Review of Professional Resource

Christensen, Nina. “What’s the difference? The depiction of Down syndrome in picture books”. Bookbird. Vol. 39, Iss. 1 (2991) pg.17-22

Nina Christensen explores the different ways that characters with Down syndrome are depicted in non-fiction and fiction picture books in her article What’s the difference? The depiction of Down Syndrome in picture books. Her article is divided into two different sections that describe characterizations that commonly occur in both non-fiction and fiction picture books. In each section, Christensen analyzes two picture books and points out different characteristic that can be used as a reference for what to look for and what to look out for in terms of the depiction of Down syndrome in picture books. She explains that although the number of picture books that depict characters with disabilities is increasing, “it is necessary to critically evaluate those that are available” (17). Christensen points out that picture books are often selected without much consideration of content because there is a need for these picture books in classrooms and libraries everywhere. Christensen cautions readers to be aware of the concept of “normality” and how it is directed at characters with disabilities. Christensen’s article is helpful in determining what to look for when evaluating picture books depicting characters with Down syndrome because she is able to point to specific issues. The questions she encourages to be asked are “What defines a subject as disabled and how is it represented through text and pictures that this person is different?” (17). She also asks who the target audience is as well as the “needs that the books are designed to meet” (17).

Christensen’s analysis of non-fiction picture books in her article helped in critically determining the quality of Alden Carter’s book, Big Brother Dustin. Christensen tackles the difficulty of using photographs to accompany the text in non-fiction picture books depicting children with Down syndrome. As in the book Winnie 3 which Christensen describes in her article, Big Brother Dustin does not present the disability explicitly in the text of the book. Instead, the author relies on the pictures to show that Dustin is different. The text describes Dustin doing “normal” things such as helping his parents around the house. In Christensen’s words, “while the text represents [him] as an ordinary [boy], the illustrations show in what respects the child with Down syndrome looks a little different” (17). Christensen explains that the problem with this is that the readers are receiving “two different versions of the same story” (18). This idea is crucial to the determination of quality literature depicting persons with disabilities because it is important to be realistic in portrayals. Books that give one representation of a child with Down syndrome or another disability as being “normal” or the same as every other person is false. An accurate representation describes similarities as well as the differences in order to bridge that gap of acceptance of disabilities. As pointed out in the critical review of Big Brother Dustin, Alden Carter does not include an author’s note to help supply more information about Down syndrome to readers. Where this may have been helpful to the story of Big Brother Dustin, Christensen points out that authors need to be aware of the message their note is actually portraying to readers. In the case of the book Winnie 3, aspects of the authors note were contradicting to the overall purpose of the book which was to portray that children with Down syndrome are like all other children yet they do the same things in different ways. The books aim was to bring a positive image to the disability but part of the author’s note emphasized the obsession with normalcy by referring to children with disabilities as a mysterious “they” and people without disabilities as “we”. What is important to pull from this fact is that a books portrayal of characters begins on the front cover and last long after the book has been shut. Although author’s notes can be beneficial to re-emphasize information and messages from the story, every word included in the note needs to undergo the same considerations that go into the choice for every word within the story itself.

Christensen also references the book, Soren er mongol by Mette Jorgensen in order to highlight aspects to look for within non-fiction picture books depicting characters with Down syndrome. Although Soren er mongol incorporates the use of photographs, the correlation between the text and the photographs is what makes the book a good representation. This book uses the text to describe the differences between Soren who has Down syndrome and other characters in the book that do not. Big Brother Dustin lacks in this aspect because the depiction of the character with Down syndrome is only present within the photographs. As Christensen points out, it is important to explain the differences between characters with Down syndrome and characters without Down syndrome and it is also important to describe the difficulties of the disability. Big Brother Dustin presents the family of the character with Down syndrome as being unproblematic, when in reality the family must deal with some sort of difficulty related to the disability. Books that tell only one side of the story fall to closely to the general public’s obsession with “sameness” when in actuality it is the differences in the world that spark critical thinking and give life to the world.

Christensen uses her descriptions of the books in her article to articulate the sameness obsession and emphasizes the need to include differences in books about persons with disabilities. Christensen closes her article by saying, “We speak a lot about diversity but tend to prefer sameness. Although a more tolerant attitude to questions of difference and working from a common ground is positive, it seems unfruitful and disagreeable to plead that there are no differences. Fortunately, people are different in many ways. And one of these is to be disabled. It is valuable to discuss these questions, to encounter different opinions, and to gain an understanding of points of difference” (22). Christensen confronts many of the issues that have been considered throughout our course in multicultural and diverse literature by pointing out that the differences in the world are what make the world interesting and worth talking about. The questions and concerns brought up in class have all been based around differences and if we begin to leave those differences out of diverse literature it will no longer be diverse. Children need to be able to see themselves within literature and if every character in literature is the same, no one will be able to see themselves because everyone has differences. Christensen brings up many valuable points within her article and encourages readers to think critically about the books they are reading. Not only does she encourage readers to be selective when choosing picture books depicting characters with Down syndrome but she also provides examples on how to be selective. Her use of examples within her article helps to drive home the article’s purpose. This article is a great reference tool that would be beneficial to know and understand.