The days (and nights) of reading picture books to my kids are sadly mostly in my rear view mirror now. Both of my kids are on to different types of reading, but that hasn’t diminished my love for the medium.

I adore picture books, and I probably always will.

Full disclosure: I still get a ton of picture books, even though I don’t read many of them to my kids anymore. I just can’t resist. And every so often, a gem lands on my desk that I need to share with y’all.

Jennifer K. Mann’s The Camping Trip and Pete Oswald’s Hike (both out now from Candlewick Press) are two such gems.

Although I love books that get kids excited about travel, the outdoors, and camping – which these books certainly do – The Camping Trip and Hike do something else that’s even more important. They feature African Americans outdoors, enjoying nature, and camping.

As someone with fingers in many different pies, including a number of outdoor communities, I’ve heard variations of this line far too often for far too long: “Black people don’t travel/go hiking/go camping.”

It’s a lie that has grown roots and perpetuated a false belief that Black people somehow don’t care about natural spaces, conservation, or the future of our planet. And it’s developed into a sense that national parks, campgrounds, and hiking trails aren’t welcome places for Black families and other people of color.

It’s time for that perception to change… and for that lie to end.

Mann’s The Camping Trip follows a young girl who heads out of the big city with her aunt and cousin on her first camping trip in the woods. She thinks she knows what to expect, but the reality is initially uncomfortable and scary. Slowly, she comes to terms with the differences (I mean, swimming at the Y is very different than swimming in a lake) and – of course – has a blast with her cousin. And to be fair, s’mores make everything easier.

Oswald’s Hike is a wordless picture book about a father and child who head into the wilderness together. Though their trip is filled with adventure (and potential obstacles), they don’t forget to stop and appreciate the immense beauty around them. Not only that, they also take the time to plant a new tree, making the world a better place than it was before.

Each of these books shows kids that there’s adventure and beauty to be found in nature. They also show young Black kids that there’s a place for them in that nature. They’re welcome there. And that’s an incredibly important message.

I need to point out, though, that whereas both The Camping Trip and Hike feature Black characters – representation that is desperately needed in picture books – both Jennifer Mann and Pete Oswald are White.

These books are a start. They signal a direction in which the industry – and our expectations – need to move. But we can’t stop there.

We need to see more representation like this. We need to see more faces of color in places where they’ve historically been made to feel excluded. And we need more Black authors and illustrators to tell those stories.