Shades of People

by Shelley Rotner, Sheila M. Kelly

Cocoa, tan, rose, and almond—people come in lots of shades, even in the same family.

A perfect resource for starting conversations about race with young children, Shades of People celebrates the diversity of everyday life. This beautiful picture book and its board book edition, All Kinds of People , pair simple text and vibrant photographs to explore one of our most notable physical traits.

At school, at the beach, and in the city, diverse groups of children invite young readers both to take notice and to look beyond the obvious. Combining lively action shots and candid portraits, Shelley Rotner's photographs showcase a wide variety of kids and families—many shades, and many bright smiles.

For even younger readers, this title has also been adapted as a board book, All Kinds of People .

An ALA Notable Book.

Genres: Picture Books, Cultural, Nonfiction, Childrens, Photography, Storytime, Family

32 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2009

About the author

When I was five, I refused to go to kindergarten. I declared it was for babies. I already knew how to read, but what really bothered me the most was that the kids mixed up the paintbrushes and colors at the easel so there was never true blue, red, yellow or green. Every time my teacher turned her back, I left the room and headed to the first grade class diagonally across the hall. Luckily, I had a friend there who happily shared her desk with me until the teacher noticed and sent me back to kindergarten. After many successful escapes, a trip to the principal and some testing, I was officially moved to that first grade class with beautiful autumn leaves painted on the door.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm really torn on how to rate this book. On the one hand, I get what it's trying to do and like many reviewers I love how the author referred to people coming in different "shades" rather than colors. The book shows children playing in various scenarios, and talks about how people come in "cocoa," "rose," "almond," etc. That's nice.

One the other hand, this book has made my son obsessed with skin color. It's had the complete opposite effect from what I was hoping for. Because the book is busy labeling the different shades, he's now interpreted that to mean it's important to label shades of skin. Kids learn what's important by watching us, and by reading this book to him I've just essentially told him labeling skin color is important. Holy shit. We almost immediately stopped reading the actual text to him and instead talked about what the kids are doing, asked him to find a child with glasses, a barrette, and so on. Even so, he hasn't forgotten and will point to a child and ask if that one is "coffee.” It took something he hadn't really remarked upon, and told him it was both important and remarkable.

The pictures themselves bothered me too. They were, photographically speaking, unimpressive. This is from a complete amateur, but I found them distracting. In one instance the focus of the camera is on a brick wall behind the child, in another instance the whole scene is blue-tinted like we're seeing it underwater. That's fine to post to your Facebook page, but a little more professional imagery should be expected in a book in my opinion.

In the end, every other review thus far is universally positive so I feel like I’m missing something or maybe my son is too young for this book. But it’s not one we’ll be revisiting when he’s older, so two stars it is.

[Natalia Ruiz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Shades of People is a perfect example of putting diversity in simplistic terms especially for younger children. The book uses shades to describe how different people are instead of using color. There are no cultural references in this book, the images shown are of people who come from different backgrounds but there are no implications of a specific culture. In reviewing the book I found kids that looked like they came from Latino, Asian, European and everything else that falls in between. What I did notice that the book did not make any specific implications if the kids were from Mexico, China, Russia etc. This is great because the book is not meant to show kids how someone from Mexico might look rather it is to show kids how different everyone looks no matter where they come from, even when you do not know.

The book does a great job in showing diversity with in the shades of the different kids used. There is a variety of gender and of hair and eye color. Some kids have freckles while others have missing teeth. There is no one lens that this book produces rather they are showing younger kids how different their peers can look. Language is not displayed throughout the book. It seems that it was done intentionally because the book focuses on the different shades people can come in. All the kids in the book are smiling and there is no hint towards any specific setting. Although some of the larger images are shown in areas outside that have a lot of greenery.

The words used to describe the shades of colors were very neutral and made no specific references. Some of the words used were (tan, copper, cocoa, creamy, ivory, sandy, peach,fair, light. One thing the book did have was an image of an interracial couple with their child who was a perfect combination of both her parents. Her father was on the dark shade and her mother on the lighter while their daughter fell right in the middle.

In a lot of the images there is no display of wealth or power. There are images of families holding hands as they walk down the street. There is also an image of two kids hugging while they ride the train. There is no assumption that one kid holds more power or wealth, rather this book did a great job at using images that create no assumptions or classifications of a race or culture.

[Mr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like that it has pictures of real people, not cartoon people.

[Aide Acuna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was amazing. I really liked that the author reffered to skin in shades instead of "color". Throughout this book there are very few but meaningful words. The pictures used in the book are of real people. These kids of young ages are seen doing different activities like playing in the sand or just with their families or friends. The author shows throughout the book that one can't judge someone by the shade of their skin because she shows different kinds of families that may have adopted their children or so on. Rotner makes it clear that a shade is just a wrapping or layer of your body but that there is so much more inside. I would recommend this book to parents and teachers in order to open up the topic of race to children who do see the differences. I would use it with younger students so as to begin thinking and realizing that we are all still people regardless of our shades. My personal reaction was that the pictures were very well taken. The pictures were chosen wisely and they really grabbed my attention.

Satisfying Statement: Look past the shades and more inside :)

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

This colorful children's book is a great read. It talks about the different shades of peoples skin and where you go to see new shades. For example, in the park, at school and in the city. It also lists some different shades to help children expand their vocabulary such as copper and tan instead of brown or creamy and ivory instead of white. The pictures in the book are actual photographs not drawings. I think it was a great idea to use photographs of real children in this book; it can help students see kids like them from around the world. The authors Shelly Rotner and Sheila M. Kelly are obviously a part of the group this book is about because it's about all people. They also specialize in diversity books for children. "Lots of Moms and the A.D.D. book for kids" are a couple of their works. I would use this book in my classroom to show the students that everyone is different and we don't have to be the same color to be friends. I can also use it to teach rhyming words because the book uses rhyming words in some parts. Overall, I would recommend this book as an educational tool for all teachers.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wrote of Jess Hong’s book Lovely that I couldn’t decide whether I wanted a more explicit message, or felt the understated depiction of diversity stood well enough alone. For this book, I definitely wish the text (which is already minimal!) were even less obtrusive — mainly because I am not a big fan of assigning names to people’s skin tones, whether they’re food words (a no-no for many people, because food words tend to be only used for darker tones) or not. I really want to give my 2yo language around race and skin color, but I don’t think this book’s approach fills that gap. I do love the photos, though.

[NayDoubleU · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book for the most obvious reason, which is the fact that there is different races in the book. It was a simple book that got the point across, which is- there are different skin tones of people all over the world even in our own families and you can’t tell what a person’s personality is like, whether they are good or bad just by looking at their skin tone. I also enjoyed the fact that the illustrations were actual pictures instead of cartoons, I will definitely have this book in my future classroom.

[Rachel Wells · Rating 4 out of 5]

My two-year-old loves this book and it’s given her language to talk about the shades of skin in our family. Even if your toddlers aren’t different shades, this book can help (white) parents practically implement the idea that they should be talking with their kids about race. (If this feels uncomfortable, I highly recommend the book White Fragility to help get comfy with the discomfort. :))

[Alison]

Opening lines: "Have you noticed that people come in many different shades? Not colors, exactly, but shades." I LOVE this approach to talking with children about the different levels of melanin in our skin.

[Shiela Escamilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of the beauty of different people/ children around us! That our difference from one another makes us special in our own way.

This is not an award winning book and I have used it for our beginning of the year discussion and it is a great book as it showcase different special traits of people/ children and support children. What a wonderful way to teach children to appreciate their special attributes to something more relatable with others. The children will enjoy using fun and descriptive words when they refer to others or themselves in some ways such as "eyes color brown as an almond" A great literacy experience indeed!

Young children will appreciate the fun illustration and the simple story line with descriptive words of children's characteristics.
I recommend this book for a group read aloud or a personal story telling at home with children of diverse background. It is especially a good read for classrooms as a library resource for the beginning of the year or all year long.
As our growing community continue to become diverse, it is important that all children can relate to in text.
Teachers can use this book to teach children to learn about friendships skills and that different skills or ability that people posses is a great contribution to everyone around us. That these different talents/ physical attributes is a wonderful thing that it makes this world a better place to live in.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm so torn with how to rate this...you can clearly tell this was written in the 2000s. And the message is great, but some word choices were maybe not the best (the common complaint of using food to describe darker colors) and the general lack of works used to describe darker colors while the lighter colors get 3 words to a page, other colors get much less.

[E · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not flawless, but it's the best of its category that I've read so far.

[E.S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shades of People is a heart-warming book written by Shelley Rotner with photographs by Sheila Kelly, about all of the different kinds of people in this world, how they are just shades, not necessarily different colors, and how you can’t tell what somebody is like on the inside by what they look on the outside. This is a book that every child needs to read. Not necessarily younger children who don’t really understand the concept of racism or different races in general, but for older children who are starting to realize that people look very different from one another. This book teaches children that it’s okay to get along with someone just because they look different from them. “Our skin is just our covering, like wrapping paper. And, you can’t tell what someone is like from the color of their skin” is as true a line as was ever written. The vocabulary is very basic, mentioning different shades like pink, rose, and almond, and there is only one sentence per page.
Sheila’s photographs are beautiful and happy; featuring children of different shades playing with each other and smiling in the park, on the beach, in the city, and at school. The photographs portray a sense of togetherness, love, and hope. It is entirely possible for two people of a different race to get along---and even get married! One photograph even shows an interracial couple and their child. Most of the photographs take up the entire page, or are part of a full-page collage. It seems that the text aids the photographs more than the photographs aid the text. The text is almost a description of the photographs on the page. This is an extremely visual book.
Overall, I would say this book is appropriate for ages 3 and up. The concept of different races might be difficult for a child under 3 to understand. The book itself is developmentally appropriate for a 3-year-old, because, while the illustrations are not bright and vivid, the photographs are easy to relate to because they show children, the book itself isn’t that long, and there isn’t a lot of text and the text that is in the book isn’t hard to understand. Finally, as far as multicultural books, this book doesn’t stereotype in specific race and is very diverse when it comes to showing different races (black, white, asian, latino, Indian, etc.).

[Israel Graves · Rating 5 out of 5]

(multicultural)
This is a very important and unique book to use to introduce children to the idea that there are many different shades of people! The most important message in this book is that skin is just a covering and that you cannot tell what someone is like from the color of their skin. This is a very important concept that young children need to understand. Having them understand this at a young age through literature is vital because the older they get the harder it is for them to grasp the idea. This book is full of photos from the first page to the very last of children who are all diffrent shades interacting. The photos show the children participating in regular activities together such as playing on the playground and building sand castles on the beach. There are not very many words in this book but the words that are in the book are special and very important. This book is appropriate for childen as young as 4 to be introduced to even if they are not able to read to themselves this book works as a good read aloud. This book would pair well with any preschool multicultural lesson.

[Amanda Hayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Author and photographer join forces again in this photographic essay on skin color. Having previously tackled family members, feelings and faiths (May Ways: How Families Practice Their Beliefs and Religions, 2006, etc.), they now showcase—in full color—many smiling, appealing, friendly, loving, creative, thoughtful, hugging, eye-catching young ones. The connection, rather than the difference, is that all these children are many different shades, “not colors, exactly…. / There’s creamy, ivory, / sandy and peach, / coffee, cocoa, / copper and tan.” And all of this is “our covering, like wrapping paper.” The authors take care to state explicitly that “you can’t tell what someone is like from the color of their skin.” Children of many different ethnicities are here, sometimes in the same family. It’s a heartwarming effort that teachers and families can embrace and will doubtless find its way into many a curriculum on celebrating difference. (Picture book. 3-6)

[Review of Shades of people, by S. Rotner]. (2010, May 20). Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-re...

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shades of People by Shelley Rotner, is a wonderful addition to any classroom. This book, introduces children to people with a wide variety of differences. This book features people with a wide variety of skin colors who are equally beautiful. It also demonstrates that people can have different skin colors and still be in the same family.

Shelley Rotner's book encourages dialogue about acceptance and diversity and after reading her biography I learned that, to create awareness about diversity was her goal when she writes her children's books.

I would use this book in my classroom to teach awareness, about the diversity of people around the world, and to teach about family. Growing up I struggled with the idea that I did not look like my siblings, a book like this would have showed me that it was and is okay not to look like the people in your family.

[Paige Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that demonstrates the different appearances children can have, but reminds the reader that they are still children that enjoy the same things. The items mentioned in this book are every day functions such as smelling, seeing, and eating. I would highly recommend this book to others because it demonstrates tolerance and acceptance of those who are different than you. I would use this book in one of my multicultural lessons that I teach throughout the year. I teach one about El Salvador and another commonly called, "Christmas Around the World." This book can be used to help students see the similarities people have regardless where they were born.

[Libby Hutchison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful childrens book. This book is filled with tons of pictures and also some few short sentences on some pages. This book starts from the beginning saying how people look different but we are all the same. Throughout the book it shows specific pictures of all of the different shades of people.

I really enjoyed this book and think it is obviously something very important that children sound know about while they are young. It shows all the different ways people can look so children don't think that they are different than any other children just because they may not look the same. Each child should read a book like this and learn a lot about this certain topic.

[Elines Flores · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author helped me realize that the world is not filled with people of many colors rather many shades. I have heard several individuals (including myself) refer to themselves as black, white, brown, etc.…. When the fact is if a “white” person should put his or her arm next to a bottle of white paint, I’m almost positive the color would not match. The book replaces “white” with shades like peach, “black” with cocoa, and “brown” with copper.

Favorite quote from the book: “skin is just a covering and that you cannot tell what someone is like from the color of their skin.”

[Marguarite Markley · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great book for younger children about skin color and understanding what is most important is what is on the inside. While some of Rotner's shades don't seem to actually match the children's different skin tones, the message in this picture book comes across beautifully. This is a must have book for preschool and kindergarten teachers wanting to teach/reinforce that skin color doesn't make the person.

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

The photos are lovely and this book is a simple way to talk to your kids about race and generally the ways in which we're the same or different. After reading "Nurtureshock" by Po Bronson, I'd say this book is useful to many parents. The chapter in his book about how uncomfortable many parents are with discussing race with their children leads me to believe that having a way to open the door to that conversation could be really helpful.

[Krista Dean · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book for teaching young children about the shades/differences in color amongst people. The book doesn't simply label people as "black" or "white" but gives people "shades" instead such as almond, rose, or cocoa. It also says something about how our skin is just our covering. I think it would be a great book to let students not only recognize their differences but to lead to further discussions in the characteristics that make us unique.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really, really liked this book, one reason being that it sees beyond race and gives children the idea that everyone is a different color, instead of making it all about a race thing. I also liked that it didn't just say the colors black, white, and brown, instead incorporating all different shades of those colors to represent every culture. Really great book, especially in the multicultural perspective.

[Gwen the Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely wonderful introduction to people's color differences for very young children. It is filled with darling and fun photographs of every race and mix of colors. It explains that our skin is like wrapping paper and you never know what will be inside. It shows families that are different shades. Beautiful!

[Joanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shades are beautiful and we are all different shades. This author does a lovely job in describing the shades by using words such as: pink, rose, almond, bronze, brown... I love it. Great book for parents to read to their child and for teachers to read during the first week of school. Diversity is all around us and it's important to embrace its beauty. Oh, and the pictures are tooo cute!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book to knock out labelling black and white. It shows faces of all races, colors, shades, and most important, shows faces of beauty. I would use this book to knock out sterotyping and to show that everyone is beautiful and that nobody should be judged because of their genetic make up. Great beginning of the year introduction book. This should definitely be a part of your classroom.

[Emma Jeffries]

Cocoa, tan, rose, and almond—people come in lots of shades.

Even in the same family there are differences. This thoughtful exploration of one of our most noticeable physical traits uses vibrant photographs of children and a short but astute text to inspire young children both to take notice and to look beyond the obvious.

[Shannon Linville · Rating 5 out of 5]

The subgroup this book represents is skin tone. The language used is English, and the book is in an informational genre. The reading goes through various outdoor locations such as the playground, the beach, and the city to explore different skin tones found in children and stresses the term “shades,” not “colors.”

[Derek Cooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book on the diversity of people. The book uses pictures and groups some skin types together by color. Each of the skin colors is identified and the students are taught that we are all the same, just different shades of color. The key point that is made is that our skin is like wrapping paper, and you can’t tell about someone just by their skin.

[Sarah Ashburn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this childrens book and is something I would like to have in my classroom. I really feel that this shows diversity. This could be used in many different ways, focusing on characteristics or different races or even just the differences in families. I really like the real pictures and think that it allows students to focus on similarities and differences of people.