The children's book that beat 'Heated Rivalry' on the charts is officially getting a reprint

Most of the caller bestselling books that came retired astir Valentine’s Day were, unsurprisingly, astir love. Or astir hockey. But 1 book, published much than 4 years agone but arriving again June 19 arsenic a reprint, not lone broke the apical 10 successful representation books, but besides charted conscionable supra “Heated Rivalry” successful wide online income — coming successful astatine No. 10 to the steamy crystal romance’s No. 11. That publication is: “Our World Is a Family: Our Community Can Change The World.” It’s a children’s book, besides astir love, but not astir romanticist love. Instead, it’s astir welcoming refugees and immigrants into our communities. It doesn’t usage those words, due to the fact that “Our World Is A Family” is simply a children’s story, written successful plain language, with agleam colors.

“When we spot idiosyncratic caller successful our neighborhood,” the publication asks, “how tin we assistance them consciousness harmless and loved and important? How tin we archer them you’re not alone?”

Ten years ago, co-author Miry Whitehill started helping exile families resettle successful the U.S. successful Southern California. As a azygous parent successful Los Angeles, she had to instrumentality her young children astir with her portion her enactment evolved into a full-fledged nonprofit called Miry’s List. And she wanted to speech with her kids astir what she was doing. “I didn’t privation to shield them from this reality,” Whitehill says. “They needed to recognize wherefore it was important to sojourn these families.”

So successful 2019, erstwhile the Los Angeles-based writer Jennifer Jackson reached retired to inquire Whitehill what Miry’s List would look similar encapsulated successful a children’s book, Whitehill felt similar she had been practicing her reply for years. “My oldest would inquire me, however travel their location looks truthful different?” Whitehill says. “How travel helium doesn’t person a bed, and I do?” She recovered age-appropriate ways to explain. Her son’s caller friends had been forced to permission everything behind, truthful now, it was important to fto them prime immoderate stuffy they wanted from the neighbors’ artifact drive. Jackson took Whitehill’s ideas and structured them into a storybook. Illustrator Nomar Perez imagined the lush visuals. The publication came retired successful 2022, and it did good astatine the time, but it didn’t chart.

“Our World Is a Family” astatine Burbank’s Buena Vista Library.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

“Our World” sold astatine a dependable but slower gait until the extremity of February. Then, BookTok influencer Maya Le Espiritu included it successful a roundup of books connected the taxable of raising revolutionary kids. A week later, with the discount terms connected the publication down beneath $2, Espiritu featured “Our World Is a Family” successful a station by itself: “This is the publication to work and stock to rise inclusive children who recognize that nary quality being could ever beryllium illegal.” She told her followers, “Let’s marque it a bestseller!”

Books astir ne'er marque the bestseller lists if they don’t illustration upon release. But with ICE enactment making truthful galore communities consciousness unsafe, the publication seems to person tapped into a heavy vein of relevance. Within hours of the viral post, radical connected Instagram were saying the publication was sold retired online. Within a mates of weeks, it was No. 9 connected the New York Times bestsellers list. The publisher, which luckily had enactment retired capable banal to conscionable the bestselling demand, said the publication had its champion week ever astatine the extremity of February.

Heather Moore is the enforcement manager of interaction publishing for “Our World Is A Family” steadfast Sourcebooks Kids. “Books alteration lives,” said Moore. “We’re precise intentional astir each publication we publish. We wanted to beryllium definite that we were connected the kids’ side.”

Authors Jennifer Jackson and Miry Whitehill.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Some online commenters instrumentality cautious enactment of the mild connection successful “Our World Is a Family,” oregon explicitly praise its deficiency of politics. But the underlying taxable is hardly apolitical. Before the latest U.S. warfare successful the Middle East, the UN Refugee Agency reported implicit 117.3 cardinal displaced radical worldwide successful 2025. These are radical fleeing persecution, struggle and violence, a fig that is possibly much trans-political than partisan, cutting crossed issues and nations. In immoderate case, the book’s powerfulness comes from a elemental but stark truth, 1 that lies beneath the argumentation recommendations and ineligible terms: Sometimes, “there are places successful the satellite wherever it stops being harmless for radical to live.”

Perez’s illustrations amusement kids huddling connected a boat, oregon stuck wrong with their shot balls, oregon waving astatine different kids crossed the way. Are they stuck wrong due to the fact that of a pandemic, oregon fleeing convulsive conflict, oregon a drought? All of the above? The publication doesn’t sanction the big, historical forces. It conscionable provides a gentle, revolutionary reminder: Almost immoderate genitor of immoderate kid would ascent into that vessel if they believed it was their champion accidental astatine safety. And erstwhile those families get successful your neighborhood, elemental words and elemental acts tin mean the satellite to them.

Chihara is simply a writer, editor, professor and parent who feels fortunate to unrecorded successful the beauteous and contested metropolis of Los Angeles.