is all the colors of the race"). The poem continues with the author, Arnold Adoff, showing the Adoff family as they interact and spend time with each other (ex "go out to cut wood for the fire, or cook the corn and chicken legs"). As a literacy teacher, I would use this text when teaching descriptive language (ex. hairbrush mornings catching curls"). Also, I would use the text to teach rhyming words (ex. is dark, is light, singing songs in singing night"). The students could interact with the text by creating poems that depict their families. The author, Arnold Adoff, has a direct connection with the text, being that it is dedicated to his kids. Also, Arnold Adoff and his wife, Virginia, were married in 1960; however, the marriage violated segregation laws. The illustrator, Emily Arnold McCully, does a great job of creating illustrations that resemble paintings. The text is related to diverse families in that it depicts a interracial family.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fictional book. I think this book may be confusing to kids if they read it on their own and they may not find it interesting. The words have spaces in them and some of the sentences are not complete sentences. If i teacher was reading this to her students then i do not think it will be a problem and they will stay interested in the story. This book is more for older kids because they may understand the text better. There is not really a stated problem in the story but i think the problem is that the kids do not understand why their family is different from others that may have same race couples. Throughout the book the parents tell the kids that their family is great and how race is nothing to be ashamed of. The illustrations are good but i think they could be better because kids may not understand the words so they look at the pictures for help. The illustrations are kind of washed out like but i think they did that because they want you to focus more on the words. The father is white and the mother is back and they did not go into details about their culture. Overall i would not reminder this book to be read until fourth or fifth grade because that why you can understand it better and also ask questions and leave the students something to consider.

[Xaviera Hanif · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how this book begins with the illustrations showing a mixed family! From what it seems like it shows an african american mother and a caucasian father. The kids have a tan skin color! The colors of the illustrations really point out the different skin tones which is great! :) I have personally never read many children's books promoting interracial couples/families. I think this is a great children's book to have at home or in a classroom, considering that our society is changing into a very diverse place with different races coming together beautifully! This story shows that having a interracial family works just as easily as a "same color" family. It shows them going to the beach, getting ready for bed, eating breakfast together, reading books together, etc. The illustrations show the family being very happy! I think that this book does a great job in trying to keep the child's attention! This is great for young children who can also relate with having a diverse family! This book promotes a positive understanding of interracial families, there are no negative stereotypes found! The lifestyles of the characters in the book are simple, which implies that an interracial family works just as easily as any other!

[Kourtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a nonfiction book, written in poetic form. A beautiful poem that focuses on the love of a family. The young boy has an African American mother and a white father, which he describes beautifully. He says that his father may be white, but he is pinker and tanner than plain white. It talks about how color makes no difference in families, and that color is just color. This book is a great book to teach younger children about race. I enjoyed reading this book, even though at first it was a struggle to catch the flow of the poetry. It is a great book for younger children because it rhymes race with parts of the body and how the color of skin doesn't matter if it’s different, just like a nose, or an ear. The story highlights the fact that even though our complexions may differ as people we are no different than another. We may look different but we are the same and the love is the same. The illustrations pair closely to the text and it includes characters that are relate-able. This will be interesting for children because of the illustrations and the fun words used to describe themselves.

[Brittni Hover]

This is a wonderful story showing that colored and white people might have different colored skin, but we all are still the same. Brown skin is the color of chocolate milk and coffee. While white-skinned are not white like the snow, they are white with pink and tans. No matter what color we are we are all the same. This story is in poem format. This book fits into the multicultural literature category because it is comparing dark skinned people to white people, and showing that we are all the same. It also fits into the poem category because there is a lot of rhyming in the book. Everything flows really well together.

A mentor-writing trait found in this book is sentence fluency. This story flows really well. There are patterns that can be seen with the sentences. An example from the book is, black is brown is tan is girl is boy is nose is face is all the colors of the face. The wording and pictures are great and make it easy to visualize the people they are talking about. This book is a level 2.9.

[Tori Alexander]

Genre: poetry

Black is Brown is Tan is a poetic narrative about a nurturing interracial couple raising their two children. Although the theme of the storybook focuses on race, it touches on the concept of family. This storybook is an interesting read for children because it gives an inside look into a family that is loving regardless of its family orientation. Its poetic verses and style are appropriate for grade school children because of its easy-to-read language. The storybook includes realistic, convincing characters that depicts interracial couples and modern families. The illustrations correspond to the text and is accurate in terms of where the characters are in the story and the words that are written in the text. The characters do not represent a variety of cultural groups, but exposes children to blended families. The author is a part of the grouped represented in this storybook because he too is a Caucasian male who is married to an African American woman and had children. The author does a great job introducing family through another lens.

[Tony Ruiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black is Brown is Tan – Arnold Adoff
Grade: 3-5
Pages: 40
Theme: Interracial Family, Poetry
Genre: Poetry, Picture Book
Response: For an older book, this is a wonderful treat. A black mother, a white father, and a son and daughter, originally wrote in 1973, was some tough stuff to swallow back then. With how common it is today seeing interracial families in society, I thought it would be great for older elementary students to view and analyze. I kind of felt like it was a product of the 70’s, poetry wise. It seemed to have that “java house, free lance poetry” vibe going on, especially the “chorus” line of “black is brown is tan is girl is boy is nose is face is all the colors of the race”, but the illustrations were nice and warm and inviting, which I find a nice plus.
Class Activitiy: Write a short poem that is similar to Adoff’s about their own family, followed with a drawing of their parent, grandparent, caregiver, or guardian and/or siblings.

[Marina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an awesome book which describes a mixed family.The dad is white, the mom is black, and the kids are brown. This book brings a message of how this family experiences the same things as single race couples. The children are no different and neither are the parents.In addition,the book presents so well the words that flow well throughout the book. This book can be used in our modern classrooms and children will be informed about mixed families. Teachers can teach students from the early age about diversity. Emily Arnold McCully's water color illustrations fit very well to the message of the book. Each illustration is unique , that can help the student to memorize the story . The author, Arnold Adoff, based the poem on his own marriage to his wive, Virginia Hamilton (also a writer) and two multiracial children. This book might create a great understanding for children about the mixed families.

[Molly Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

This children's book is like poem, with its chopped sentences and lack of punctuation. I love the squiggly and colorful illustrations on each page. The two parents of this book are from different ethnic backgrounds. The mom is described as "the color of chocolate milk and pumpkin pie", and the dad is white, but not like snow, but with "pinks and tiny tans". The children are a blended mix of both parents, they look different than both of their parents but also like each of them. They are a family of many different colors, but they all have a nose, a mouth, a face. The little girl talks about her curly hair and how it gets caught and tugged in the brush. The poem and story follows the family through days and seasons of change. I think that the way the colors are described in the colorful;y descriptive language starts to make children think about colors beyond the skin. Maybe child can see the value of this book and its importance to us all.

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved finding this book again as an adult! I enjoy Arnold Adoff's poetry - his style is open verse, like a conversation or stream of consciousness, and here the poem makes me feel like a guest among his family, enjoying their company and their love for each other. In part biographical, the poems are about a family with a white dad and African-American mom, their two multiracial kids, and their extended family.

The greatest strengths of this book are the way it shows quite simply a loving family that happens to be multiracial in their daily life and the way it questions how we talk about skin color ("i am white / milk is white / i am not the color of the milk"). It begins by using very simple ways of talking about each character and then progresses into a much more complex (and realistic) view of the world - the great variations in how skin can be and the common thread of how we live, love, and be.