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Hey You!: An Empowering Celebration of Growing Up Black
This groundbreaking picture book is a lyrical, inspirational exploration of growing up Black, written by award-winning illustrator Dapo Adeola, and brought to life by some of the most exciting Black illustration talents working today.
Remember to dream your own dreams
Love your beautiful skin
You always have a choice
This book addresses - honestly, yet hopefully - the experiences Black children face growing up with systemic racism, as well as providing hope for the future, delivering a powerful message to a new generation of dreamers. It's a message that is both urgent and timeless - and offers a rich and rewarding reading experience for every child.
To mirror the rich variety of the Black diaspora, this book showcases artwork from Dapo and 18 incredible Black illustrators in one beautiful, powerful, and cohesive reading experience.
Remember to dream your own dreams
Love your beautiful skin
You always have a choice
This book addresses - honestly, yet hopefully - the experiences Black children face growing up with systemic racism, as well as providing hope for the future, delivering a powerful message to a new generation of dreamers. It's a message that is both urgent and timeless - and offers a rich and rewarding reading experience for every child.
To mirror the rich variety of the Black diaspora, this book showcases artwork from Dapo and 18 incredible Black illustrators in one beautiful, powerful, and cohesive reading experience.
48 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
November 22, 2021
This is one of those picture books that I wish that I had growing up. Being a Black woman in the United States has never been 100 percent easy and I never really became confident in my Blackness and my potential to be successful until my mid to late 20s. It's unfortunate because no person should feel this way, but I know that for a lot of Black children and other children of color society makes it much more difficult to believe in yourself. This book gives and empowers Black children to recognize their potential and to recognize the greatness of those Black individuals that came before them. It also has a message of unity amongst Black people that I appreciated. It's often easy for us to unite over pain and trauma, but it's also important to unite over joy and happiness. The author made a very unique decision when it came to illustrating this book. Instead of just having one illustrator, there are multiple illustrators that represent the varied backgrounds of the Black diaspora. This was particularly important for me as reader because while this message is universal amongst the entire Black community, it is still important to remember that we are not a monolith and that even though we have shared experiences, we have so many more that are different. This decision brought a unique flair to the book. I was able to enjoy so many varied art styles that truly spoke to the diversity of the Black community. This picture book is definitely a must read for all those who interact with or have Black youth in their lives.
April 4, 2022
Excellent book that is full of positive images for small African American children. Many different artists have contributed to this book - but the underlying theme is that you should be happy and proud of who you are and where you came from. I think it is so important that young children are taught to see themselves in a positive light; the sooner the better. Wonderful and vibrant illustrations.
December 9, 2021
‘Hey You!: An empowering celebration of growing up Black’ (2021) by Dapo Adeola - is an empowering, uncompromising (why should it be?) and inspiring picture book, written by Adeola with fantastic illustrations in different styles by 18 different illustrators, aimed primarily at the young black reader.
‘Hey You!’ Is an important book delivering a strong and vital message to the young and often disempowered black reader - hopefully conveying a sense of strength, self belief, confidence, belonging and real empowerment via a medium familiar to the age group of the target audience.
‘Hey You!’ Is an important book delivering a strong and vital message to the young and often disempowered black reader - hopefully conveying a sense of strength, self belief, confidence, belonging and real empowerment via a medium familiar to the age group of the target audience.
January 13, 2023
I purchased "Hey You! An Empowering Celebration of Growing Up Black" for my grandchildren, It is an empowering celebration of growing up. This book is a highly recommended read.
December 6, 2022
While on a search to expand my knowledge of POC authors, I came across this book. It is a story told from the point of view of a parent and it is full of inspirational messages of love and hope for young, Black children. Themes of self-confidence, self-love, freedom and empowerment, apparent throughout the book's illustrations and a written text, add to meaning and impact of the book.
The first thing that drew me to this book was the amazing illustrations. The illustrations are big, bright and incredibly detailed. They involve so many elements that add meaning to the written text but can also be explored in a more stand-alone manner which creates meaning in its own way. Though when used together, it maximises the message behind the book, the illustrations do not rely on the text meaning it can be used for pupils who are just learning to read or children with EAL. Another thing I like about this book is the range of social issues it covers alongside the themes of self-love and confidence. It touches on issues such as injustice, POC voices being silenced, the Black Lives Matter movement and freedom to access careers as well as express heritage and culture. These issues are also introduced and addressed in an age-appropriate manner.
I believe that within a classroom, it is so important to have books written by authors who are from different ethnic backgrounds and identify as a range of different gender identities or sexualities and represent different communities such as POC, LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities. It allows pupils to hear stories from people who have experiences similar to themselves or their families and to see themselves represented in books. I would definitely recommend this book for use with KS1 pupils and maybe pupils in the last term of Recpetion.
The first thing that drew me to this book was the amazing illustrations. The illustrations are big, bright and incredibly detailed. They involve so many elements that add meaning to the written text but can also be explored in a more stand-alone manner which creates meaning in its own way. Though when used together, it maximises the message behind the book, the illustrations do not rely on the text meaning it can be used for pupils who are just learning to read or children with EAL. Another thing I like about this book is the range of social issues it covers alongside the themes of self-love and confidence. It touches on issues such as injustice, POC voices being silenced, the Black Lives Matter movement and freedom to access careers as well as express heritage and culture. These issues are also introduced and addressed in an age-appropriate manner.
I believe that within a classroom, it is so important to have books written by authors who are from different ethnic backgrounds and identify as a range of different gender identities or sexualities and represent different communities such as POC, LGBTQ+ and people with disabilities. It allows pupils to hear stories from people who have experiences similar to themselves or their families and to see themselves represented in books. I would definitely recommend this book for use with KS1 pupils and maybe pupils in the last term of Recpetion.
October 14, 2022
This collaborative work has a lot of value in that it not only encourages Black children to believe in themselves and follow whatever amazing path they feel called to, but acknowledges the disparity experienced in the world due to their skin color. A good balance, and the theme of sunflowers carried throughout the different artists' works helps to create a more unifying feeling in the text.
February 4, 2025
My favorite part was the collaboration of 18 artists. I loved their unique illustrations and reading their inspiring bios at the back of the book
July 16, 2022
3.5 I loved reading this to my 5 yr old daughter. It reminded me of a few things I need to say out loud more often. Very unique to have so many contributing artists. I appreciated seeing all their bios.
August 7, 2025
Well, I was fairly certain that I would find a lot to disagree with in this book before I started to read it, and I wasn't wrong. On the other hand, I thought there was a lot of good in it too. I'm just sad that the good is treated as the property of the bad, that the two are inextricably bound together and you cannot pick and choose which ones you ascribe to. I don't think that's true. Some of the ideas in this book are good, some are bad, I should be allowed to give my opinion about which is which.
For instance:
The book contradicts itself.
It says that you should "Be curious! I hope that you question everything." I agree absolutely. Be curious. Question everything. Read books that you are certain that you will find a lot to disagree with, because mayhap you will find that there is convergence after all. Question the narratives that you are taught in school, look at the evidence given for them, decide for yourself if you think they are true or not.
However, I don't think that the author actually believes what they have written. If they did, they would question some of the narratives contained in this book. For instance, this author accepts a priori the existence and impact of structural racism. This is the narrative that everything about government and culture in Western societies is designed in order to keep the white race in power and the black race out of power. In the first place, I reject the narrative that there are separate races. We are all human, we are all one race. In the second place, this doesn't make sense because a lot of the structures of Western society were established and practiced before race-based slavery came into existence. In the third place, if the narrative of structural racism were true then Asians wouldn't achieve more in nearly every outcome than white people across the united states. That in itself is odd, there should be variation. White people don't achieve the same across districts and regions, so why do Asians consistently, on average, outperform everyone, no matter what region they are in?
The second area is the amalgamation of every value into one. If you support black people's right to express themselves (which I do), then you support the concept of black power (which I don't). If you support the learning about the wisdom of your progenitors (which I do) then you support LGBTQ couples having artificial insemination and raising children (which I don't). Treating every black person as if they are part of a unified blob that have no thoughts of their own is infantilization, and, again, goes against the earlier admonishment of questioning everything. The author doesn't mean that. If they did, then they would defend their ideas without stating them as undeniable facts that no one decent could possibly disagree with. There are plenty of people who disagree with some or all of the ideas in this book, and the fact that they do does not automatically make them evil.
The third area is the part where they say 'we stand on the shoulders of giants" and then not a single person born before 1940 was mentioned. If we are going to talk about great black people, for heaven's sake, can we talk about some great ones?! Ones that have already stood the test of time, that are still remembered centuries, or at least decades, after their death? Martin Luther King Junior. Malcolm X. Frederick Douglass. George Washington Carver. Harriet Tubman. Alexander Dumas. White people are often accused of erasing history, but by golly, what about these people?! What makes them unworthy of being included in the greatness when we have such luminaries as Janelle Monae? Don't get me wrong, she's a fantastic actress and does way better at her career than I would, but the book argues that black people are 'rarely the heroes' and are taught 'that there are limited examples of black success' then it goes on to list limited examples of black success purely in entertainment industries! And oh, the Obamas, can't forget them. If you want a hero, just look at the life of Harriet Tubman, that woman was an absolute warrior, if you want heroism she had it in spades. Why isn't she here? Why is all of this black history just brushed under the rug as if it never existed?
The fourth area is in the inconsistency of the message. The author says "The freedom to express yourself is yours. Express your culture and heritage-even if it makes some people uncomfortable." Again, I happen to agree with the message here. Express yourself how you want. If you want to have braids in your hair or wear your hair natural, go for it. If you want to talk about how people in your lineage achieved great things by overcoming difficulties or discrimination, preach it to all who will hear, that's awesome. I just wonder if the author would also support someone celebrating their conservative culture? Celebrating modesty? Tradition? Monogamy? Heterosexuality? Would he be happy with people celebrating their ancestors who fought in a war whose ethics he doesn't support? Celebrating the military itself? Celebrating their relatives who are in the police force? I wonder if he would cheer on a kid who 'brings their parent to class' who happens to be a police officer? Maybe he would, I don't know.
My issue is not with the idea that one should celebrate culture and heritage even if it makes some people uncomfortable, my issue is just that this narrative tends to go only one way. I agree that we should celebrate blackness. I also think we should celebrate whiteness. I think we should celebrate people. Categories like black and white are some of the least interesting things about people. Let's celebrate how we think, what we believe. Let's share our stories, our experiences, our inner lives. Let's celebrate the difficulties we have overcome ourselves, as individuals, with or without the help of others. I don't know, I think it's more empowering to get out and achieve things that quantifiably better your own life or the life of someone else, rather than being proud of what you look like. That's something you were born with, that you can't change, how is it an achievement?
A lot of people will immediately deny my right to have such an opinion, because, as you can see, I'm white. Extremely so. The paleness knows no limits. But the truth of the matter is, for most of my life, my family has been the only white people for miles and miles. My friends were never the same color as me, never the same culture, never the same language. So? We were all human. We all wanted relationships. We all wanted to grow and achieve. Why should the fact that we had different levels of melanin in our skin cause either of us to feel superior to the other?
It's wrong for someone with less melanin to think they are better than someone else. It's also wrong for someone with more melanin to think that they are better than someone else. And it's a sad truth of humanity that both levels of melanin and all levels in between are guilty of thinking they are superior to others. It's not a problem of one group being worse than all the others, or better than all the others, in the case of being discriminatory, every group is equally culpable.
Anyway.
Art: Really quite awesome
Story: Political poem
Price: $18.99
For instance:
The book contradicts itself.
It says that you should "Be curious! I hope that you question everything." I agree absolutely. Be curious. Question everything. Read books that you are certain that you will find a lot to disagree with, because mayhap you will find that there is convergence after all. Question the narratives that you are taught in school, look at the evidence given for them, decide for yourself if you think they are true or not.
However, I don't think that the author actually believes what they have written. If they did, they would question some of the narratives contained in this book. For instance, this author accepts a priori the existence and impact of structural racism. This is the narrative that everything about government and culture in Western societies is designed in order to keep the white race in power and the black race out of power. In the first place, I reject the narrative that there are separate races. We are all human, we are all one race. In the second place, this doesn't make sense because a lot of the structures of Western society were established and practiced before race-based slavery came into existence. In the third place, if the narrative of structural racism were true then Asians wouldn't achieve more in nearly every outcome than white people across the united states. That in itself is odd, there should be variation. White people don't achieve the same across districts and regions, so why do Asians consistently, on average, outperform everyone, no matter what region they are in?
The second area is the amalgamation of every value into one. If you support black people's right to express themselves (which I do), then you support the concept of black power (which I don't). If you support the learning about the wisdom of your progenitors (which I do) then you support LGBTQ couples having artificial insemination and raising children (which I don't). Treating every black person as if they are part of a unified blob that have no thoughts of their own is infantilization, and, again, goes against the earlier admonishment of questioning everything. The author doesn't mean that. If they did, then they would defend their ideas without stating them as undeniable facts that no one decent could possibly disagree with. There are plenty of people who disagree with some or all of the ideas in this book, and the fact that they do does not automatically make them evil.
The third area is the part where they say 'we stand on the shoulders of giants" and then not a single person born before 1940 was mentioned. If we are going to talk about great black people, for heaven's sake, can we talk about some great ones?! Ones that have already stood the test of time, that are still remembered centuries, or at least decades, after their death? Martin Luther King Junior. Malcolm X. Frederick Douglass. George Washington Carver. Harriet Tubman. Alexander Dumas. White people are often accused of erasing history, but by golly, what about these people?! What makes them unworthy of being included in the greatness when we have such luminaries as Janelle Monae? Don't get me wrong, she's a fantastic actress and does way better at her career than I would, but the book argues that black people are 'rarely the heroes' and are taught 'that there are limited examples of black success' then it goes on to list limited examples of black success purely in entertainment industries! And oh, the Obamas, can't forget them. If you want a hero, just look at the life of Harriet Tubman, that woman was an absolute warrior, if you want heroism she had it in spades. Why isn't she here? Why is all of this black history just brushed under the rug as if it never existed?
The fourth area is in the inconsistency of the message. The author says "The freedom to express yourself is yours. Express your culture and heritage-even if it makes some people uncomfortable." Again, I happen to agree with the message here. Express yourself how you want. If you want to have braids in your hair or wear your hair natural, go for it. If you want to talk about how people in your lineage achieved great things by overcoming difficulties or discrimination, preach it to all who will hear, that's awesome. I just wonder if the author would also support someone celebrating their conservative culture? Celebrating modesty? Tradition? Monogamy? Heterosexuality? Would he be happy with people celebrating their ancestors who fought in a war whose ethics he doesn't support? Celebrating the military itself? Celebrating their relatives who are in the police force? I wonder if he would cheer on a kid who 'brings their parent to class' who happens to be a police officer? Maybe he would, I don't know.
My issue is not with the idea that one should celebrate culture and heritage even if it makes some people uncomfortable, my issue is just that this narrative tends to go only one way. I agree that we should celebrate blackness. I also think we should celebrate whiteness. I think we should celebrate people. Categories like black and white are some of the least interesting things about people. Let's celebrate how we think, what we believe. Let's share our stories, our experiences, our inner lives. Let's celebrate the difficulties we have overcome ourselves, as individuals, with or without the help of others. I don't know, I think it's more empowering to get out and achieve things that quantifiably better your own life or the life of someone else, rather than being proud of what you look like. That's something you were born with, that you can't change, how is it an achievement?
A lot of people will immediately deny my right to have such an opinion, because, as you can see, I'm white. Extremely so. The paleness knows no limits. But the truth of the matter is, for most of my life, my family has been the only white people for miles and miles. My friends were never the same color as me, never the same culture, never the same language. So? We were all human. We all wanted relationships. We all wanted to grow and achieve. Why should the fact that we had different levels of melanin in our skin cause either of us to feel superior to the other?
It's wrong for someone with less melanin to think they are better than someone else. It's also wrong for someone with more melanin to think that they are better than someone else. And it's a sad truth of humanity that both levels of melanin and all levels in between are guilty of thinking they are superior to others. It's not a problem of one group being worse than all the others, or better than all the others, in the case of being discriminatory, every group is equally culpable.
Anyway.
Art: Really quite awesome
Story: Political poem
Price: $18.99
June 29, 2025
I'm not the audience on this. some of the stuff seemed a little... racist. I don't get into empty, hollow affirmation.
December 7, 2025
Out of all the categorized books, I feel as if this one was the most empowering! Readers are exposed to a family welcoming their new black child to the world. As they welcome their new baby to the world they want to fill and feed her with positive affirmations plus with their hopes and dreams that they hope she follows as she grows up. "A love that started long before your birth, passed on in the very fabric of your being from generation to generation". "Some people believe that one skin color is better than another. But they are so wrong. Every skin color has its own unique beauty". I would recommend this book to anyone and host it within my kindergarten classroom library for all my students to hear and to read so they do not lose sight of who they are and that their skin color is perfectly fine. We should be celebrating ourselves not changing because someone may not like us. Themes of courage, self- love, and ambition shine throughout this book.
April 15, 2025
Such a deeply moving and affirming picture book that addresses the relaities and beauty of growing up Black. through a series of heartfelt letters written to Black child, the book acknowledges the challenges- such a as racism, exclusion, and societal pressue- while uplifting the joy, strength, and pride found in Black identity. The text is both honest and hopeful, encouraging young readers to embrace who they are and dream boldly. A variety of Black illsturations contribute diverse and powerful artwork, visually reflecting the richness of the Black experience. Critically, the book succeeds in balancing truth with empowerment, making it a valuable resource of identity affirmation, anti bias education, and emotional development.
June 1, 2022
The Author's Note reads: "This book grew out of an emotional response to the events of 2020: the tragic story of George Floyd and the global protests that followed; the mass awakening to the impacts of structural racism. The book also stems from a question my editor asked that struck a deep chord in my: When was the first time you felt empowered as a Black person-- that you deeply believed you could live your dreams?"
Although it was an end note, I felt its resonance well before I read it. It vibrated through every page.
Companion read: "Daddy Speaks Love" by Leah Henderson and E.B. Lewis.
Although it was an end note, I felt its resonance well before I read it. It vibrated through every page.
Companion read: "Daddy Speaks Love" by Leah Henderson and E.B. Lewis.
April 28, 2022
19 Black illustrators collaborated to make this picture book that reminds Black children that they are loved and can do whatever they dream to be. It was inspired by an editor asking the author, "When was the first time you felt empowered as a Black person--that you deeply believed you could live your dreams?" In line with All Because You Matter, You Matter, Antiracist Baby, Your Name is a Song, and Eyes That Kiss in the Corners. All the illustrations appear to be digital, and this book could also be used to show different illustration styles.
June 10, 2021
Hey You is such a wonderful celebration. A celebration of life, of being Black - encompassing inspiration and self love, whilst deftly weaving in the tough conversations and always ending on a powerful, heart-felt note. Dapo Adeola's debut is going to change lives with his words and illustrations, and I love that he worked with 18 other illustrators to bring them to life. It was a very moving and uplifting read, and is going to mean so much to so many.
February 22, 2024
This book is a story full of affirmations for empowering black children to be not only comfortable in their own skin, but empowers them to be proud of who they are even though there may be people who put them down because of the color of their skin. I don't know if I would read this book to a whole class if I only had 1 or 2 black students, but it's totally something I would read with them during free time or allow them to take home and read with their parents.
February 7, 2022
This stellar picture book is everything, y’all!
It’s an epic collaboration by nineteen Black diaspora creatives.
🌻 It is dynamic, empowering, uplifting & moving.
It centers Black joy & pops with love.
🌻 It makes for a brilliant preschool classroom read-aloud, library display or gift for the young people ages 4-7 & their care givers in our lives!
It’s an epic collaboration by nineteen Black diaspora creatives.
🌻 It is dynamic, empowering, uplifting & moving.
It centers Black joy & pops with love.
🌻 It makes for a brilliant preschool classroom read-aloud, library display or gift for the young people ages 4-7 & their care givers in our lives!
April 27, 2022
As an adult I LOVE this book, but I also struggle with books aimed at children that require the social, political, and historical background knowledge of adults. It might be a more useful jumping off point for discussion with an older child, maybe in late elementary or middle school, who has had a chance to absorb and contextualize that information.
August 3, 2022
I have never read a book that had a different illustrator for each pair of pages. I would’ve presumed an idea like that would be a train wreck, but I actually adore it. My kids and I had a lot of fun looking at the different styles and discussing why we did or did not like them.
The prose was on point as well. All around great!
The prose was on point as well. All around great!
October 24, 2022
Award-winning illustrator Dapo Adeola and eighteen other Black illustrators to celebrate the ways Black children can make their way through the difficulties and challenges that racism creates in our world.
The illustrations are vibrant and poignant and the words feel like they are aimed directly at the reader. Powerful.
The illustrations are vibrant and poignant and the words feel like they are aimed directly at the reader. Powerful.
February 24, 2025
This is a story that I wish I could have read when I was young! I would love to read this story in my class to represent voices that may not be heard as often and share the beauty of being Black. I think that this would be a great lesson to have your students reflect on who they are. I love the representation of Black love, Black families, and Black culture in this text!
June 16, 2025
A beautiful and inspiring book designed to empower Black children and provide positivity. The illustrations are provided by Adeola and 18 others giving a rich variety of styles.
As with some kids' books it could be a bit over their heads initially. However, I am sure they will continue to draw inspiration by returning to it as they grow.
As with some kids' books it could be a bit over their heads initially. However, I am sure they will continue to draw inspiration by returning to it as they grow.
November 3, 2025
This picture book celebrates Black identity, history and pride through affirmations. This book encourages self love and resilience.
This book would be great for discussing different identities or social emotional learning. Students can use this book to identify affirmations to use about themselves.
This book would be great for discussing different identities or social emotional learning. Students can use this book to identify affirmations to use about themselves.
January 26, 2026
Illustrated by 18 Black artists, this book contains much-needed encouragement for children of all colors to help them face the challenges they will encounter in their lives, told from the perspective of concerned and protective parents. The various artistic styles brilliantly underscore the theme of unity through diversity.
June 15, 2021
An incredible book for kids filled with beautiful illustrations that tell a deeper story. This is the book I wish existed when I was a child, and I've bought several copies for the children in my life. Buy this book!
September 15, 2021
This is a book that celebrates and empowers young Black readers. It gives them confidence and expresses the opportunities available to them. The author has collaborated with 18 different illustrators, who all seem to be US or UK based. I can see the need for this book in that setting, but can't help feeling in Australia we need something with a wider, multi-cultural focus to speak to our Indigenous children, our Asian-Australian children, our Arabic-Australian children etc.
December 29, 2021
"Honest" and "hopeful" have been used to describe this wonderful picture book created by Dapo Adeola (Look Up!) along with an incredible ensemble of illustrators. A digital advanced reader copy was reviewed.
May 14, 2022
I absolutely love the different art styles in this book. The artists are incredibly talented and have done a wonderful job with bringing different styles and types of inclusion to the book. From a girl in a wheelchair, to hearing aids and a girl with vitiligo, the inclusion is beautiful.
July 2, 2022
Beautiful illustrations with lots to point out, discuss, and find with young readers. Each 2-page layout is illustrated by a different author with a different empowering message. I liked the sunflower thread that was found on each page, tying the message together.
September 16, 2022
This book was great. Even though I'm white, I read it out of curiosity. The illustrations were just amazing and I like how there was a different illustrator for each page but the sunflower theme was kept throughout. Very good book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews