12-Year-Old Marley Dias, Creator Of #1000BlackGirlBooks, Is Releasing Her Own Book In 2018

Marley Dias noticed a problem with representation in young adult books for black girls, so she decided to fix the problem herself with #1000BlackGirlBooks.

Dias continues to inspire young black girls around the world, especially with her latest venture. Dias  launched the #1000BlackGirlBooks drive in November of 2015, leveraging the power of social media to reach a large audience. The goal was to collect 1,000 books featuring Black female protagonists by February 2016. Dias, who was 11 at the time, launched the #1000BlackGirlBooks project, collecting books featuring black girls as the main character. Since the beginning of her mission, she has collected over 8000 books, and will now be an author of a #BlackGirlBook herself that is due out in 2018.

In light of the #1000BlackGirlBooks success, Dias has appeared on “Ellen” (where she received a laptop and a $10,000 contribution from Shutterfly), The “Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore” (where she received the show’s first ever “Golden Hunnit/Keep It 100” award), “CBS This Morning and Charlie Rose. ” Dias has also been honored at BET’s “Black Girls Rock!” award show  with a M.A.D. (Making a Difference) Award. Dias was named Editor in Residence of Elle.com July of 2016 where she interviewed Ava DuVernay, Misty Copeland and Hillary Clinton.

Scholastic Books released the following statement on Dias’ upcoming book on their website.

“In her forthcoming nonfiction book for ages 10 and up, Marley Dias, the powerhouse girl-wonder who started the #1000blackgirlbooks campaign, shows kids how to make their own dreams come true. In this accessible “keep-it-real” guide, Marley tells how she’s turned her passion into a literacy crusade that has captured the attention of the media, policymakers, and young people throughout the world.

Marley offers smart tips for “paying it forward” with whatever makes your heart sing, while getting support from parents, teachers, and friends to turn your dreams into reality. This book explores activism, social justice, volunteerism, equity and inclusion, using social media for good (not just makeup tutorials and angry tweets), and shows how young people can galvanize their strengths to make positive changes in our world.

Also focusing on the importance of literacy and diversity, Marley offers suggestions on book selection, book-talking, and sharing titles. She delivers hands-on strategies for becoming a lifelong reader. She provides examples based on her extensive literacy advocacy and community work with schools and students throughout the world.”