Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl
This isn’t me, but my hair is similar to a brunette version of hers.
I have naturally curly hair that ranges from Type 2C (wavy/loose curls) to something a little curlier than Type 3B (springy ringlets) depending on which part of my head you’re looking at, how recently I’ve washed and moistured it, how humid or dry the air is, and a million other factors that anyone who knows curly hair no doubt is already well aware of.
When I was a kid, I’d always get so excited to see a curly-haired person included on a book cover or described in a story.
Sometimes that was the deciding factor in whether I read a book!
I grew up in a community that was so homogenous that even minor differences in human appearance like this were hard to find.
And I’m saying that as someone who is Caucasian. I’m sure the small number of classmates I had who were from other racial backgrounds yearned for representation of people who looked like them even more than I did.
Representation matters.
While there’s still plenty of work to do in this area, I’m glad publishers are doing a better job these days of representing characters from a wider range of backgrounds.
This week I’m going to be sharing ten wonderful book covers featuring people who have curly hair.
1. The Stolen One by Suzanne Crowley
2. Baby Girl by Lenora Adams
3. Nobody’s Prize (Nobody’s Princess, #2) by Esther M. Friesner
4. The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill
5. Liar by Justine
6. Ten Cents a Dance by Christine Fletcher
7. Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann
8. The Freemason’s Daughter by Shelley Sackier
9. Blue Flame (Perfect Fire Trilogy, #1) by K.M. Grant
10. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
I think curly wavy hair is something to be proud of and is beautiful in any color! I have always had very thin, mostly straight hair and always dreamed of thick wavy hair past my shoulders. But I hear you about some communities where even having a different color hair is unusual. Thanks for your covers and your thoughts.
A thoughtful post.
I do think we search for books that represent us.
Thank you, and I agree!
Great list! But I’m biased because I also have curly hair. Mine are black and a bit like the women on the cover of The Liar or Baby Girl (but less kinky though).
My favorite cover is definitely The Poet X!
Great topic! I had curly hair as a kid (well, I still do lol but I wear it shorter nowadays) and I hated it! Ha.
Great bunch of covers.
Heh, thanks. It’s cool you have curly hair, too.
Wonderful topic love those covers!
Thank you!
Curly hair is beautiful. I have the kind of not perfectly straight but not curly hair that generally just looks like it hasn’t been brushed 🤣
Tank you.
Your hair sounds lovely! 🙂
I have to admit, as someone who’s hair can’t hold a curl without two hours work and plenty of chemicals, I’m super jealous of people who have naturally curly hair! It’s just so pretty!
Aww, thanks.
Great topic. I always wanted curly hair & used to perm it in HS! My hair was always to my lower back so that was a looong time in the chair! Lol. I immediately thought of the Bravely cover too! Gorgeous!
Now I’m wishing I’d included Bravely in the list. Great idea!
Wow, you were dedicated to getting that perm. Very cool.
A very niche and clever choice
Thank you.
What a fun topic! I have very straight hair and always wished for curly hair.
Heh, thanks! It’s interesting to see how many people wish they had a different texture of hair. I wished for straight hair when I was a kid. LOL.
Great topic! I loved The Poet X. The cover of The Stolen One is fabulous!
Thank you! I’m glad you liked The Poet X so much.
Representation definitely matters! Great choice of topic and books. I loved The Poet X 😃
Thank you. I’m glad you liked The Poet X so much.
These are amazing! I have big, wavy hair that curls if I leave it alone or wear it short (which I haven’t done in years), and I love seeing “curly girls” on book covers.
Your hair sounds lovely!
Curls are so gorgeous, but they definitely require more care than straight flat hair. Love these covers!
Thank you. And, yes, they sure do. 🙂
Aw! Love the curls! I’ve got a curly haired teenager at home myself. I will have to show her all of these.
Thank you! I hope your curly-haired teen enjoys these books.
That’s a lovely theme. I think books covers are gradually becoming more diverse ☺️
Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog
Thank you. And, yes, they are!
Great list! You’re right, representation really does matter. We don’t always think about the ways that it matters for everyone, not just POC—but of course it is important for everyone to see themselves in a variety of stories.
My TTT this week: http://bookwyrmknits.com/2022/04/26/top-ten-tuesday-books-with-teacups-on-the-cover/
Absolutely. 🙂
Nice to know there are books out there that fit this question, I didn’t have a clue. Nice redhead.
Heh, thanks.
I absolutely adore this topic! It’s beautiful to see so many books featuring curls on the cover, and I’m going to be keeping an eye out for more!
wow, thanks. I hope you do find more books that fit this theme. I’d love to hear about them. (But no pressure.)
What an amazing topic! The only one I’ve read on here is The Poet X which I love! It has a very curly haired cover (isn’t it just gorgeous?).
Thanks for stopping by my blog earlier 😉
Zoe x
(zbestbooks.blogspot.com)
My TTT: https://zbestbooks.blogspot.com/2022/04/top-ten-tuesday-ya-books-with-character.html
You’re welcome. And, yeah, I’ve heard great things about The Poet X. Glad you liked it.
Great choice and selections, Lydia. I agree that we like to see people like us represented in books or on covers. That is why I like Judy Leigh’s books so much as her characters are usually over the age of 60. Thanks for making me think today.
Thank you! I’ll have to look her books up. Which one do you recommend starting with? You’re right that there aren’t enough books out there about characters who are 60 or older.
Nice choice!
Thank you.
So fun Lydia! I had never thought about your experience….thanks for sharing!
Thank you.
Well, looks like hair, like bones, and other body parts, features a lot on covers!
Yes, they sure did this week. What a neat coincidence.
Such a fun take on the topic! And representation definitely matters. Let’s Talk About Love is one of my all-time favorite books.
Thank you. I’m glad you liked Let’s Talk About Love so much. I liked it, too.
Your choice for the prompt is so great I’m really enjoying all the creativity. Wow, I really need to get around to reading these. As a curly-haired girl myself, I loved seeing these covers, thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome. I’m glad you liked it, and hello to a fellow curly girl!
What a great topic choice, I love it! I am loving that cover for The Stolen one. Representation definitely matters, I’m glad these exist. I’ve always had the most pin straight hair that will not for the life of me hold any kind of curl or wave so I have always thought curly hair was so beautiful! I remember a friend of mine and her mom with super curly hair talking about the difficulties, but also how special it made them feel (she has naturally very red curly hair) and I think that’s what so important to capture. I love that there is so much diversity with how we all look and hope publishers continue to highlight that.
Thank you.
And agreed!
That’s a great choice for this week’s topic! My loosely-wavy hair got a lot curlier in my thirties, so that if I let it dry on its own in high humidity, I’ve practically got ringlets. And you are so right; representation matters. I’ve spent too much time trying to blow-dry my hair straight. Maybe if I had seen more photos and book covers with lovely curly-haired people on them, I would have had an easier time embracing my curly hair when it came along. I’m glad to see more curls on book covers, as well as a broader ethnic/racial/cultural diversity represented.
Thank you. Your hair sounds gorgeous.
And, yeah, I think having more representation would make it easier to embrace curly hair (among many, many other traits) for sure.
Books with curly hair on the cover! Great take on this week’s topic. Does “Anne of Avonlea” count? I can’t remember… 🙂
My post: https://pagesandpaws.com/2022/04/26/ttt-books-with-this-award-on-the-cover/
Thank you.
And, yes, Anne would totally count. She almost always has straight hair in the TV/film adaptations, but I believe that Anne of Green Gables did describe her hair as red and curly.
I really love this whole post. I love that not only did you choose something that matter to you, but you also used it to advocate for others.
I also wanted to say that I’ve always wanted curly hair and I know people with curly hair often want straight hair. We want what we can’t/don’t have, right?
Aww, thanks!
And, yes, we totally do. 🙂
Love these! The Poet X has one of my favorite covers.
Thank you. Yes, that cover is gorgeous.
This is such an interesting take on the prompt. I’ve been on a hair journey to embrace my own waves/curls after years of heat styling, and it’s so interesting to hear other people’s!
Thank you.
I’m glad you’re learning to embrace your own waves/curls!
What a great, personal take on this week’s prompt. It’s amazing how impactful it can feel to see yourself or other’s like you in some way. To feel seen. So important.
Aww, thanks. I appreciate that.
I have a cousin with super curly hair; i was always so jealous because my hair is so straight an texture free it won’t even hold a bobby pin for an updo. And she was always telling me, be thankful that I don’t have to try and brush it out…Great topic!
I love this story!
Cool idea! I wouldn’t have thought of this.
Thank you.
Fun that you used a personal thing to you to make the list. Don’t think I’ve read any of these, but I’ve owned The Freemason’s Daughter for years now. We’ll see if I read it. 🙂 Thanks so much for visiting Finding Wonderland this week. Appreciate it.
You’re welcome. I hope you like The Freemason’s Daughter.
I love the way that curly hair looks. I got a perm in high school to give myself curls, but it went straight again pretty quickly. 🙁
Thank you.
I’m sorry your perm didn’t work!
That’s actually so true — and definitely very rare to find heroines with curly hair! The most recent one that comes to mind is Jennifer Armintrout’s Wicked trilogy where the heroine was told she looked like the Disney princess from “Brave”.
Thanks for the recommendation. I hadn’t heard of that series before so far as I can recall.
Bravely by Maggie Stiefvater would have fit in perfectly here! I loved your post and the thought you put into it.
Enjoy the rest of your week Lydia!
Elza Reads
Thank you, and I totally agree with your addition.
Have a lovely week yourself.
Imagine the thinnest and straightest hair you can think of and you can see my hair. I always wanted long hair, wavy hair, dark hair, anything I didn’t have. I am sure we are all the same there. But yes, my favourite is still thick, curly hair. And I admire anyone who has it an can change their hairstyle as often as they like.
Such a great choice for a topic. Thanks for that.
Thanks for visiting my TTT this week which has books with maps on the cover.
You’re welcome.
Yes, I think we all sometimes yearn for physical features we don’t have. I know I’ve wished for straight hair in the past. 🙂
Oh my goodness! This is such a great pick for this TTT! Love this! And if your hair really looks like a brunette version of that picture–I’m SO jealous! 🙂 Love theses book covers, too!
Aww, thanks.
And, yeah, my hair isn’t that long, but the texture is pretty similar. 🙂
What a great topic! Very, very unique. I have curly/wavy hair, which can become quite frizzy (if I blow dry my hair, I look like a lion), and it definitely took my some time to accept and like it especially being surrounded by women with hair different than my own.
Thank you. Your hair sounds lovely.
I have curly hair too, sounds like quite similar to yours, kind of wavy loose curls but it does get more ringlet-y just after I’ve washed it/or when I’ve had it in plaits. I don’t think I’ve ever owned any books with curly haired girls on the cover, but I do remember one of the reasons I was super excited reading Harry Potter as a kid was that I was so happy that Hermione had hair like mine!
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2022/04/26/top-ten-tuesday-365/
It’s cool you have curly/wavy hair, too!
And, yes, it was very cool to read about Hermione’s hair for sure.
Fun idea for a post! My hair is stick straight, but my daughter—who is adopted and bi-racial—has very thick, curly hair. We struggled with it a lot until we found the right hairdresser and she got old enough to care for it herself! It’s always fun to see people on book covers who look like her, both in terms of hair and skin color. I also think publishers are doing better and better at this, which is awesome. It truly does make a difference.
Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
Thank you, Susan. Your daughter’s hair sounds gorgeous.
Nice choice! My daughter has loose curls, and I wish she would embrace them and be proud of them. Hopefully she will some day.
Thank you. My fingers are crossed that she will someday.
OMG love this post!! Awesome hair.
Thank you!
Love seeing all of these curls! 🙂
Representation definitely matters! I have curly/wavy hair and am glad to see more diversity on book covers. Great topic choice!