For the Joy of Reading

Background

Do you remember being a child and feeling left out at school? Maybe you were always the last one to get picked for the kickball team at recess? Perhaps you never got invited to the cool kid’s slumber party and had to go home with your parent while the other kids were able to climb in the back of your classmates car as their parent drove them off to all the fun things your imagination could dream up. Maybe you didn’t receive any valentines on Valentines Day or your white elephant partner forgot to bring your gift and it was the last day before the holiday break. That feeling of loneliness was all too familiar to me growing up in the 80’s and attending a French immersion school in San Francisco where I was the only African American student in class.

Hi, my name is Nikki Cooper and the universal feeling of isolation and unworthiness is one of the reasons why I decided to create my children’s book series “The Chocolate Covered Series”. I write every book with the intention of creating more representation for African American children in the books they read and to inspire all children to be their own heroes in their daily lives. Roughly 10% of children’s books feature African American protagonists. This is a disheartening statistic because this lack of representation can lead to African American children feeling isolated on a daily basis simply because of the books they read. Internalizing messages of being unworthy of representation in books can lead to any marginalized group of children feeling uncomfortable about representing their authentic selves, families and communities in the world outside of the environments they live in. Conversely, studies show that when children see characters in books that they can identify with, it helps them develop a strong connection to the character and motivates them to read more. The foundation for the love of reading begins to be laid and their ideas about who they can become expands. When children read my books I want their imagination to explode with limitless and empowering views of themselves and who they can become in the world and spaces they once felt invisible in.

Goal: Donate 1000 books

When I hosted author visits for my first book Chocolate Covered Gratitude with Blessings On Top it was always a exciting experience. However, the joy I received from seeing the students enjoy the books I wrote for them was dampened when I witnessed that familiar feeling of isolation showing up on the faces of the children who did not have a copy of the book due to financial hardships. My goal is to be able to give away at least 1000 copies of my book Chocolate Covered Courage with Blessings On Top to different schools and organizations around the country. Together we can ensure every child has their own copy in every classroom or auditorium I visit in person or virtually.

Any amount you are able to donate is greatly appreciated. If you are unable to support this campaign with a monetary donation sharing this link with your networks is also deeply appreciated and great way to support.