Welcome back to the Cultural Curriculum Chat podcast. I am Jebeh Edmunds and today, I am sharing my conversation with author and illustrator Vanessa Brantley Newton, whose energetic prose and art will motivate and inspire.
About Vanessa Brantley Newton
Vanessa was born during the Civil Rights Movement and attended school in Newark, New Jersey, in a diverse, tight-knit community. During such turbulent times, Vanessa learned the importance of acceptance and empowerment in shaping a young person’s life. When she read Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats, it was the first time she saw herself in a book, which became a defining moment in her life and has made her into the artist she is today. As an illustrator, she includes children of all ethnic backgrounds in her stories and artworks. Her goal is for children to see their unique experiences reflected in books they read so they can feel the same sense of empowerment and recognition she experienced as a young reader.
Vanessa’s Early Life
As a child, Vanessa says she attended predominantly white schools where she was the only black child within the classroom and would often ask her mother if she was invisible because she wasn’t granted books where she saw other representations like black children. She continues to relay her experience of never seeing black hair textures, skin colour or her parents within children’s books because her parents also didn’t spend money on books that reflected her identity. However, Vanessa fondly remembers Mrs. Russell, who noticed and acknowledged that Vanessa was different she allowed her to read Snowy Day for the first time, and it was the first time she ever saw another black child, especially within a book. And she found herself and peace within that book and still reads it to this day.
Vanessa’s Takeaways
Vanessa touches on the power of names and how she feels so strongly about how important and significant the act of naming your child is. She talks about her own daughter Zoey and how proud she is of her becoming her name. Vanessa also talks about how when she was a child, she didn’t like her name, and her parents told her that her name meant her favourite thing to draw, which at the time was butterflies; she said she even got teary-eyed and overwhelmed with pride.
Lastly, Vanessa’s message for educators is that they are appreciated by her, and she acknowledges how hard it is to put lessons together.
Thank you for listening to this week’s episode of the Cultural Curriculum Chat. If you’re interested in Vanessa’s books, they can be purchased through Amazon, Penguin Books, Barnes and Noble and, of course, her website at https://www.vanessabrantleynewton.com. If you enjoyed this episode and want to hear more, subscribe to my YouTube channel at Mrs. Edmunds’ Cultural Corner for more podcasts, videos, and other multicultural and educational content.
See you next time!
