SO MANY YEARS: A Juneteenth Story

No, it's not the brutal midwest snow that has me sharing a JUNETEENTH picture book on February first. And it's not (only) due to this being the first day of BLACK HISTORY MONTH, a recognition of our full history as colonies and, eventually, as a nation, as steeped in Black history as it is in any-and-all verifiable facts. (If you are new to this blog, you can read my thoughts on theme months in a very early post, HERE. In fact, with current efforts to suppress aspects of our country's history that do not comport with a white-only perspective, I am now advocating for robust monthly themes that are sustained throughout the calendar and academic year.)

CLARION BOOKS, 2025

SO MANY YEARS: A Juneteenth Story features words by Anne Wynter and illustrations by Jerome Pumphrey. It was this week's ALA awards ceremony that prompted me to bump this one forward on my schedule. No, it did not snag one of those shiny medals, although its many starred and rave reviews had led me to hope it would.  

In fact, I was rooting for the Caldecott category, which celebrates picture books that superbly execute the role of those various and sundry pages of pictures, i.e....

... that illustrations are not "matching:" the words but should be doing heavy lifting in storytelling, mood and tone-setting, in clarifying background and essential information, and in illuminating words that are necessarily minimal so that they shine and shimmer in our hearts.

it remains to be seen if Juneteenth, having finally achieved status as a national holiday, will continue as such under the current government trends. It should. It does, in fact, recognize that post-Civil-War government emancipation news was suppressed for two years or more in Texas. 

The text of this glorious book is, as mentioned above, minimal, although back matter and supplementary text are provided. The brief lyrical phrases adopt a Q&A approach, putting readers into the mindset of those who would receive such news, eventually, and recognize a need for, and right, to celebrate. And yet, 

"How would you dress

after so many years

of mending your clothes with rags"

At midpoint, the questions are simply answered with "Oh, how you would dress..." and eat and sing and otherwise embrace the reality you always knew to be true-- that you were human, not property, that right was right, and that all this was finally recognized as truth.

It's text like this that astounds me and puzzles me as a writer. Each word is precisely, exactly, upliftingly the exact choice, phrasing, and pacing to suit such a profound account. It opens minds to actual and difficult history for those whose heritage lies on either side of the injustices revealed. It carries readers of any background into the depth of joy and relief that freedom provided. The puzzle I experience has to do with how many (or few) art notes were included in the text-only submission. Just to say, there are countless collaborations among the editor, illustrator, and art director, occasionally including the author, during the process of developing and producing a picture book. But in this case the end result feels as if a single entity accomplished everything. The vibrantly sunny endpapers confirm immediately that this is a  joyful tale, and the framing of the history prior to/after the Juneteenth announcement is developed brilliantly. 

Let it be said the illustrator Jerome Pumphrey is half of the acclaimed PUMPHREY brothers creative team whose work has received awards in the past and will continue to do so (I confidently assert). Some have been reviewed HERE, and HERE. In the first half, facing pages illustrate the questions posed by presenting dramatically black-toned reflections of painful enslavement history while the images on the right are saturated, light-infused scenes of family celebrations and satisfying feasts. The stylized historic scenes reveal reality, harsh truths, while allowing the freedom-story contrasts and ensuing scenes provide faces, gfigures, features, fashions, and fun that humans (once free) can experience and convey. 

I adore this book and hope that you will seek it out and consider the images and text. Carefully. With care. Fully. It is a worthy and entertaining and uplifting book that shares history in a creative, lyrical way. No doubt I'll link back to it in future posts for the coming Juneteenth Day.  Please, though, consider it several times through and discuss it with young people. bring nut the reality that a government can attempt to do good but meet resistance. Just as governments can operate outside the law,mor impose illegitimate laws ands rules, but be met with resistance. Share it and discuss it with kids growing up in our media-saturated world, kids who are bombarded with horrific images and words, kids who wonder if our country is falling apart. That means all kids. It matters that they hear about ways in which our country has fractured and attacked itself in the past, that healing is possible, that the timing is rarely what we would wish, and that individual people play a role. 

And seize this BLACK HISTORY MONTH to put ALL stories of history into the hands and hearts of ALL young people, including those of any background. Everyone can feel empathy, none need to feel personally guilty, but ALL can feel responsible for building a better present and future.

Please.

MORE Than Just a MONTH: Black History Matters

As I wrote during the early days of this blog, I have often felt ambivalent about BLACK HISTORY MONTH, since I've too often seen classrooms, even libraries, in which powerful picture books involving people and events and history of American Black culture are showcased during February, then virtually ignored for the rest of the year. in some cases even sorted back into "monthly tubs" for use when the following February rolls around. 

In a new reality in which governmental websites and agencies are having theme-month identities scrubbed from their programs and attention, my focus is to elevate and celebrate books that reveal the fullness of America (and then world), especially those stories and histories that have been denied, suppressed, and ignored.

Albert Whitman & Company

This is the last day of February, so I'm intentionally featuring a fantastic book that will lead right into MARCH MADNESS and then on throughout the year. It's about the history of professional basketball, and we all know that basketball as a LONG season, professionally and on courts for all ages throughout the year. (I'm a fan of basketball, but honestly was unaware of the important individuals and groups of Black men who made the sport what it is today.)

MORE THAN JUST A GAME: The Black Origins of Basketball, is written by Madison Moore and illustrated by Lonnie Ollivierre. This narrative starts with the awareness that more than 70% of NBA players are Black, but that was not always the case. The text is informative and well-paced, moving rapidly from the past to the present. The illustrations (starting with the cover!) splash across each double spread with the power and punch of actual games. After basketball was invented, it spread like wildfire, but in exclusively white spaces. (At that time, whether enforced openly in the South, or across the rest of the nation separation of white spaces from all others was universal). I was thrilled to learn that it was a Black gym teacher, Edwin Bancroft Henderson, introduced the sport to other teachers, who carried the news back to their students. The twist (I won't give it away) is the how and why that this introduction lacked space and opportunity to explode in the culture, and the unique way in which this hurdle, like so many other racial blockades, was overcome.

As the sport gained ground, the burgeoning NBA was whites-only, so a Black league developed, as with baseball history. That made total sense to me, but I was genuinely unaware of that side of sports history. What elevated the basic story was the seamless inclusion of remarkably talented individual player/leaders and recurring rivalries. In the vein of the boxer Joe Louis (The Brown Bomber) versus German Max Baer, the contests between all-white teams and teams from the Black league resulted in exposure to a wider audience, despite the multiple times when those contests revealed the superior play of the Black teams. 

The conclusion and back matter remind readers that knowing about this history is not enough. Many of the all-time record holders have not yet been admitted to the hall of fame or other basketball honors. These are outstanding players based on their own records, in comparison to any and all players. I urge everyone to read this and learn, then share it widely, providing it a space for public awareness that was once (and still is) limited.

UNSTOPPABLE JOHN! Tribute to a Man, to Libraries, to Books

My recent break here is the consequence of a stubborn head cold, which continues to slow me down. Even so, this remarkable book demands that I share it with you. So, inspired by UNSTOPPABLE JOHN, my post was not stopped, just delayed. 

New picture books are coming out all the time, so keeping up can be a challenge. That's one reason why I only write about select titles, choosing those that stand out (to me) and appeal in particular ways that I think readers here will appreciate. After focusing on nonfiction works for the CYBILS AWARDS (see our finalists selections HERE) , I was especially eager to consider fictional material. But UNSTOPPABLE JOHN: How John Lewis Got His Library Card-- and Helped Change History is a long-awaited title that deserves the spotlight!

VIKING, 2025

Newly released UNSTOPPABLE JOHN is written by Pat Zietlow Miller and illustrated by Jerry Jordan. Both are talented creators, and their talents blend perfectly on this project. For those meeting John Lewis for the first time, his love of reading, learning, books, and fairness will undoubtedly resonate with aspects of their own contemporary lives. The launching of this story finds Lewis as an impoverished young teen, longing for books, enough "to fill a room and spill into the hallway". He was well aware that libraries were such places, but also aware of the unjust rules that prevented anyone of color from having access to a library card. Even so, he requested one, was refused, and used that episode in his first official protest-- a letter to seek change.

To someone with my own history, someone near his age and aware of Lewis's activism and Civil Rights leadership at the time he was rising to roles within the movement, that simple act of protest did not surprise me. In fact, it reminded me of  earlier accounts, RICHARD WRIGHT and the LIBRARY CARD (MIller/Christie, 1997) and RON'S BIG MISSION (Blue/Naden/Tate, 2009), which depict a struggle for access to books by other young people of color. Wright became an honored American author, and Ron became a NASA astronaut. Lewis, though, chose a path directly related to making changes in the overt and subtle rules and laws in this country that imposed such limits on any members of our society. His path involved activism, politics, writing, and speaking, all of which are wonderfully described and illustrated throughout. It's a history and legacy that deserves attention, described in  a back matter timeline. 

Throughout, the narrative and images incorporate the powerful drive Lewis followed throughout his life: books. He read them, wrote them, used their contents to support the positions he advocated throughout his life, and even married a librarian! The essential value of reading, of access to books, of public libraries (now, too often, under attack) are at the heart of this new picture book and of John Lewis's life. The text is both accessible and comprehensive, incorporating Miller's talent for rhythm and appeal ("stopping by is not the same as stopping") and Jordan's images that depict Lewis in action as a boy/young man and then on into years of public service. The scenes and details in both text and images incorporate books, including standing in long lines to wait to register to vote and in lunchroom protests. Books anchor and center Lewis's strength and influence.

For most readers, this might be an introduction to John Lewis. His collaboration in writing a trilogy of graphic books, MARCH, Books One, Two, and Three, gained accolades and awards aplenty, and justly so. Anyone seeking further information about the details and consequences of his long life should read these. I fully anticipate that this recent picture book about his life will gain such attention and praise. It deserves both, and to be read by everyone, every age.

Another side note:

As we approach February, Black History Month, this is a superb addition to home, school, and library collections. That certainly affected the timing of its release. Even so, please be sure to make this book available to young readers throughout the year, year after year.  I wrote about HERE.

SIBLINGS: ME AND THE BOSS!

 

Anne Schwartz Books, 2022

The subtitle for this very special picture book is: A STORY ABOUT MENDING AND LOVE. I have three other siblings and, at this stage of life, my sense of those relationships is one of gratitude, not worry or concern. Even so, thoughts of childhood flood with memories that we got along and loved each other, but there were plenty of days which might have deserved some mending. But there I go, reading that subtitle with my adult mind, assuming the meaning related to resolving a disagreement or some relationship trouble. Kids though, are literal critters, and they will understand immediately the very big and deep story behind the looks on the faces of these characters, on the cover and on the interior spreads.

ME AND THE BOSS: A Story About Mending and Love is written by Michelle Edwards and illustrated by April Harrison. The first seemingly simple lines target the heart of this story with the following words:

"I know big sisters. Zora, the Boss, is mine. 

I go wherever she goes and we are always home before dark. 

Those are the rules."

This is a likely-familiar scenario within many families, while each reader's take on it will be deeply refracted by their own relationships within a family cluster. Even the singleton child who always longed for siblings might ache for such an imagined older or younger "appendage", someone who might halve the worries and cautions of daily life.

Now read only that second sentence: "Zora, the Boss, is mine." 

Without the surrounding words, six-year-old Lee's first person voice states the foundation of his world, even within their loving, stable circle of caring and present parents. From waking to dusk, Lee belongs to Zora and is safe with her. His careful observations and gentle smile are not erased by her stern demeanor. She takes him into the world, insists he be allowed to participate, even with a needle and thread that could prick his fingers. She fibs about his age to assure he can take part. And he knows she does.

He does not shed tears. He does not give up. He watches, learns, and admires the Boss. He trusts her to be "mine". She will get them home before dark, heads down, and he will feel safer slipping his hand into hers, which she grips tightly.

This launches us into Lee's world and softens our view of his stern-faced sister. He is not a quitter. Lee is as stingy with words as his sister is. If Zora believes in him he can believe in himself. His overnight wakefulness provides time to practice, to calm his too-quick fingers on the needle, and accomplish his plans. He expands his sense of independence, achieves a goal for himself, then extends his newfound skill to offer a silent surprise to his sister. 

Much effort is currently being made in the publishing world to elevate and promulgate author and illustrator voices that share stories and images from previously underrepresented cultures and identities. Within that, the shift is on to share "Black Joy", as I've written about HERE, HERE, and HERE. It will take many such titles to provide celebrations of contemporary relationships, interests, and experiences that begin to balance the prior focus on stories of suffering and slavery and pain. Those historic stories are essential, but mirrors of daily life and lively engagements, like this one, need to be readily available and welcomed into the canon of children's literature. In this case the sibling roles within family, neighborhood, and community are not only contemporary but reminiscent of generations of families of every color. This, then, is a welcome version of the century of stories sharing such experiences in which the people on the page are white. conventional (exclusionary) policies claimed that "others" who read/view it will "see" themselves in it. Here, the same can be said for those who are not Black. These characters, this story, could belong to anyone. As illustrated by the powerful images of April Harrison, the family members are not mere darker-skinned generic people. They embody and project an undeniably rooted Black family and relationships, people I want to know. The dignity, strength, and synergy within this family are undeniable and enviable. They don't need for me to know them,  but they deserve to be known.

Examine those faces closely. Pay attention to every word, within the full story flow and also as single statements. Project their lives forward. Zora is not "forever" Boss, only to remain so as they age. Her demands of Lee and her defense of him are building within him a brother who will, one day in the future, separate himself from her Boss role and become the brother she loves and needs as there are now, side by side, equal sibling adults.

Evictions? Voting Rights? Echoes of American History

Since today is the "last day" of BLACK HISTORY MONTH, I should hurry to get this review posted, right?  

WRONG! 

The spotlight that this themed month offers on critical aspects of American history involving Black Americans is more than welcome, but my concern has always been that the topics, historic figures, and focus of attention are narrowed to this particular (shortest) month of the year. While teaching, I was aware of many teachers who had a set of lessons and/or collection of books that were routinely used during February, then packed away until the next year's students flipped that calendar page. 

Better than nothing? Yes. 

Sharing some otherwise neglected or intentionally hidden history? Yes.

Inadvertently teaching students that the rest of the year will be (conveniently?) directed toward a familiar and falsely narrow version of America and its past?  Yes.

This is why I've actively addressed this concern of mine since I created this blog more than a decade ago. Theme months of any kind, but ESPECIALLY Black History Month, results in a double-edged sword.

Even so, I am intentionally sharing this remarkable new picture book I received from CALKINS CREEK/Astra Books (with no promise of a review) because it serves as such an important asset in the lives of young readers. In this case, the publishers have indicated that the target audience is middle grade and teen readers. And YES, picture books are for all ages!

Calkins Creek/Astra books, 2022

EVICTED: The Struggle for the Right to Vote is written by Alice Faye Duncan and illustrated by Charly Palmer, each an award-winning creator of outstanding books in their own right. In this case the title alone seems to be ripped from the pages of current news headlines, but in fact depicts a time and place in our shared history that few have learned about, even during this dedicated theme month.

The cover illustration also indicates the personal, specific individuals who are the little-known heroes of this nonfiction and deeply researched account. Using intense, impressionistic brush strokes and colors, Palmer's cover are and interior illustrations manage to convey both the strength and suffering of one of the "tent city" families who suffered indignities and denial of their rights to vote while maintaining family and community unity. 

In the 1950s, Fayette County, Tennessee was the third largest land area in that state and the third poorest county in the entire country. That is directly tied to the fact that more than two-thirds of the population of that county were Black sharecroppers, managing to maintain homes and families despite the inequities and imbalance of a sharecropper's life. They dealt with the expenses, round-the-clock demands, and endless risks of a farmer's life, with the added burden of landowners' meager compensation, control of funding, and outright cheating. 

Although it was legal for all adults to vote, only thirty Black citizens were registered in that county at that time. Outrght threats, fires, and lynchings ensured that white rule prevailed. In 1959, though, when a local sharecropper's trial enflamed the spirit and dignity of the wider Black population, a movement that came to be called the FAYETTE COUNTY TENT CITY MOVEMENT to acquire and use voting rights eventually contributed to the passage of the federal VOTING RIGHTS ACT. 

I don't usually begin my comments with such explanatory content, but I'm convinced that MANY other readers here have never heard of this part of American history. I had not. When the author was gifted a photographic book about this movement that featured specific individuals and families who helped to achieve eventual success, she resolved to create a portrait of them and their story in an appropriate book for younger readers. This is the result of her decision and actual visits, interviews, and research about that neglected chapter of our shared history. 

The account is preceded by several annotated/illustrated spreads providing Palmer's portraits of key figures of that time and change. Then a one-page direct address to readers from the author summarizes what the Movement was about and what it accomplished, at what sacrifices to the participants. The last line on that introduction is this:

"Record their conquering civil rights struggle for generations to come. Remember it. Pass it on."

The movement was inspired by a trial of a local preacher, who had escaped to the north to avoid being lynched, only to be returned for trial years later, in 1959. He was convicted and served his time. But the jury was all white, because jurors were drawn from the ranks of registered voters, and Black people were prevented from registering. As mentioned earlier, it was at risk of life and family's lives to even attempt registration. This realization launched leaders who set out to register black voters.

With page turns that reveal the unfolding story through individual specific voices of victims, organizers, participants, and others who eventually supported the movement, this account comes to life with drama and intensity. Readers are drawn into the lives and emotions of the adults and children who held fast to their intention to exercise their rights as American citizens, regardless of the cost. Some who are profiled took part in school integration with all the risks that triggered.

"Outsiders" came to support the movement as it stretched from months to years. Even so, the wheels of political change turn slowly and the changes they rightly demanded were slow in coming. Even so, or perhaps as a result of their prolonged strength and resilience, laws did change and lives improved. 

Except for this... 

Many Americans are convinced that the Civil Rights laws of the sixties meant things are changed and everything is better now. Nice and neat, all wrapped up in a pretty bow. In a way, as convenient and comfortable a thought as the packing away of Black History Month books and lesson plans on February 28 each year. But more than half the states in our country are actively passing laws to restrict access to voting, and eviction remains a punitive practice that is driven by economic benefits to the landowners. Not as much has changed as needs to. Added to that legislative effort are countless bills/laws that are intentionally meant to "BAN" books like this from classrooms because they might bring up some "feelings" among some students. 

The much-distorted and politicized CRITICAL RACE THEORY complaints would keep discussions of Black history out of schools. Well, CRT is a post-graduate course of study in law schools, not in elementary, middle grade, or high schools. But a consequence of this exaggerated and distorted effort might keep young Americans from learning about their country's history and the importance of FREEDOM to exercise rights for EVERYONE.

That author message is not only intended to keep a piece of history alive, though that should be done. Reading this should also enliven young people to learn, to act, to recognize and support today's individual leaders and local heroes, like the ones finally documented in this account. I am so grateful to have had a chance to read this historic account, and to share it with other readers here. I follow many reviewers, seek out information about new releases, and hear about picture books from many sources. Even so, this title had not reached my attention. That, as with the loss to history of the original story, is an enormous problem. I urge everyone to find and read and promote this book. I intend to do that. And while you are at it, join my little effort to assure that sharing BLACK HISTORY is a year-round effort. Every year.

TIMELINES FROM BLACK HISTORY: LEADERS, LEGENDS, LEGACIES

 This will be a brief post, for several reasons.

I'm overcommitted for the next few days, and plan to post a different review toward the end of the week. However, in the stack of library hold books I hauled home yesterday was one that I've been waiting for, and will wait no longer to share here.

DK Timelines, 2021

TIMELINES FROM BLACK HISTORY, Leaders, Legends, and Legacies is a DK book with a forward by Mireille Harper. The front pages indicate that two-thirds of the content are drawn from past timeline books, each of which I've examined. I value DK's role in libraries and lives. Their tagline is "FOR THE CURIOUS".  Over many years, teaching many ages, I've recognized that these oversized, richly illustrated, well written, and accurately detailed books are like magnets for readers. They do NOT need me to sing their praises, although I will do so here. Their popularity accounts for why it took so long to come through on my hold request.

It also explains why, in my overbooked week, I sat with this book for more than an hour, traveling  across centuries and global locations and faces/stories that ranged from familiar to utterly unknown.

When i closed the covers of this book I knew that I'd have to provide space and time to share it here, to lend my faint and unimportant voice to help usher this into the world of homes, classrooms, libraries, readers (OF ALL racial identities!), and other reviewers. 

Whether kids you know are back in physical buildings yet or not, make this the first and most important new addition to bookshelves. Buy it as gift for a teacher or school librarian you know, or a child/family at home. It will draw eyes immediately and repeatedly, and expand the awareness of everyone who picks it up that "BLACK HISTORY" is not a separate month, or parallel stream of history. 

And everyone WILL pick it up. 

Black lives and their accomplishments across millennia are the history and heritage of ALL of us, and must be understood and celebrated  as such. This is a luxurious, robust, informative, colorful, and irresistible platform to begin the process of amplifying and expanding unheard voices of the past and present. 

Do your part to share, will you, please?

Today's the DAY! Cybils Awards Announced for ALL CATEGORIES! Congratulations!

 

The countdown for CYBILS AWARDS 2020 is finally over:

August:  Application and selection of panelist

September: Nominations in all categories

October-November: Round one panelists are reading, thinking, reviewing, winnowing.

December: Panelists huddle in each category, resolve debates, select finalists.

January 1: CYBILS announces the finalists in all fifteen categories, handing over the lists to the Round Two Panelists who must determine the ultimate winner among winning works.

February 14: WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

That's today, as I write this!   Find the link to full listing HERE!

In the fiction picture book category I served as a first round panelist, and these were our finalists:

Each of these, and so many others that we read, are winners in their own standing. But today, I'm thrilled to share the news that the ultimate 2020 CYBILS FICTION BOOK WINNER is:

I AM EVERY GOOD THING!

I raved about it in a prior post, here.

From Cybils blog:

I Am Every Good Thing (Amazon, IndieBound)
by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Gordon C. James
Nancy Paulsen Books
Nominated by: kelstarly

"This book’s stunning illustrations and exuberant, poetic text create driving rhythms and cadences that will capture the broad attention of a group in a read-aloud as well the more intimate attention of parent and child. It’s an empowering story of being proud of who you are during the easy times and the hard times. It rose immediately to the top of our list for a Cybils Award."

Congratulations to this winner, and to all the others.  Thank you to the Cybils Awards volunteers who organize and carry out this program year after year!

A Feast of Text and Illustration Celebrates Young Black Lives

  My recent post featured the important, little-known story of TEACHER HEROES in the Civil Rights movement in Selma Alabama. I hope you read the review and will check out this book. Then  share the JANE ADDAMS PEACE AWARD finalist with kids and adults, far and wide. Historic figures like Reverend F. D. Reeves and groups who summoned the courage to show up and stand up need to be widely recognized and appreciated. 

I concluded that post, though, with a short note and several links to titles that celebrate the equal importance of sharing books, stories, lives, and resources about contemporary figures, joyous childhood experiences, and the wholeness of BLACK LIVES.

I begin with this initial connection between schools and the teachers in them to raise the painfully true issue of the many ways in which schools do not treat all children equally. In fact, current public schools are staffed predominantly by teachers who are White and female. Too often, school routines and conventions actively erase, invalidate, or (to our shame) punish Black children more often and more severely than others. 

This is true for both boys and girls, but most harmfully so for Back boys.

Nancy Paulsen Books, 2020

The amazing (and multi-award-winning) team of author DERRICK BARNES and illustrator/fine artist GORDON C.JAMES again worked their magic to produce an astonishingly gorgeous picture book,      I AM EVERY GOOD THING.  

Their previous masterpiece, CROWN: AN ODE TO THE FRESH CUT (2018) was breathtaking in poetic voice, joyful and expressive paintings, and exclamatory content. I offered a brief review with other titles in celebration of the identities of Black boys in this post. I was far from a lone voice in singing its praises. During its award season this first collaboration earned enough awards to replace all the the stars on the cover with awards stickers, and it continues to win state and kid-choice and other recognitions in the years since.  

It is not surprising that publishers would encourage further creative collaborations. Surely, though, this new picture book exceeds any expectations about what would come next. It definitely exceeded my lofty hopes. 

If you were to hear even a short sample of text from this recent book on a radio program, no images available, you would certainly be grinning ear to ear and stand taller in your bones, whatever your racial or ethnic identity. 

For example:

"I am 

a nonstop ball of energy.

Powerful and full of light.

I am a go-getter, A difference maker.

A leader." 

You can listen to a recent NPR (10/24/2020) interview with the creators HERE.

Every child (and adult) would benefit from reciting such "I-statements" to begin the day, confront challenges, introduce ourselves to others, and view ourselves taking as having a rightful place in the world. 

On the face of it, an illustrator would be hard-pressed to add anything to such an empowering verse. But the art James created for these lines (and all the others) manages to magnify and internalize Barnes's potent text even further by revealing faces, scenes, perspectives, angles, and potentials of Black boys with a variety of features, skin tones, hair choices, postures, and attitudes. Each is an individual, and each interprets this brilliant text from inside out.

Interior Spread: I AM EVERY GOOD THING
Nancy Paulsen Books, 2020

In doing so, a brilliant anthem for Black males becomes an anthology of countless visual biographies. Specific and worthy and lovable lives are written in the eyes, encounters, and possibilities portrayed. Images like these provide a perfect integration of contemporary lives with the many centuries (millennia) of inheritance that produced these individuals and their stories. Whether that history is celebratory, courageous, or even tragic, it is far too often the SINGLE story of Black lives. If classroom inventories of books exploring Black lives were honestly evaluated, the bulk of titles would focus, in story and image, on the injustices, losses, endangerment, and eventual survival of people with dark skin. Most would be hauled out and shared during February, then packed away for another year. Few, if any, would reflect these exuberant, smiling, confident faces. 

Interior Spread, YOU ARE EVERY GOOD THING
Jane Paulsen Books, 2020

More celebratory and adventuresome and comical books featuring contemporary Black kids have been published in recent years. Many more are in the pipeline, but not nearly enough. This is, in part, why I AM EVERY GOOD THING is a must-have title, an anchor choice for classrooms of every age and color and identity. It provides a lens through which to view existing collections and a guide for additions to family and classroom and library collections. Each of those singular and important legacy titles must be kept in context, recognizing the heroism of Black youth (and adults) who summon the inner joy to face each day with an embrace of themselves, as voiced on the closing page:

"I am worthy

to be loved."

As someone who resists answering the inevitable "What is your favorite...?" questions, I will warmly and eagerly include this among the titles on my "One of my favorite..." lists. I hope you will, too.

MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: Allies Matter

little bee books, 2020

Countless lessons can be learned from stories shared during BLACK HISTORY MONTH.  MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: The Inspiring Friendship of Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe, with words by Vivian Kirkfield and art by Alleanna Harris, reveals a story I had never about an important connection between two iconic women who are widely (and rightly) admired. 
Count me among those admirers. 
After exploring the book, including the informative author notes at the back, I admire both women even more. 
I'm equally impressed by the storyteller. Within the limited word counts and pages of a picture book, Kirkfield has provided a parallel-then-intersecting story that reads with all the drama and excitement of a fictional plot. Its power is magnified by some lesser-known details about these two talented and courageous lives. 
Within the limited format of a picture book, Kirkfield has presented each of their early struggles and the circumstances that led to their "discovery" and eventual fame. Each experienced injustice and prejudice, for different reasons. In each case, those unfair treatments limited opportunities and outlets for their talents. 
The fact that they were fans of each other, from a distance, was an appealing detail that led to their eventual friendship. Marilyn's effort to learn from Ella's singing opened doors for her professional movie career. 
Ending the story there would have been interesting, but that would have ignored the more important story of two iconic allies.
I was impressed that Monroe took intentional steps to convey her gratitude, to use her position of privilege to support Ella's crossing of color barriers and career advancement. Harris's approach to illustration offers nuances of intense color tones, soft edges, theatrical lighting, and glossy pages that suit the story perfectly. Kirkfield has used the back pages to enhance the main text with rich and deeply researched details as well as providing resources that work for young readers and adults to learn more. 
There are plenty of reasons to share this during theme months of February (Black History) and March (Women's History). This nonfiction book traces a path from fandom, to ally-ship, to lifetime friendship. Its value serves readers well throughout the year to inspire us all to follow a similar path. 
Not likely to fame and stardom.
This revelation of the mutual support between Ella Fitzgerald and Marilyn Monroe offers a guide for present day, everyday decisions. It can inspire us by increasing awareness of ways to serve as allies. 
Certainly, its natural to do so in the lives of those we know and care about. Our challenge should be to do so across the margins of our usual contacts, to those who cross our path but to whom we owe nothing. Who knows what might develop?
At the very least we can extended a hand of support to someone else. 

This is not a new video, but it is one worth sharing. 
(Scroll down to the active clip. It only takes a few minutes, and is worth it.)

Burger King NO-BULLY campaign, 2017

For more details and praise from others, check reviews from KIRKUS (here), and Darlene Beck-Jacobson's blog (here). 

Every Word, Every Voice, Every Ride Advances Freedom

In the earliest weeks after launching this blog, nearly a decade ago, I wrote a post titled: WHAT'S SO SPECIAL ABOUT FEBRUARY?  In it, I shared my concern that THEME MONTHS, such as BLACK HISTORY MONTH, serve many valuable purposes but also carry risks. My concerns are many, but topping the list are two worries: 

That history, stories, and books shared during a specified month will be predominantly about a single topic, like slavery, 

and

collections of important and amazing books (and other resources) will be hauled out and packed away following the turn of a calendar page. 

A third worry is that the stories shared will focus exclusively on well-known facts and figures. Stories of magnificent talent and achievements abound, and the point of historic or honor month is to EXPAND our knowledge of the contributions of various individuals and groups. Since many of these are not at our fingertips, or already part of well-worn collections, there are countless worthy stories to share that are NOT household names, but should be. One example of a book profiling such a leader is MIDNIGHT TEACHER: Lilly Ann Granderson and her Secret School, by Janet Halfmann.

My firm belief about the importance of these stories is why I make it a point to spotlight outstanding stories throughout the year, books about and by people of every color and culture. Please, do NOT view these two titles as suggested books for "next month". These are outstanding nonfiction books for every day of every year, as their contents reveal. 

Schwartz & Wade Books, 2019

The first of two books in this post actually does portray a former-enslaved woman, but it focuses on the story of her freedom- through the power of reading. THE OLDEST STUDENT: How Mary Walker Learned to Read is written by Rita Lorraine Hubbard and illustrated by Caldecott honor winner Oge Mora.

It is always inspiring to read authentic stories about overcoming illiteracy, about fulfilling a lifelong desire to read. This true story of Mary Walker,  enslaved from her birth in 1848, leaves many gaps in her long life. But the Bible she was gifted has served as documentation of her major life landmarks (marriage, birth of children) even though she was unable to read or write for herself. She understood the value of written records and intentionally added her personal mark to each of those entries in her Bible. To her, though, it was all scribbles.
Mary and her family lived in the South, where she worked a hardscrabble life of injustice and struggle, but she carried her Bible to church on Sundays. There she joined in the singing, even though she couldn't read a word in her Bible or in the hymnals.
By the time she was 114 years old she had outlived every other family member, but had still not learned to read or write. She was saddened that a lifetime of meaningless scribbles and wiggles in print remained a puzzle to her. Mary may have felt untaught, but she was not unable to learn. She joined a reading class in her senior living center and began a dedicated effort to become a reader and writer. 
Mary lived to 121 years old, winning attention from presidents and the general public. She missed her family members, but took comfort in being able to read the words of her Bible. 
From her earliest enslaved years in the fields to an amazing flight in an airplane, she reveled in the ability to fly free, which her reading finally provided. 
This is among the most inspiring stories I've encountered in recent years, and that would be true if only from the facts about Walker's remarkable life. The restrained but compelling narrative style of the text combines well with the gorgeous illustrations (acrylic paint, china marker, collage with patterned paper and print clippings). Mary Walker's well-documented story comes to life with the flair of the cakes she baked until her last year-- light as a feather- and delicious!

Harry N. Abrams, 2020

Mary Walker's longevity and eventual literacy garnered extensive attention in the previous century. Another event from that era gained global attention at the time and continues to shape discussions and decisions about Civil Rights to this day. A recent post makes my point that major events such as the Washington March for Jobs and Freedom on August 23, 1963 are the subject of amazing books, including recent ones. 
On the very day of that march, in a Baltimore neighborhood, another momentous event occurred, peacefully and significantly, and yet that story is NOT widely know, until now. It is long overdue, and welcome.
A RIDE TO REMEMBER: A CIVIL RIGHTS STORY is co-authored  by Sharon Langley and Amy Nathan, with emotionally powerful and evocative illustrations by award-winning Floyd Cooper. 
As the text clearly describes, some gains for equality of opportunity had arrived in Baltimore by that summer of 1963. Equal access to the local amusement park was not among them. The history-making little tot featured in the story is co-author Sharon Langley. Her parents raised her to understand the significance of an event she admittedly cannot remember from that day. After all, she was the first African American to ride the carousel with permission at only eleven months old. 
The text is well-structured to reveal the irregular and inconsistent application of social customs and laws, arbitrarily barring "some people" from access to particular events and locations. The narration offers a light but effective treatment of the symbolism of horses of every color and type, all traveling round and round together, carrying children of various ages and skin colors, all starting and ending in unison. 
A lovely post-event stage of the story reveals that the actual carousel from those events was eventually relocated to the Washington Mall, operated by the Smithsonian Institute. The fiftieth anniversary of Sharon Langley's ride was celebrated on the Mall when she and her extended family were invited to view the refurbished horse she actually rode as a child, with an historic plate added to the saddle and her name inscribed on one of the horseshoes. 
I was even more pleased that the narration and images revealed details about the protests preceding her ride, protests involving religious leaders of many faiths, skin colors, and ages. Those peaceful protests resulted in arrests, and images of those arrested included a family with three young white boys in a police car. Images like those, and the attention provided by the media, helped turn public opinion from resistance to acceptance much more quickly than might otherwise have been the case. That does not mean privileged people are more heroic than people of color, but that the combined support and unified actions of so many, together,  made clear the need to eliminate barriers and share the community and its resources peacefully. 
Perhaps I'd finally stop whining about the mixed benefits of theme months if I was sure that books like these would continue to be published, purchased, circulated, and shared throughout the year, each year, and every year. 
Every voice DOES matter, and that is especially true when it comes to sharing the good news about books like these.

THEME MONTHS: Break Those Boundaries!

Two reviews today are intentionally paired and featured to underscore the truth that THEME MONTHS are not designed as calendar limits on reading and sharing, but to serve as spotlights on outstanding books that might otherwise be overlooked. The best of these books should be showcased throughout the year and across various themes and purposes.
From the beginning of this blog (here, too) and stretching back through my long teaching career, I've struggled with the concept of theme months. As WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH ends and  BLACK HISTORY MONTH fades nearly out of sight in the rear view mirror, POETRY MONTH bounces through April's open window and into our hearts. In fact, there are plenty of books that intersect among two or three (or more) of these themes. Let these two titles remind you to share the best of ALL books ALL year long, and imprint that message on the minds of young readers.

I've long been a fan of reading and sharing AT LEAST ONE poem and AT LEAST ONE picture book per day. There are plenty of poetry anthologies that are NOT self-limiting to this one month of April, collections that feature poems about every day of the twelve months of the year. Many span all four seasons and countless topics. 
If that surprises you, I urge you to pause and  click this link to check out Lee Bennet Hopkins, the talented and esteemed author, editor, and anthologizer of poetry. If you try the link and never get back to this post, I'll understand. Hopkins's website makes my point for me: APRIL doesn't even scratch the surface of amazing poems meant to be enjoyed and shared all year round. 

Nosy Crow, 2018

A fine example, and a recent one, is this coffee-table-worthy book that deserves daily living space with a family or classroom like yours. SING A SONG OF SEASONS: A NATURE POEM FOR EACH DAY OF THE YEAR offers poems collected by Fionna Waters and pages delightfully illustrated by Frann Preston-Gannon. The unifying theme of nature provides the focus for these selected  poems, a balanced blend of  all-time classics (including ones by the prolific Anonymous) and contemporary creators. The poems are organized chronologically and arranged following monthly, date-labeled tables of contents. The back matter is an invaluable resource (author index, title index, and first line index). The language is enhanced brilliantly by the remarkable illustrations throughout. 
And how about this... my copy includes a page-marker ribbon, something that makes my heart smile.

With this book, I proudly unfurl my flag and march in the "POEM-A-DAY" parade, challenging one and all who would dare to stop sharing poems when April ends. 
Pssst...Learn more about some exciting poetry-related activities HERE, but promise to use them all year long. Please.

Carolrhoda Books, 2019

Just to keep my rabble-rousing, theme-bucking mood going, here's an important and thrilling  non-fiction title I've been saving (and renewing) since the first week of February. It popped up in more than one blog post during Black History Month, earning multiple starred reviews. As much as I loved it, I waited to share it until that theme had blown away on a gusty March wind. LET 'ER BUCK: GEORGE FLETCHER, THE PEOPLE'S CHAMPION is written by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson and illustrated by Gordon C. James. If ever there were a hidden history story that needed to be told, this is it. This dramatic account reveals the amazing life (and skills) of African-American George Fletcher, who grew up in the Pacific Northwest in the first decades of the twentieth century. He learned early to weather the  taunts (and worse) from white neighbors, finding friends on the Umatilla Indian Reservation where he learned the ways of the horses, rough-riding and bouncing back regardless of how tough the landing.
This depiction of his early years and the 1911 Pendleton Round-Up stars George, but also nods to the talents and roles of Jackson Sundown (Nez Perce tribe), John Spain (the judges' favorite contestant- who just happened to be white) and Sheriff Tillman Taylor (with a strong sense of justice). 
This book deserves attention for the vivid depiction of a dramatic time and place, for the page-turning tension of the culminating events, and for the densely saturated colors and action-packed scenes that leap from the pages like a 3-D movie. 
Only better. 
Each page feels like it could be framed as fine art, yet it urges readers onward to follow George's compelling life. James is as adept and artful with hoof-flinging, muscular horses, tails flying and nostrils flaring, as he is when rendering a full-page foreground image of young George's beaming smile while riding all-out down the dusty main road in town. You will want to fly through these pages, and you should do so. Then, reread and linger in the notes at the back, revealing even more details about the various players and the research that provides the foundation for the book. 
Finally, return again to savor the art.

But you're not through yet. This is one of those powerful picture books that can be pulled out time and again for many reasons, including poetry month. It is not written in rhyme or verse, but "boy howdy" the language captures the time, place, and personalities with humor and brilliance. The author adopts a voice that drips with colloquialisms that fit the story like a glove but could also serve as mentor text for poetry, figurative language, or any genre. At times it reads as intentionally gaudy and humorous, then drops into subtle expressions that beg to be read aloud: 

• Life at home was no bushel of peaches.
• George took to their ways like a wet kitten to a warm brick.
• Life in the saddle and riding rough were all George hankered for.
• He rode the buck out of the bruiser but... their dance spilled onto the sidewalk.

Capturing and balancing just the right tone in word choice, direct narrative, and authentic language is enhanced by the art designer's shifts in font, sizing, page layout, and text colors. This is a book you shouldn't miss. I'm risking a prediction here that the ear-tickling text and eye-candy illustrations will have this title rounding up lots of attention (and medals and honors) come award season. Once you read it, I'm betting you'll be recommending it, too. In February, in April, and all year long.