CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- A librarian at the Cambridgeport Elementary School in Massachusetts is declining a shipment of books from first lady Melania Trump. 
 
 One school from each state was chosen by the White House to receive 10 Dr. Seuss books as part of National Read a Book Day, CBS Boston reports. 
 
 "Getting an education is perhaps the most important and wondrous opportunity of your young lives," Trump said in a letter to the children who will be receiving books. 
 
 The school's librarian, Liz Phipps Soeiro, wrote a lengthy editorial for the Horn Book's Family Reading blog explaining why her school does not need the books. 
 
 "My students have access to a school library with over nine thousand volumes and a librarian with a graduate degree in library science. Multiple studies show that schools with professionally staffed libraries improve student performance," wrote Phipps Soeiro. 
 
 Phipps Soeiro also criticized Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and the Trump administration's education policy. 
 
 "Why not go out of your way to gift books to underfunded and underprivileged communities that continue to be marginalized and maligned by policies put in place by Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos?" she wrote. 
 
 The librarian's editorial also criticizes the first lady's book selections, which include "The Cat in the Hat," "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish," "The Foot Book," "Green Eggs and Ham" and "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" 
 
 "You may not be aware of this, but Dr. Seuss is a bit of a cliché, a tired and worn ambassador for children's literature. As First Lady of the United States, you have an incredible platform with world-class resources at your fingertips," she wrote. 
 
 Parents picking their children up outside the elementary school on Wednesday were quick to support the librarian. 
 
 "That's the librarian's prerogative and I support her decision," parent Eric Munson said. 
 
 "I think the letter is really articulate, constructive in its suggestions," said parent Alex Vanpraagh. 
 
 The Cambridge school system says the opinions in the editorial do not represent the district and released a statement, saying "the employee was not authorized to accept or reject donated books on behalf of the school or school district." 
 
 "We have counseled the employee on all relevant policies, including the policy against public resources being used for political purposes," the district said. ||||| by 
 
 Dear Mrs. Trump, 
 
 Thank you for the ten Dr. Seuss titles that you sent my school library in recognition of this year’s National Read a Book Day. (Sent second-day air, no less! That must have been expensive.) I’m proud that you recognized my school as something special. It truly is. Our beautiful and diverse student body is made up of children from all over the world; from different socioeconomic statuses; with a spectrum of gender expressions and identities; with a range of abilities; and of varied racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. 
 
 According to the White House website, you selected one school per state by “working with the Department of Education to identify schools with programs that have achieved high standards of excellence, recognized by State and National awards and Blue Ribbon Awards…” Each of those carefully vetted schools received ten books: Seuss-isms!; Because a Little Bug Went KaChoo; What Pet Should I Get?; The Cat in the Hat; I Can Read with My Eyes Shut!; One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish; The Foot Book; Wacky Wednesday; Green Eggs and Ham; and Oh, the Places You’ll Go!. 
 
 My students were interested in reading your enclosed letter and impressed with the beautiful bookplates with your name and the indelible White House stamp, however, we will not be keeping the titles for our collection. I’d like to respectfully offer my explanation. 
 
 * * * * * 
 
 My school and my library are indeed award-winning. I work in a district that has plenty of resources, which contributes directly to “excellence.” Cambridge, Massachusetts, is an amazing city with robust social programming, a responsive city government, free all-day kindergarten, and well-paid teachers (relatively speaking — many of us can’t afford to live in the city in which we teach). My students have access to a school library with over nine thousand volumes and a librarian with a graduate degree in library science. Multiple studies show that schools with professionally staffed libraries improve student performance. The American Association of School Librarians has a great infographic on these findings. Many schools around the state and country can’t compete. 
 
 Yearly per-pupil spending in Cambridge is well over $20,000; our city’s values are such that given a HUGE range in the socioeconomic status of our residents, we believe that each and every child deserves the best free education possible and are working hard to make that a reality (most classrooms maintain a 60/40 split between free/reduced lunch and paid lunch). This offers our Title I school and the district a lot of privilege and room for programming and pedagogy to foster “high standards of excellence.” Even so, we still struggle to close the achievement gap, retain teachers of color, and dismantle the systemic white supremacy in our institution. But hell, we test well! And in the end, it appears that data — and not children — are what matters. 
 
 Meanwhile, school libraries around the country are being shuttered. Cities like Philadelphia, Chicago, and Detroit are suffering through expansion, privatization, and school “choice” with no interest in outcomes of children, their families, their teachers, and their schools. Are those kids any less deserving of books simply because of circumstances beyond their control? Why not go out of your way to gift books to underfunded and underprivileged communities that continue to be marginalized and maligned by policies put in place by Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos? Why not reflect on those “high standards of excellence” beyond only what the numbers suggest? Secretary DeVos would do well to scaffold and lift schools instead of punishing them with closures and slashed budgets. 
 
 * * * * * 
 
 So, my school doesn’t have a NEED for these books. And then there’s the matter of the books themselves. You may not be aware of this, but Dr. Seuss is a bit of a cliché, a tired and worn ambassador for children’s literature. As First Lady of the United States, you have an incredible platform with world-class resources at your fingertips. Just down the street you have access to a phenomenal children’s librarian: Dr. Carla Hayden, the current Librarian of Congress. I have no doubt Dr. Hayden would have given you some stellar recommendations. 
 
 Another fact that many people are unaware of is that Dr. Seuss’s illustrations are steeped in racist propaganda, caricatures, and harmful stereotypes. Open one of his books (If I Ran a Zoo or And to Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street, for example), and you’ll see the racist mockery in his art. Grace Hwang Lynch’s School Library Journal article, “Is the Cat in the Hat Racist? Read Across America Shifts Away from Dr. Seuss and Toward Diverse Books,” reports on Katie Ishizuka’s work analyzing the minstrel characteristics and trope nature of Seuss’s characters. Scholar Philip Nel’s new book, Was the Cat in the Hat Black? The Hidden Racism of Children’s Literature, and the Need for Diverse Books, further explores and shines a spotlight on the systemic racism and oppression in education and literature. 
 
 I am honored that you recognized my students and our school. I can think of no better gift for children than books; it was a wonderful gesture, if one that could have been better thought out. Books can be a powerful way to learn about and experience the world around us; they help build empathy and understanding. In return, I’m attaching a list of ten books (it’s the librarian in me) that I hope will offer you a window into the lives of the many children affected by the policies of your husband’s administration. You and your husband have a direct impact on these children’s lives. Please make time to learn about and value them. I hope you share these books with your family and with kids around the country. And I encourage you to reach out to your local librarian for more recommendations. 
 
 Warmly, 
 
 Liz Phipps Soeiro 
 
 School Librarian 
 
 Cambridge, MA 
 
 Editor’s Note: Please also read “Paging Miss Manners” and “Not So Simple Gifts”. 
 
 ||||| by 
 
 Mrs. Trump, you sent ten picture books, so I will recommend ten as well — but there are so many more! My wish is that these books will help you see: 
 
 the beautiful resilience of children who stand up to racism and oppression and for social justice and reform; 
 
 children who are trying to connect with parents who are incarcerated simply because of their immigration status; 
 
 children who integrate aspects of their own cultures and countries of origin into their new country; 
 
 children whose parents risked everything to enter the U.S. so they can have a chance at a future free from violence and/or poverty; 
 
 children who challenge society’s social constraints and are accepted and loved as who they say they are. 
 
 (Horn Book reviews included, where available.) 
 
 Auntie Yang’s Great Soybean Picnic written by Ginnie Lo; illus. by Beth Lo (Lee & Low, 2012). 
 
 Author and illustrator (sisters) retell how their aunt, a Chinese immigrant to the Midwest, created a family tradition. On a family outing in the 1950s, Auntie Yang discovers a field of soybeans–and a way to overcome homesickness for China while sharing a very special food. The heartfelt story is accompanied by enamel on porcelain art carefully drawn with colored glazes. Glos. 
 
 The Boy & the Bindi written by Vivek Shraya; illus. by Rajni Perera (Arsenal Pulp Press, 2016). [Not reviewed by the Horn Book.] 
 
 Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl’s Courage Changed Music written by Margarita Engle; illus. by Rafael López (Houghton, 2015). 
 
 A young girl “on an island of music” dreams of becoming a drummer, but only boys play drums. The story is based on Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, a “Chinese-African-Cuban girl who broke Cuba’s traditional taboo against female drummers.” Poetic text takes its cues from Zaldarriaga’s chosen instrument. Saturated acrylic-on-wood illustrations capture the island’s musicality and the surreal dream-images that inspire young Millo. 
 
 King for a Day written by Rukhsana Khan; illus. by Christiane Krömer (Lee & Low, 2014). 
 
 Action-filled collages of traditional fabrics, textured paper, yarn, and more display intricate sky- and cityscapes of Lahore, Pakistan, during Basant, the spring kite festival. Malik, skillfully using his handmade small kite to conquer the bully next door in the kite battle, is a real hero; that he uses a wheelchair is incidental to the story. Useful contextual information is appended. 
 
 Mama’s Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation written by Edwidge Danticat; illus. by Leslie Staub (Dial, 2015). 
 
 In this gentle story, Haitian American Saya’s mother is incarcerated because she has no papers. Danticat’s direct, resonant prose doesn’t shy away from the realities–telling of the loneliness of missing your mother and the trauma of saying goodbye at the detention facility. Staub’s naive-style oil paintings keep the focus on the child; the larger issue of the plight of refugees and immigrants makes the story universal. 
 
 My Cold Plum Lemon Pie Bluesy Mood written by Tameka Fryer Brown; illus. by Shane Evans (Penguin Random House, 2013). 
 
 Jamie expresses his shifting emotions in a rainbow of colors. His cool purple “Grape-juice drinking…Bobbing to the beat kind of mood” shifts to a “Gloomy gray kind of place” when his brothers are mean, and so on. The stuttering free verse can be difficult to follow; Evans’s hue-specific digital-collage illustrations provide most of this conceptually smart book’s expression. 
 
 Red: A Crayon’s Story written and illus. by Michael Hall (Greenwillow, 2015). 
 
 Crayon Red is labeled red, but he colors blue, which creates frustration for the other crayons and thus Red himself. Red struggles until new friend Berry asks him to make a blue ocean. Once he lets go of his label, everything turns around, including the other crayons’ minds. Smart design and sharp details keep the story effective and amusing. 
 
 Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation written and illus. by Duncan Tonatiuh (Scholastic, 2014). 
 
 In 1947 the Mendez family fought for–and won–the desegregation of schools in California. Tonatiuh uses a child’s viewpoint to succinctly capture the segregated reality of Mexican Americans. The straightforward narrative is well matched with illustrations in Tonatiuh’s signature style, their two-dimensional perspective reminiscent of the Mixtec codex but collaged with paper, wood, etc. to provide textural variation. An author’s note with photos is appended. Bib., glos., ind. 
 
 Somos Como Las Nubes / We Are like the Clouds written by Jorge Argueta; illus. by Alfonso Ruano; translated by Elisa Amado (Groundwood, 2016). 
 
 Argueta’s bilingual collection gives voice to refugee children who emigrate from Central American countries to the United States in search of safety or better lives. The poems, written in the first person, present the candid perspective of the children’s experiences; they include whimsical imagery but also scary threats. Delicate illustrations present both realistic portrayals and surreal depictions that complement the textual imagery. 
 
 Two White Rabbits written by Jairo Buitrago; illus. by Rafael Yockteng; translated by Elisa Amado (Groundwood, 2015). 
 
 A girl and her father travel by foot, by raft, and by train. As they travel, the girl counts the things she sees: “I count the people who live by the train tracks.” Originally published in Spanish, this quiet picture book highlights the experience of a child refugee or immigrant; Yockteng’s contemplative graphic illustrations clearly depict the pain, frustration, and boredom of the journey. ||||| Earlier this month First Lady Melania Trump celebrated National Read a Book Day by selecting some children’s books and sending them to one school in each state. Mrs. Trump selected Dr. Seuss’ Oh, the Places You’ll Go! because it was, “one of her personal favorites that she and her son have read together over and over.” Other books included in the shipment to schools in each state included One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish and Green Eggs and Ham among several others. 
 
 Tuesday, the librarian at Cambridgeport Elementary School in Massachusetts wrote a response which informed the First Lady the school would be rejecting the books, calling them “racist propaganda.” 
 
 My students were interested in reading your enclosed letter and impressed with the beautiful bookplates with your name and the indelible White House stamp, however, we will not be keeping the titles for our collection. I’d like to respectfully offer my explanation… Yearly per-pupil spending in Cambridge is well over $20,000; our city’s values are such that given a HUGE range in the socioeconomic status of our residents, we believe that each and every child deserves the best free education possible and are working hard to make that a reality (most classrooms maintain a 60/40 split between free/reduced lunch and paid lunch). This offers our Title I school and the district a lot of privilege and room for programming and pedagogy to foster “high standards of excellence.” Even so, we still struggle to close the achievement gap, retain teachers of color, and dismantle the systemic white supremacy in our institution. But hell, we test well! And in the end, it appears that data — and not children — are what matters… Another fact that many people are unaware of is that Dr. Seuss’s illustrations are steeped in racist propaganda, caricatures, and harmful stereotypes. Open one of his books (If I Ran a Zoo or And to Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street, for example), and you’ll see the racist mockery in his art. Grace Hwang Lynch’s School Library Journal article, “Is the Cat in the Hat Racist? Read Across America Shifts Away from Dr. Seuss and Toward Diverse Books,” reports on Katie Ishizuka’s work analyzing the minstrel characteristics and trope nature of Seuss’s characters. Scholar Philip Nel’s new book, Was the Cat in the Hat Black? The Hidden Racism of Children’s Literature, and the Need for Diverse Books, further explores and shines a spotlight on the systemic racism and oppression in education and literature. I am honored that you recognized my students and our school. I can think of no better gift for children than books; it was a wonderful gesture, if one that could have been better thought out. Books can be a powerful way to learn about and experience the world around us; they help build empathy and understanding. In return, I’m attaching a list of ten books (it’s the librarian in me) that I hope will offer you a window into the lives of the many children affected by the policies of your husband’s administration. 
 
 For all of the effort to remain civil, it’s pretty clear the rejection of the books is intended as a big middle finger to the First Lady, the president, the Secretary of Education and of course Dr. Seuss. Unfortunately for Ms. Soeiro, she had no right to reject the books in the first place. From CBS News: 
 
 The Cambridge school system says the opinions in the editorial do not represent the district and released a statement, saying “the employee was not authorized to accept or reject donated books on behalf of the school or school district.” “We have counseled the employee on all relevant policies, including the policy against public resources being used for political purposes,” the district said. 
 
 As for Dr. Seuss being racist propaganda, I’m attaching a list of 6 video clips Ms. Soeiro should probably watch (it’s the blogger in me) that I hope will enlighten her. It turns out both Barack and Michelle Obama were quite fond of Dr. Seuss during their tenure in the White House. “This is one of the classics, a great book,” President Obama said of Green Eggs and Ham in 2010: 
 
 After President Obama was done First Lady Michelle Obama took over with a reading of another Seuss classic: 
 
 Here’s Michelle Obama celebrating Dr. Seuss at the Library of Congress in 2011 by reading Green Eggs and Ham: 
 
 Here in April 2013 is Michelle Obama’s mother reading One Fish, Two Fish on the White House lawn: 
 
 Here again is former First Lady Michelle Obama greeting the Cat in the Hat at a White House event in 2015: 
 
 And finally, here’s President Obama in April 2015, telling a group of interns that all of the important lessons in life are found in Dr. Seuss: 
 
 So I’m not suggesting that the librarian at Cambridgeport Elementary School is a bad person with no sense of perspective, only that her open letter to the First Lady could have been better thought out. 
 
 Update: This photo from 2015 is making the rounds. This Twitter account is listed in the footer of the letter to the First Lady written by Liz Phipps Soeiro (see screengrab below). It certainly looks like the same person:
– The illustrations of Melania Trump's favorite children's author are "steeped in racist propaganda, caricatures, and harmful stereotypes," according to an elementary school librarian who rejected a gift from the first lady. Trump sent 10 Dr. Seuss books to the Cambridgeport School in Cambridge, Mass., to mark "National Read a Book Day," but librarian Liz Phipps Soeiro told her the school would not be keeping them, the Washington Post reports. In an open letter, Soeiro thanked the first lady, but she then described Seuss as "a tired and worn ambassador for children’s literature" and suggested 10 alternative children's books. The Seuss books were sent to one award-winning school in each state. In her letter, Soeiro suggested Melania send books to "underfunded and underprivileged communities" struggling under Trump administration policies instead of her relatively wealthy community. Parents picking their children up outside the school told CBS News they supported the librarian. The school system, however, said Soeiro was "not authorized to accept or reject donated books" and has been reminded of policies against "public resources being used for political purposes." Hot Air notes that both Barack and Michelle Obama are big fans of Seuss and read his books to children at several White House events.