Patient children will see another way to make a difference.
Cline-Ransome and Parra introduce journalist Ethel L. Payne, called “The First Lady of the Black Press,” to young readers.
Born in 1911 to a Pullman porter and a Latin teacher, as a girl, Ethel loved the stories her elders told, reading at the library on weekends, and English class with a teacher who encouraged her writing. During World War II, she became a community organizer in her hometown of Chicago, then began writing letters to newspapers about national politics and black issues. She got a job in Japan after the war, where she learned from black American soldiers about discrimination in the military, and a friend had her diary entries from the trip published. One of her articles made headlines, and she began working at the Chicago Defender. The newspaper sent her to Washington, where she became one of only three black journalists with a White House press pass and covered six presidents, asking them tough questions about race. The lengthy text, a paragraph or two on most pages, gives a thorough treatment of Payne and her effects on national politics and culture. While the copious details are relevant, their telling feels somewhat tedious, as the various events lack a strong narrative thread to hold them together. Parra’s painted, folk-style illustrations use texture and a mix of earthy colors to create distinct scenes that are stronger individually than collectively.
Patient children will see another way to make a difference. (author’s note, bibliography, credits, further reading) (Picture book/biography. 7-10)Pub Date: Jan. 14, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-48-146289-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
A pivotal moment in a child’s life, at once stirring and authentically personal.
Before growing up to become a major figure in the civil rights movement, a boy finds a role model.
Buffing up a childhood tale told by her renowned father, Young Shelton describes how young Andrew saw scary men marching in his New Orleans neighborhood (“It sounded like they were yelling ‘Hi, Hitler!’ ”). In response to his questions, his father took him to see a newsreel of Jesse Owens (“a runner who looked like me”) triumphing in the 1936 Olympics. “Racism is a sickness,” his father tells him. “We’ve got to help folks like that.” How? “Well, you can start by just being the best person you can be,” his father replies. “It’s what you do that counts.” In James’ hazy chalk pastels, Andrew joins racially diverse playmates (including a White child with an Irish accent proudly displaying the nickel he got from his aunt as a bribe to stop playing with “those Colored boys”) in tag and other games, playing catch with his dad, sitting in the midst of a cheering crowd in the local theater’s segregated balcony, and finally visualizing himself pelting down a track alongside his new hero—“head up, back straight, eyes focused,” as a thematically repeated line has it, on the finish line. An afterword by Young Shelton explains that she retold this story, told to her many times growing up, drawing from conversations with Young and from her own research; family photos are also included. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A pivotal moment in a child’s life, at once stirring and authentically personal. (illustrator’s note) (Autobiographical picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-545-55465-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
Despite some bright spots, the lapses in information limit this book’s effectiveness.
Celebrations the world over involve parades, foods, traditional clothing, masks, songs, and games.
Information on 14 festivals, country maps, small photos, sidebars with holiday traditions (in the appropriate language, with pronunciations), and instructions for a craft or a recipe make up the jam-packed left-hand page of each spread. Colorful, detailed cartoon illustrations appear opposite. There are certainly interesting facts and activities, but careless errors (including a typo to be corrected in the second printing) and a decided slant toward Western Europe (five countries) diminish the volume’s value. Opening with a monthly timeline, it offers a basic explanation of the lunar calendar, but this is not integrated into the overall schematic. This spread also includes a note about adult help for crafting and cooking. Many of the holidays are commonly celebrated in many places, and the author’s failure to point out that Eid al-Fitr, for instance, is celebrated around the globe and not just in Egypt is a sad, missed opportunity. A few festivals are not often presented in books of this ilk, such as Bhutan’s Dangpai Losar (New Year) and Laternenfest, held on St. Martin’s Day in Germany. The last spread brings children from the different countries together and asks readers to create their own celebrations. Sadly, given the glancing notice necessitated by the format, there are no further resources included.
Despite some bright spots, the lapses in information limit this book’s effectiveness. (glossary, index) (Nonfiction. 7-10)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4549-3213-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2019
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