Author
Dominique’s Thrifted Treasures
When Pawpaw moves in, he shows Dominique a whole new meaning of hand-me-down clothes. When Dominique and Pawpaw embark on a trip to the grocery store, Dominique meets the former owner of each quirky, thrifty find and hears a memory associated with the clothing. Their quick trip to the grocery store becomes much more as they also make stops at the barbershop and the local ice cream parlor and, along the way, meet community members who are surprised but pleased to see their previous belongings sported by Dominique.
Dominique's Thrifted Treasures was inspired by members of the author's family and friends and showcases the power of community and family. Featuring a nonbinary child who uses they/them pronouns and their grandfather, this warm and joyful story highlights the subtle and sometimes surprising threads that connect us to our neighbors while touching on economic issues faced by low-income and multi-generational households.
A section at the back of the book for children offers a starting point for further discussion and exploration of Dominique's story.
Dear Dad: Love, Nelson:
The Story of One Boy and His Incarcerated Father
Dear Dad: Love, Nelson is a glimpse into the life, family, struggles, hopes, and questions of Nelson—and the more than five million other children in the US who have experienced parental incarceration. Told through letters he writes his father, Nelson shares his feelings, thoughts, wishes, and happenings, from the celebrations they've had to the progress Nelson has made on the car they were fixing to how excited he is to have Dad coming home.
The author, who's had several family members impacted by the criminal legal system, was inspired to write this warm and inviting story to build awareness of parental incarceration and increase empathy for people who have an incarcerated loved one. Dear Dad: Love, Nelson is told in Nelson's vibrant, curious, and compassionate voice, with his love for his dad and his family shining through.
Dear Dad: Love, Nelson can open doors of conversation about many significant topics, including:
different emotional responses to parental incarceration
the school-to-prison pipeline
differences in celebrations without a parent
the importance of keeping in contact
the expectations of the court and the experience of visitation
the anticipation of reentry
A section at the back of the book offers discussion questions for exploring the story and the topic with children, along with more information on guiding children to write letters as a way of staying in touch with an incarcerated loved one.
Author: Margarett McBride
Margarett McBride, M.A., is a Developmental Psychology Ph.D. candidate who resides in North Carolina but is proudly from Saginaw, Michigan. Margarett has had several family members impacted by the criminal legal system and uses her work to uplift the experiences of marginalized people. During her undergraduate experience, she cofacilitated arts-based workshops for formerly incarcerated people through the Prison Creative Arts Project in Michigan. Currently, she is an instructor for an “Introduction to Psychology” college course where she teaches people who are incarcerated through the UNC Correctional Education Program. Through her research, she studies how neighborhood experiences influence Black youth and family well-being and development. Margarett also loves creating art through her business, Made By Margarett, LLC, volunteering at community festivals, and working with organizations to help them increase a sense of belonging for the community members.
