Diversity Start-up Collection

Appleton Public Library received a grant from the Outagamie Waupaca Library System to develop a startup collection of diversity materials for young adults and the organizations that focus on teens. While the library has books on many diversity topics this collection emphasizes the interests and needs of today's youth. Working with members of the Harmony Café and other individuals in the community, titles in both book and video formats were selected for the collection.

Among the titles selected are:

Earth Song, Sky Spirit
A collection of short stories by contemporary Native American writers. The stories speak of the experiences of Native American peoples, and feature beloved stories as well as contemporary stories of the Native American experience in America.

Domino: Interracial People and the Search for Identity.
A video, which portrays the stories of 6 interracial people, exploring issues of identity, cultural isolation, and the search for community.

Letters Across The Divide: Two Friends Explore Racism, Friendship and Faith
A minister and his long time friend address questions and issues surrounding race via letters they wrote to each other over an extended period.

Join In: Multiethnic Short Stories
Written by outstanding writers for young adults. Each story is about American teens from various cultural heritages; Vietnamese, Puerto Rican, Japanese, Chicano, Pueblo Indian and others. These are stories about people who want to be accepted yet need to be recognized as individuals.

People
A video musical adventure for the entire family. Based on the book, People, by Peter Spier, this delightful video celebrates the diversity of the human race.