My guess is that most people would be embarrassed to admit they wouldn’t buy a book because the main character wasn’t white. Why we’re more comfortable denigrating books with female characters is a mystery. Whenever we cross a book off the list because it isn’t about people like us, though, we should be ashamed. And we shouldn’t let our kids get away with this.

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Are We Letting Boys Be Book Bigots? - MSN Movies News (via librarianpirate)

I think the problem isn’t with boys.  I think the problem is that books designed to be interesting for girls have girl protagonists, but books designed for girls are often not interesting to boys.  That doesn’t mean the boys are bigoted, but what boy wants to read about princesses and romance?  The problem is with writers and publishers who think that girls can only be princesses whose primary goal is finding romance.

(via needtherapy)

I don’t know about that. Do you know how many boys told me they would NEVER read something as “girly” as Uglies JUST because it has a girl on the cover and the main character is a girl? But if you read it, it’s got people running around on hoverboards, overthrowing the government, and in general being BADasses!

(via librarianpirate)

See also: Graceling, Hunger Games, anything by Tamora Pierce, Bloody Jack, Dairy Queen, The Golden Compass, City of Bones/Ashes/Glass, etc, etc… If you think books with girl protagonists are all about princesses and romance, you’re not paying attention.