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Arnold Adoff

black is brown is tan Paperback – Picture Book, January 6, 2004

by Arnold Adoff (Author), Emily Arnold McCully (Illustrator)

204 ratings

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Brown-skinned mama, the color of chocolate milk and pumpkin pie. White-skinned daddy, not the color of milk or snow, but light with pinks and tiny tans. And their two children, the beautiful colors of both.

For an all-American family, full of joy, warmth, and love, this is the way it is for us / this is the way we are

When it was first published in 1973, black is brown is tan featured the first interracial family in children's books. Decades later, Arnold Adoff's and Emily Arnold McCully's picture book continues to offer a joyous and loving celebration of all the colors of the race, now newly embellished with bright watercolor paintings that depict a contemporary family of the twenty-first century.

And the chorus rings true as ever:

black is brown is tan
is girl is boy
is nose is face
is all the colors of the race

Reading age

2 - 3 years, from customers
Print length

40 pages
Language

English
Grade level

Preschool - 3
Lexile measure

NP540L
Dimensions

8.5 x 0.25 x 11 inches
Publisher

HarperCollins
Publication date

January 6, 2004
ISBN-10

0064436446
ISBN-13

978-0064436441
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Brown-skinned momma, the color of chocolate milk and coffee pumpkin pie, whose face gets ginger red when she puffs and yells the children into bed. White-skinned daddy, not white like milk or snow, lighter than brown, With pinks and tiny tans, whose face gets tomato red when he puffs and yells their children into bed. Children who are all the colors of the race, growing up happy in a house full of love. This is the way it is for them; this is the way they are, but the joy they feel extends to every reader of this book.

Black is brown is tan is a story poem about being, a beautiful true song about a family delighting in each other and in the good things of the earth.

About the Author

Arnold Adoff has written over twenty-five books of poetry for young readers, including Slow Dance Heartbreak Blues, illustrated by William Cotton; and Street Music: City Poems, illustrated by Karen Barbour, both of which are available at your local library. He is the author of Malcolm X, illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez, and has also edited The Poetry of Black America. He has received the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children, and his trademark "shaped speech" writing style and his rhythmic poems have made him one of the most renowned children's poets of our time.

Mr. Adoff and his wife, celebrated author Virginia Hamilton, live in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Emily Arnold McCully has illustrated more than a hundred books for children, including her own First Snow and Arnold Adoff's Black Is Brown Is Tan. She won the Caldecott Medal for her book Mirette On the High Wire.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins; Reprint edition (January 6, 2004)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 40 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0064436446
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0064436441
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 2 - 3 years, from customers
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ NP540L
Grade level ‏ : ‎ Preschool - 3
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.5 x 0.25 x 11 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #436,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #593 in Children's Books on Prejudice & Racism
- #3,111 in Children's Explore the World Books (Books)
- #11,822 in Children's Family Life Books (Books)

Customer Reviews:
204 ratings

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5 star		75%
4 star		9%
3 star		6%
2 star		4%
1 star		6%

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william r. owens

Good Book!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 23, 2022

Verified Purchase

Bought this for my daughter. We read this almost every day when she was little!

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Holly A

Grammar was too much for my literal children

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 5, 2021

Verified Purchase

We got this for our children to help them better understand our multicultural family. The phrasing of this book is too hard for our very literal children. There are some beautiful phrases in the book that do paint a beautiful picture of how different skin colors look and react to sun. Other parts of the writing feel very clumsy. Maybe we didn’t get the cadence right. I don’t like the parts about both parents yelling their children into bed. Attaching pictures to show some beautiful parts and some of the parts that didn’t work for us.

3 people found this helpful

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Carol S. Christ

Wonderful for many ages

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 12, 2010

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When our sons were preschoolers, this story provided a natural way to introduce them to a multicultural family that they didn't see in our small town. Later I read it in the classroom; I'd recommend it for shared reading in kindergarten - gr. 3. Through high school, it can be studied from other perspectives. For example, a teacher might include this story in a writing class, a poetry unit, or sociology/family life.

The author describes some of his writing as "singing poems." Actually, it was the pictures that first enticed us to pick up the book, then we remembered poetry is meant to read aloud! The current edition is terrific, too, and I highly recommend it for homes, schools, and libraries.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 17, 2019

Verified Purchase

I love how it feels like I'm reciting poetry, or you could even sing it! My biracial daughter (4) loves it, and she finds similarities between the people in the book and the people in her family. This book makes it easy to have the conversation about color and race to a toddler. I would definitely suggest it, over and over again!

5 people found this helpful

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Vivi

They are beautiful biracial babies

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 10, 2018

Verified Purchase

This was a gift to my 3yo nephew and 1 yo niece. They are beautiful biracial babies. As they come to better understand what that means in a nation fraught with racial conflict I want them to recognize and love all the parts that make them who they are. My nephew loves lyrical books with musical cadences and this is a perfect fit. Beautifully written and beautifully illustrated.

4 people found this helpful

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Colleen Woolridge

Love

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 19, 2018

Verified Purchase

I originally bought this book 13 years ago for the first mixed baby in our family & I loved it so much I bought it again when I had my son! The pictures are wonderful & it really brings some understanding of the situation for a child.

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L. Jones

Perfect 40 years later

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 19, 2013

Verified Purchase

I purchased this book for a pregnant co-worker. I always give books to expectant parents and try to find something that is relevant to them. As she is African-American and her husband is white I thought this would be great. Since she and I are also teachers I was a little nervous that she would already have it. Fortunately, she didn't. She has since told me that it was the most thoughtful gift she received.

4 people found this helpful

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Jamie M.

and they BOTH enjoyed it! It's such a sweet story

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 13, 2018

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I read this book to my two daughters when they were growing up and now I have a granddaughter. My daughter read it to her this weekend, and they BOTH enjoyed it! It's such a sweet story.

2 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Yellow

Great concept but...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 2, 2018

Verified Purchase

This book is a little bit on the nose. Too much emphasis on the colour of their skin all the way throughout... sheesh, I think the representation is obvious in the photos. I brought this for my nephew whose family is the exact composition and I wanted a book with her image in it. On that score this book is excellent.

april

great

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on October 7, 2016

Verified Purchase

charming, delightful, brought tears to my eyes..i wish everyone would buy and read this

Terricka Fitness

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on January 10, 2017

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Children love the illustrations.

Cook 4 Books

Fantastic book, we all love it

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 8, 2015

Verified Purchase

Fantastic book, we all love it! Great read and long enough to carry on the following evening (bed time story) I will be buying more to give as presents and to donate our local library.

Maimuna G.

My nephew loves this book! Bought it for his ...

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on October 6, 2017

Verified Purchase

My nephew loves this book! Bought it for his older sister who is now 7 but she didn't care for it. instead my sister in law reads it to my two yr old nephew and he has memorized the whole book. so cute!

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Arnold Adoff

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