Centering Black Boys: Theorizing Humanity, Play, and Joy in Contemporary Children's Literature

Abstract

Drawing from theories of humanity, knowledge, play, and representation, this article theorizes the narratives told about Black boys in children's literature from 2002 to 2025. Through a critical content analysis of 18 picture books, the authors examine how Black boys are depicted across stories, emphasizing representations that affirm their full humanity. This study explores how children's literature serves as a site of sociocultural meaning-making. The authors argue that these texts resist dominant tropes and offer portrayals of Black boyhood—rooted in joy, imagination, culture, and community.