Waterloo-based illustrator brings diversity to children’s books

Celebrated children’s author and illustrator Grace Lin has said that children’s books can act as both windows to other cultures and experiences, and mirrors to reaffirm one’s identity. 

In a 2016 TED Talk, Lin argued that how children see themselves perceived in books can shape their perceptions of their identities, and potentially cause various complexes and insecurities. 

Waterloo-based illustrator Holly Hatam agrees. 

Illustrating children’s books since she was a child herself, it’s something she has always wanted to do. But growing up, she never saw people who looked like her in books or on TV; as a result, even the books she created as a child did not represent her. 

“I remember one of them was about a princess who had blonde hair, blue eyes,” she said. “I felt that the blonde hair was so coveted.” 

This lack of representation made her ashamed of who she was, and left her longing to look like everyone else, so much so that when she was 13, she attempted to lighten her hair to achieve that coveted golden hue. 

“One day out of desperation, I had learned that putting lemon juice in your hair and then sitting in the sunlight would lighten it to blonde. So I did that, just sitting outside, waiting and hoping that it would change the colour of my hair,” she said. 

That’s why it’s so important for her to bring diversity to the work she does now, and with every chance she gets, she will include a person of colour in her illustrations. 

“It’s really important to me to have the main characters be a person of colour, or someone who has always felt marginalized or invisible,” she said. “And since my son is bi-racial, I feel like it's even more important now. It's a bit harder for him to find himself in books or on TV. I don't want him to go through what I went through as a kid.”

Having diverse representation in these stories, she says, is not only good for kids of colour to help them feel important and seen, but for everyone to experience different cultures through books. 

“It creates understanding and open-mindedness for kids, and I believe you should start that as early as you can because it becomes normal,” Hatam said. 

While she believes the industry is doing better on the diverstiy front now, over the years it was uncommon for children of colour to be prominent characters, which means they wouldn’t likely be shown on the book cover, either. 

“I want a kid to see a book cover and say, ‘hey, that's me, and pick it up and just realize that they are important, they are normal, they are beautiful the way they are; they can be the hero of a story and not just a background character,” she said. 

Hatam said that if she had seen herself reflected in books when she was growing up, she would have felt proud of who she was, instead of ashamed and desperate to fit in. 

This year alone, she has released five books. The most recent are Cranky Right Now and Hair Twins, which were both released earlier this month. 

Cranky Right Now, the second book in a series, is “about teaching kids that it’s ok to have big feelings, and it’s ok to be grumpy and cranky sometimes,” Hatam said. 

Celebrating family tradition, diversity, and self love, Hair Twins follows a Sikh father and daughter who share a special bond over their hair. 

“I had never seen a picture book with Sikh characters, so as soon as I read the manuscript, I knew it was a special book and I had to be a part of it,” she said. 

Beyond evoking emotion and celebrating diversity, Hatam says the most rewarding part of her work is inspiring and entertaining kids.  

“It never gets old to see kids reading my books,” she said. “There was actually one instance where I was in a bookstore and happened to see a little girl sitting on the couch and reading my book. It just makes my heart so happy.” 

Hatam encourages readers to purchase her books through local bookstores, but it is also available at Indigo and on Amazon.