ABA Children's Institute 2025
Children’s Institute 2025: 'More Important Than Ever’ (Publishers Weekly)
“I didn’t know I was nonbinary until I was an adult, because I’d never heard that word before, and I didn’t know that was an option,” said em dickson, who uses the pronouns e/em/eir/she and is the author of Beyond They/Them: 20 Influential Nonbinary and Gender-Diverse People You Should Know (Andrews McMeel, out now), illustrated by Cameron Mukwa. “I didn’t even know about half these people before I started writing,” dickson said, saying queer stories must be retold.
Children's Institute 2025: Authors and Illustrators to Meet (Publishers Weekly)
Shelf Awareness Extra!: Children’s Institute 2025
Friday, June 13, Breakfast Keynote: There Is No Such Thing as a Silent Ally
At a time when so many identities and stories are under attack and bookstores are ever more important as tastemakers, community hubs, and agents for change and transformation, the speakers at this breakfast will focus on the importance of vocal and visible allyship and allyship across intersections. The five authors will share how bookstores can engage in allyship for each other, authors, and the community through intentional curation, safe spaces, and partnerships, and how bookstores can best celebrate and support LGBTQIA2S+ voices.
Shelf Awareness Image of the Day: ‘No Such Thing as a Silent Ally’
Last week at Ci2025, the morning keynote was There Is No Such Thing as a Silent Ally. The group (l. to r.) was introduced by Brein Lopez, general manager of Children's Book World, Los Angeles, Calif., and featured authors Claribel Ortega (Scepter of Memories, Scholastic), em dickson (Beyond They/Them, illus. by Cameron Mukwa, Andrews McMeel), moderator Lee Wind (Like That Eleanor, illus. by Kelly Mangan, Cardinal Rule Press), ND Stevenson (Scarlet Morning, Quill Tree Books), and Petra Lord (Queen of Faces, Holt). The only nonfiction author on the panel, em dickson observed that "children are oppressed individuals. Much of the world is inaccessible to them--books are one of the best ways to open that world up in a way that provides access."