We Belong
You and I, we’re alike,
but we’re different too.
That’s not good.
That’s not bad.
It’s just what is true.
Explore and celebrate who you are and who others are too! Short or tall. Black or white. Quiet or loud. There’s beauty in each, and most of us are not all of one quality or another, anyway! Rhyming verse invites you to notice the diversity of our world and affirm that we all belong, just as we are. Bright illustrations by Carlos Vélez Aquilera showcase a friendly urban setting.
Author: Laura Purdie Salas
Illustrator: Carlos Vélez Aquilera
Publisher: Carolrhoda (3/1/22)
ISBN: 978-1541599130
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FREE Activities
A digital graphic to copy, paste, and share |
 Downloadable, printable 18×24 poster |
 Group poem template with brief directions |
 Group poem template without directions |
 Individual poem template with brief directions |
 Individual poem template without directions |
How the Book Began
Reviews & More
- Kirkus Reviews: “An upbeat, empowering celebration of human diversity.”
- Publishers Weekly: “Nuggets of practical wisdom appear throughout (“Sometimes we’d like to make sadness extinct,/ but teardrops and smiles are joined—they are linked”), supporting the book’s open-armed embrace of planetary togetherness and diversity in the human experience.”
- Lerner Books Blog: “Carol rejected the manuscript, but said, “I love, love, love those two stanzas of rhyming verse you wrote for…”
- Blissfully Bookish: An interview for writers, including (gulp) marketing advice.
- Pioneer Press: “…a rollicking picture book that teaches kids they belong”
- A Word Edgewise: “What new book begins with the word, WELCOME! and includes perhaps the most diverse illustrations of children in any picture book I’ve read in a long, long time and ends with the words, YOU ARE ENOUGH? I’ll tell you.”
- Reflections on the Teche: “I love that it’s full of literary elements that make writing stronger. When we read good writing, we become better writers. The theme is set up by the title, but inside, the book is full of surprises.”