Painful history portrayed honestly and beautifully to help children understand the very personal impact of racism.
A friendship blossoms despite the segregation that would keep two young boys apart.
Trains often interrupt Michael and Granddaddy’s farm work, and Michael dreams of riding on one of them. He gets his wish when Grandma decides to take him from Alabama to Ohio to visit cousins. They board the “colored only” car, and Michael marvels at the landscape and towns whizzing by. He sees a boy his age in the White section of the train as he explores, but he knows not to enter. When the train leaves Atlanta, however, the signs labeling the cars come down, and Michael befriends Bobby Ray. Together they explore both the White and Black sections of the train and the amazing dining car and sleeping berths. They discover a mutual love of drawing, playing with little green army men, and trains. But when the train reaches Chattanooga and the segregation signs return, their play comes to an abrupt halt. In these lushly illustrated watercolor and collage images, Ransome effectively captures the boys’ kinship amid the senseless, racist Jim Crow laws that separate them. The bucolic landscape outside the train’s windows sharply conflicts with the train conductor’s removal of Michael from the White car. Backmatter addresses the laws that created this unjust travel condition, beginning in 1887 with the Interstate Commerce Act.
Painful history portrayed honestly and beautifully to help children understand the very personal impact of racism. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9650-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Charming and thought-provoking proof that we all contain multitudes.
Oscar winner McConaughey offers intriguing life observations.
The series of pithy, wry comments, each starting with the phrase “Just because,” makes clear that each of us is a mass of contradictions: “Just because we’re friends, / doesn’t mean you can’t burn me. / Just because I’m stubborn, / doesn’t mean that you can’t turn me.” Witty, digitally rendered vignettes portray youngsters diverse in terms of race and ability (occasionally with pets looking on) dealing with everything from friendship drama to a nerve-wracking footrace. “Just because I’m dirty, / doesn’t mean I can’t get clean” is paired with an image of a youngster taking a bath while another character (possibly an older sibling) sits nearby, smiling. “Just because you’re nice, / doesn’t mean you can’t get mean” depicts the older one berating the younger one for tracking mud into the house. The artwork effectively brings to life the succinct, rhyming text and will help readers make sense of it. Perhaps, after studying the illustrations and gaining further insight into the comments, kids will reread and reflect upon them further. The final page unites the characters from earlier pages with a reassuring message for readers: “Just because the sun has set, / doesn’t mean it will not rise. / Because every day is a gift, / each one a new surprise. BELIEVE IT.” As a follow-up, readers should be encouraged to make their own suggestions to complete the titular phrase. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Charming and thought-provoking proof that we all contain multitudes. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2023
ISBN: 9780593622032
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted...
Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.
A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what’s going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a “pig-e-phant” doesn’t come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to “fix [them]selves” on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the “clay mates” is perfectly captured by Petty’s feisty, spot-on dialogue: “This was your idea…and it was a BAD one.” Eldridge’s endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist’s work table to great effect.
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own . (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 20, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-316-30311-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017
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