Dartmouth Student's 'We Read Too App' Promotes Diversity in Reading

Dartmouth student Kaya Thomas has created an app which offers hundreds of options for books which feature characters with non-white ethnicities.

Thomas launched the app ‘We Read Too’ in 2014, and since its launch it has received over 15,000 downloads. While growing up she found it difficult to find books about people that looked like her and shared similar experiences as her.

“I created We Read Too so other young people of color could be exposed to literature where they see themselves reflected, written by authors like them. Also, so that everyone can see that these stories exist and should be read celebrated,” she says in an interview with Bustle.

Thomas is preparing to start her new job as an iOS developer for Slack while working on the app at the same time.

She is raising money through an IndieGoGo campaign in order to redesign the app, build an Android version and add more titles. She wants to enable users to view the directory by the book cover and also wants to incorporate Goodreads so that users can see the reviews of all the books. She says,

“I want We Read Too to be the central resource where authors of color can know their work is being celebrated and readers can find books with diverse representation.”

The student is already very accomplished. She has interned at Apple, Inuit and Time Inc. She also co-founded a STEM camp for girls while in high school. Last year she was named one of Glamour Magazine’s College Women of the Year. Let's wait and see what she does next!

Picture Credit: Dartmouth News

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