I Just Kept Spinning Book Review

Are you talking to your children about discrimination?  If not, you probably should be.  Chances are your child has already faced discrimination either from a peer or an adult that they come into contact with on a regular basis.  It’s crazy, right?!  This week Moo and I revisited our discussion on discrimination when we read I Just Kept Spinning by debut children’s book author Destini Bridges. 

Beautifully illustrated by April Foxx, I Just Kept Spinning is the story of a 7-year old girl named Destini.  Destini has one dream and that dream is to be a prima ballerina.  She’s over the moon when her mom finally lets her start taking ballet lessons at a ballet studio.  Destini’s dreams are soon crushed when she finds herself banned from her ballet class because of her beautiful long dreadlocks.  However, with some help from her mom, Destini proves not even children should accept discrimination from others or allow other people to control their destinies! 

Considering how many schools were put on blast last year for discriminating hair policies last year, this book is just what we need to get the conversation about discrimination going with our children.  This book is hands down a must-read for Black and Brown moms as well as non-Moms of Color raising children of color.  Not only does I Just Kept Spinning show younger kids a form a of discrimination that could possibly go over their head, but in following Destini’s journey families can learn some real-life tips and tricks that they can implement to fight back against discrimination.

I loved that this book was super easy to read and Moo was able to better grasp what discrimination is and identify another way that she could possibly be discriminated against.  Remember, it’s important for us to break things down to our children’s levels, especially when talking about important topics like this one.  Often times books like I Just Kept Spinning can be tools to us as parents to broach these topics. 

Moo was thrilled that Destini wanted to be a prima ballerina because it’s one of the things she wants to be when she grows up, too!  Speaking of which, this book has already prepared us for some of the comments and/or reactions she may receive once she starts her dance classes in a few short months.  You see, Moo doesn’t have straight hair or get her straightened like some of the girls who will be in her class (we scooped it out already).  And most books that she has read about ballerinas also feature ballerinas with silky straight hair and she was worried about standing out because of her curly hair.

Therefore, I really appreciate Destini Berry and April Foxx making 7-year old Destini, a ballerina with dreadlocks.  Representation matters y’all!!  Even when it comes to hair, our children need to variety and I Just Kept Spinning gave Moo that. 

While we’re talking about illustrations, we both loved the beautiful hand drawn illustrations by the talented April Foxx.  I don’t have anything against computer generated illustrations, but there’s just something about hand drawn illustrations that gives an added texture and dimension that computer generated images can’t match.

Also, with our book we received some goodies including two bookmarks, two coloring page, one coloring journal page and a 8×10 print of the book cover that we can’t wait to hang in Moo’s room once we’re done with remodeling it.

Overall, we really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to see what books Kifani Press will be releasing next.  You keep up with new releases from Kifani Press by following them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.