It'll Be Irie: Staying True to Yourself

It'll be Irie by Donn Swaby is the perfect book for introducing young children to diversity and other cultures.

Raymond can't wait to move to America with his parents, so he begins researching the best ways to show how American he can be. But when he gets to school in America, his classmates expect him to act Jamaican. He feels like all his research was for nothing! But then with Dad's help, he realizes that Jamaica will always be a part of him and it's important to be true to himself, embrace that part of him and show others his culture.

This is a fantastic book for showing children how to embrace and learn about classmates from other backgrounds and cultures. There is also a great recipe for Jamaican Christmas Cake included at the back!

I thought this was a very cute picture book. Raymond is moving to the U.S. from Jamaica and is learning everything about being American before he moves. When he starts school, however, the kids don't look at him like an American like he thought they would. Great message for kids to be yourself and wonderful art.

This was a really cute story, with excellent illustrations. Its theme of being true to who you are is one I think is important for everyone to read, not just children. As a translator, I loved the use of Patois for the language of the book, both because it is the type of English the character Raymond would use, but also because it shows how there are many different versions of English which are all correct.