Willow the Armadillo

March 1, 2020
Representation matters. Willow the armadillo loves picture books. She checks armfuls of them out of the library and desperately wants to see herself in one. She tries several things to achieve her goal: taking a heroism class, auditioning, answering an ad ("YOU COULD BE THE NEXT PICTURE BOOK HERO!"). Nothing works out, and she becomes discouraged. An unexpected crisis helps her discover how to be a hero--do the thing she loves the most and help others along the way. Bright, colorful illustrations depict various cartoon animal characters, some with more expressive faces than others. On the surface, Willow's story seems heartwarming; however, it seems to make light of a much more serious problem in the children's-book industry: a lack of representation not of animals but of children of color and other marginalized identities. Will children of color, children with disabilities, and children with LGBTQ identities wishing to see themselves represented as picture-book heroes see themselves in this pink armadillo? The denouement, in which Willow decides to be happy reading others' stories because "nothing could top being a hero in real life," feels like a slap in the face to those children who deserve to see themselves. What is needed right now are books that can serve as mirrors for children and offer them the chance to see themselves as literary, and literal, heroes. Sadly, this tale of picture-book representation misses a valuable opportunity. (Picture book. 5-8)

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