ALBANY - The number of mixed marriages and children of mixed heritage is growing, and children are not oblivious to their differences, according to Catherine Blakemore, an author and publisher from Albany.
That's why Blakemore put together "Mixed Heritage," a bibliographical resource cataloging books for children and teens about persons and families of mixed racial, ethnic and religious heritages.
One of Blakemore's objectives for the book was to help children affirm themselves and realize they are not alone in the world, and that there are others families like theirs and probably have been for a long time.
"Years ago, there were no books for African-American children," Blakemore pointed out. "Now there are many more, so they can see themselves. I thought we needed to do something for these other children."
Reading books about people of mixed heritages can have an impact on children even if they are not of mixed heritage, she added.
A mixed heritage differs from a dual heritage, Blakemore explains in her book introduction. The mixed heritage person carries the bloodlines of parents from different cultures and heritages, while a person of dual heritage has one ancestral culture but lives in a country other than his ancestral origin.
"Mixed Heritage" identifies, classifies and summarizes or describes more than 1,000 books, including those that present biographical information of some 250 individuals. The book's format and four indexes make finding just the right book easy.
Blakemore said she read most of those books, obtaining them from her local Albany library, thanks to the state interlibrary loan system. She summarized and categorized each book, and slowly her listings grew beyond her expectations.
She carried a children's book with her seven days a week for years, she said, reading at every chance she got.
"My other reading went out the window," she laughed.
In her research, Blakemore discovered that interracial marriages are not a recent phenomenon in the America, and were not uncommon between Native Americans tribes before Europeans arrived. She noted Pocahontas and John Rolfe, an American Indian who married an Englishman in 1614, and their son, Thomas Rolfe, born in Virginia.
Recognizing one's own heritage and those of others starts at a very young age, Blakemore pointed out.
A graduate of Wellesley College, Blakemore holds masters degrees in education from the University of Colorado-Denver and in economics from the University of Michigan. She worked as a policy analyst for the United States Congress and authored "Faraway Places," "How Big is Your Classroom?" and "A Public School of Your Own."
"Mixed Heritage," due to be released July 2012, is available from Amazon.com, Baker & Taylor, Follett Library Resources, and Adams-Pomeroy Press.
That's why Blakemore put together "Mixed Heritage," a bibliographical resource cataloging books for children and teens about persons and families of mixed racial, ethnic and religious heritages.
One of Blakemore's objectives for the book was to help children affirm themselves and realize they are not alone in the world, and that there are others families like theirs and probably have been for a long time.
"Years ago, there were no books for African-American children," Blakemore pointed out. "Now there are many more, so they can see themselves. I thought we needed to do something for these other children."
Reading books about people of mixed heritages can have an impact on children even if they are not of mixed heritage, she added.
A mixed heritage differs from a dual heritage, Blakemore explains in her book introduction. The mixed heritage person carries the bloodlines of parents from different cultures and heritages, while a person of dual heritage has one ancestral culture but lives in a country other than his ancestral origin.
"Mixed Heritage" identifies, classifies and summarizes or describes more than 1,000 books, including those that present biographical information of some 250 individuals. The book's format and four indexes make finding just the right book easy.
Blakemore said she read most of those books, obtaining them from her local Albany library, thanks to the state interlibrary loan system. She summarized and categorized each book, and slowly her listings grew beyond her expectations.
She carried a children's book with her seven days a week for years, she said, reading at every chance she got.
"My other reading went out the window," she laughed.
In her research, Blakemore discovered that interracial marriages are not a recent phenomenon in the America, and were not uncommon between Native Americans tribes before Europeans arrived. She noted Pocahontas and John Rolfe, an American Indian who married an Englishman in 1614, and their son, Thomas Rolfe, born in Virginia.
Recognizing one's own heritage and those of others starts at a very young age, Blakemore pointed out.
A graduate of Wellesley College, Blakemore holds masters degrees in education from the University of Colorado-Denver and in economics from the University of Michigan. She worked as a policy analyst for the United States Congress and authored "Faraway Places," "How Big is Your Classroom?" and "A Public School of Your Own."
"Mixed Heritage," due to be released July 2012, is available from Amazon.com, Baker & Taylor, Follett Library Resources, and Adams-Pomeroy Press.