June 8th marks Day One of one of We Need Diverse Books’ most popular features: the Summer Reading Series. We are proud to collaborate with the Smithsonian BookDragon on this project. Every weekday throughout the summer, we will provide a comparison between two titles: “If you like X, try Y, because Z.”

The “If you like” titles are popular, well-known titles, written largely by established authors. The “try” titles are equally captivating, but by lesser-known authors–all of whom are diverse according to WNDB’s definition of “diversity”, available: http://weneedwndb.local/mission-statement/

There are two main benefits to following and promoting the Summer Reading Series: First, it helps readers discover new works and prevents young people from running out of books during the long summer days; and second, it helps diverse, “off-the-beaten-track” books and authors get the discoverability and recognition they deserve.

“The Summer Reading Series is a group effort, and it reflects the collective knowledge of the WNDB team, as well as input from the Smithsonian BookDragon,” says Allie Jane Bruce, a WNDB Librarian. “It contains books for all ages, books in all formats, oldies-but-goodies and brand-new titles. And most importantly, it is a list that reflects the reality of our world, and contains books that allow all kids to see themselves in literature.”

The Summer Reading Series will be posted via WNDB’s website, Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr.