I absolutely loved this board book! Being mixed race, I am always on the look-out for books that approach diverse themes in a relatable way to share with my children. Using red and blue paint mixed together to form "Violet" is a brilliant way to introduce toddlers to the concept of what it means to be mixed race. I will be recommending this book far and wide!

Note: I will be doing a full feature of this book on blog along with the picture book "I am Violet" which runs alongside this board book to introduce the concept to children children (4-7yrs).

I quite liked this book, which is a simplified version of Violet, a picture book by the same author and illustrator. I haven't read the original, but it deals with a little girl getting teased at school for being mixed-race- her mother is red, her father is blue, and she is purple. This board book skips over this part and goes straight to Violet talking about people being different colors, and how she is a mix of her mom and dad, and she's happy and proud to be herself. While the entire message of the original story isn't present, the positive message of the story is. It's never too early to expose kiddos to self-affirming messages!. The artwork is bold, bright and fun, done in a collage-ish style, and I really enjoyed it.

#IAmViolet #NetGalley

This is a very short book about being proud of who and what you are. It's so short that the illustrations are even more important than most picture books. Fortunately they are also excellent.

"People come in a rainbow of colors." Thus begins a board book for babies and toddlers that will give them insight as to why there are so many people with a variety of different skin colours.

Violet notices this phenomena as she takes note of the people around her. She realizes that she herself is a magical mixture of her mom, who is red, and her dad, who is blue. She has beautiful colored violet skin which makes her very special and unique indeed. She is very proud and happy to be violet.

I think the targeted audience is too young and the book might be better served by presenting it to a slightly older one that is able to grasp the concept much more easily. The book is simple, very short and would be great for a beginner reader. The original "Violet" book has much more detail in it and it gives the reader a better understanding of the message that the author is trying to convey. The book presented at baby/toddler ages will need parental help as discussions will need to be shared for that young age group to comprehend the true meaning that is being presented. The illustrations are colourful, whimsical and very kid-friendly. "I am Violet" is a catalyst for both the young and the old to celebrate the beautiful skin colour that they are born into. I recommend this book.

Can a toddler board book be both too simple and too complicated at the same time?
I give you I Am Violet by: Tania Duprey Stehlik.
I think it's a great idea but needed more development to make it more digestible for such a young audience.
Thank you NetGalley and Second Story Press for my DRC.

Oh, dear. This doesn't work at all. It's a perfect example of a mismatch between book and audience.

The book is extremely short, and we just find out that mom is red, dad is blue, and the girl is violet. The end. I didn't realize until after I read it and was checking out some of the other reviews that this is the simplified board-book version of Violet, which is likely intended for slightly older kids. And it might work there. Here, though? It doesn't. Babies and toddlers aren't going to understand the metaphor (heck, they're probably even too young to get anything out of the colour-mixing concept; paint is just paint at that age).

Even though I haven't read the longer picture book this is based on, I'd recommend checking that one out instead. Babies and toddlers aren't going to get much out of this 51-word (yes, I counted; that's how short this is) story.

While I loved the original book that this is based on, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6871250-violet" target+"_blank">Violet</a> this one did not have the same message, and leaves one thinking "what?"

In the original, Violet is teased because she is a mixed rase, Red and Blue, and is not like her parents, and is sad. In this board book, as we learn is that her parents are each red and blue and she is violet and that is good.

It doesn't have the same gravitas, as the original, not same same urgency to tell how hard it is to be mixed race. In this one, we just get, that people come in different colors, but no one, in real life is red, blue or purple, so the message is hidden from view.

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5574" src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Screen-Shot-2020-01-08-at-10.08.11-PM.png" alt="" />

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

This certainly seemed well-meaning, but also seemed a little too abrupt, and perhaps simplistic, even if it does try to generate self-worth in mixed-race board-book readers. With one parent that's red and another that's blue, our Violet is just that – violet. I have no idea if bringing people that are bright green and orange and suchlike into the book is too helpful, however – it kind of bows to the easy platitudes about everyone being a person of some kind of colour, which of course have been helpful to nobody. And even if this visual metaphor of a violet child is fine for the very young, do they understand at this age the formation of secondary colours? Like I say, I just don't know.