Review by New York Times Review
IN THE LAST YEAR my young daughters have asked, "Did you know Trump grabs people's private parts?" and "Did someone shoot Ariana Grande?" and "What is porn?" and "How far away is North Korea?" The year we just said farewell to was a bad one, whose passing certainly warrants four new picture books where love and fear meet in troubled times. I recently read the mighty Octavia Butler's "Parable of the Sower," a dystopian road novel of survival published 13 years before Cormac McCarthy's "The Road." Butler leaves me trembling. In 1993 her clear vision of an American landscape where Los Angeles is burning, drugs are epidemic, racism rages and guns do the loudest talking was eerily prescient. Since my parenting now involves casual apocalypse prepping, I read Butler's novel as a how-to guide. I paid searingly close attention to the contents of the Go Bag, the emergency disaster pack, of Butler's 18year-old narrator, Lauren. Spoiler alert: The dried fruit, extra shoes and water purification tablets all come in handy. But what most preserves Lauren on the bitter road is her mercy, compassion and love. So Butler was in my thoughts as I read these four magnificent new picture books. They are also how-tos: how to keep love present when fear is rampant, how to remember wonder and how to increase compassion in a flood of greed and danger. Matt de la Pena's simply titled "Love" collects life's small beauties - laughter and waves, trains in the distance, the sound of a parent's voice, the soft music from the cabdriver's radio. But it does so from a sometimes deeply sad or scary place. The joy of grandparents, dancing and family gatherings are not layered on neutral ground, rather, "Love" is courageously set in moments of alarm, distress and heartache. From these depths, de la Peña, whose picture book "Last Stop on Market Street" was awarded a Newbery Medal, indicates the path to kindness and peace. "On the night the fire alarm blares, you're pulled from sleep and whisked into the street, where a quiet old lady is pointing to the sky. 'Stars shine long after they flamed out,' she tells you, 'and the shine they shine with is love.' " Loren Long's illustrations for "Love," collaged and painted monoprints, corroborate a child's paradoxical, simultaneous confusion and clarity. A large family stands in the glow of the TV. Something horrific has happened, again. The adults are processing the bad event through the media and do not see that a child in pink pajamas has sneaked downstairs. "But when you ask what has happened, they answer with silence and shift between you and the screen." Here is fear, but here is also love. Elsewhere an older brother makes burned toast for his sibling while their father rides the early bus to work. In the toast's char, in the father's absence, we find love even in places that hurt. I am even more moved by these unseen acts of care - char, breadwinning - than all the flowers, laughing uncles and buskers de la Peña and Long (the Otis series, "Little Tree") also provide. Love that comes untested is perhaps not love strong enough for troubled times. This book looks into the darkness and still find stars twinkling overhead. "I Am Loved," a collection for children from the distinguished poet Nikki Giovanni, tackles, among other things, the idea of self-love and social justice. One poem asks us to look in the provided mirror and see all the bravery that came before, the hope, the sweat, the suffering that made us. "And for that alone I am loved." This ancestral pride is perfectly met in the book's illustrations, by the renowned Ashley Bryan, now 94 and still making indelible art. They are a world of exuberance and color, swirling portraits that show off a fluency with art drawn from multiple eras: 1960s psychedelia, Tibetan mandalas, American quilts, Madhubani paintings. Gorgeous. A clear favorite from Giovanni's collection is "Do the Rosa Parks," a rhythm song both joyful and catchy. I heard my 7year-olds singing it to one another days after we had read "I Am Loved." "Do the Rosa Parks / throw your hands in the air ... Do the Rosa Parks / tell them that's not fair." Playground empowerment gives me a lot of hope. "Dear Girl" is an epistolary picture book written by Amy Krause Rosenthal, the author of many books including "Friendshape" and "Uni the Unicorn," who died last year, and her daughter, Paris Rosenthal. Their book is a series of reminders I sorely wish we didn't still need. And yet. "Dear Girl, Keep that arm raised! You have smart things to say!" They also use the device of a mirror to discuss self-love. "Thank you, birthmark! Thank you, red hair!" "Dear Girl" mixes the joy of childhood - "Sometimes you just gotta stop and DANCE!" - with threads more troubling. "Dear Girl, If your instinct is telling you to say no, say no, you know?" Some may find a picture book that touches on consent disheartening, yet it seems abundantly necessary. Holly Hatam's simple, stark style and limited palette reflect the essential and basic nature of equality, conveying that "Dear Girl" can be any girl. She is drawn in black and white, perhaps in the hope that what is fuzzy - the gray area of sexism - will disappear if enough girls love themselves. And "Dear Girl" ends with love. You're starting to see a theme here, right? Scary times call for extra love. J. M. Barrie's epigraph to Oliver Jeffers's "Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth" says it best. "Shall we make a new rule of life from tonight: Always try to be a little kinder than is necessary?" Jeffers wrote this book as an address to his son. It's an explanation of our planet and a catalyst for curiosity to power responsibility. "Make sure you look after it, as it's all we've got," Jeffers writes. "Here We Are" plumbs the depths of wonder. A glorious illustration of the magnitude of the Milky Way does not escape Jeffers's tongue-in-cheek humor: He adds, "·Probably not to scale." It is a tour through the land, the sea, the sky, our bodies : dioramas of our wild diversity. As fans of his book "Stuck" already know, he is the master of capturing the joy in our differences. Readers might lose themselves in these pages, cataloging the magnificence of the blue man in the red fez, the tiny beekeeper, the green haired punk, the whirling dervish, the baboon's bare butt, the quiet queen, the hammerhead, the unquiet chorister, the earthworm. How on Earth do purple trees exist? Jeffers paints an abundance of rich, dynamic purples: skies, bodies, cities and sundresses. With purple he adds unity to our diversity as if to say, Lorde wasn't quite right. We are all royals. We get to live here on Earth. We get to share purple. In what language is there a word that means, "a picture book that makes adults cry while children's eyes remains dry"? You might cry as you read these books, raw with love and fear. Your children might look at you and think, hmm, weirdo. But, remember, to feel is courage. SAMANTHA HUNT'S most recent book is "The Dark Dark: Stories."
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [January 21, 2018]
Review by Booklist Review
Iconic, award-winning American poet Giovanni has long crafted verses that have been considered radical, sensual, and even revolutionary in their depiction of the power of love. This picture-book poetry collection for children contains a selection of her work that celebrates all manner of love, and it is beautifully illustrated by the equally renowned Bryan. The book begins with an address to children, stating simply and elegantly that their existence is reason enough for poetry and songs to be written: as time goes on / I am you / and you are me / and that's how life / goes on. In a world that often seems not to value brown-skinned children, this message is acutely timely and further reflected in Bryan's artwork. Other poems describe friendships between peers, the loss of loved ones, possessive love, and ancestral love across time. They vary in tone from gentle (Leaves, Wild Flowers) to jaunty (Three/Quarters Time, Paula the Cat). Bryan's stylized tempera paint and watercolor illustrations are full of whimsy and smiling faces, providing the perfect complement to Giovanni's work.--Chaudhri, Amina Copyright 2017 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In 11 poems, a mix of new and previously published work, Giovanni celebrates open-ended and affirming love. Some invoke love directly ("I wrote a poem/ for you because/ you are/ my little boy," begins the opening poem, "Because"), others obliquely: in "Quilts," an old tablecloth seeks new life: "When I am frayed and stained and drizzled at the end/ Please someone cut a square and put me in a quilt/ That I might keep some child warm." Newbery Honor-winner Bryan paints African-American men, women, and children in thick, swirling compositions suggestive of stained glass; he makes room for an embedded mirror to accompany a poem that addresses readers directly: "I reflect the strengths/ Of my people/ And for that alone/ I am loved." A joyful and broad reflection of love's many faces. Ages 4-8. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 4-This dynamic collection of verse thrums with musical language, exploring the interconnectedness between individuals and generations, humanity and nature. Pulsing through each brief poem is a leitmotif of love, and Bryan's warm illustrations underscore the book's comforting refrain. While a few poems are bittersweet, dealing with aging and loss, serene and contented elements emerge amid the wistfulness. Non-religious spirituality pervades Giovanni's language with a reverence for nature, and for life itself, in simple words that will resonate with young and old. "No Heaven" questions "How can there be/No heaven/When rain falls/gently on the grass/When sunshine scampers/across my toes." "Kidnap Poem" is especially metaphor-rich and overall lush, and the final poem, "Do the Rosa Parks" is perfect for reading to groups of young children, as it invites recitation and movement. Bryan's bold illustrations reflect the energy of the verses, splashing rainbows of rich color across every page. The paintings highlight a particularly poignant line or illuminate wording that some young readers might find complex, thereby aiding their meaning-making process. Children will especially enjoy the mirror included beside the poem "I Am a Mirror," a luminous verse that speaks of resilience. VERDICT A recommended addition to all picture book poetry collections, one that encourages children to embrace their personal histories and to love and be loved. A vibrant burst of positivity for readers of any age.-Melissa Williams, Berwick Academy, ME © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Bryan's vibrant, colorful, and moving illustrations accompany a selection of Giovanni's poems (new and previously published). Topics range widely (dance, self-reflection, nature, friendship); illustrations affirm the beauty and worth of black and brown children. Several poems recall slavery and the civil rights movement, providing a historical source of strength and courage. It's a combination of poetry and art that will bring readers back again and again. (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
In this collection, poet Giovanni seeks to remind black children especially that they are loved. Giovanni carries the weight of the love that has sustained generations and united communities to her poems with amazing, succinct elegance. Standouts include "I Am a Mirror," opposite which Bryan centers a real inset mirror against a colorful background of vibrant shapes amid natural landscapes. "I reflect the strengths / Of my people / And for that alone / I am loved," concludes Giovanni's ode to black ancestry and intergenerational resilience. "No Heaven" takes another heartwarming approach sure to incite genuine embraces among readers. "How can there be / No Heaven / When tears comfort / When dreams caress / When you smile / at me." Recalling her earlier collection Hip Hop Speaks to Children (2008, illustrated by Kristen Balouch), Giovanni ends with the playful and reflective "Do the Rosa Parks," a rhythmic and moving song about the power of sitting down to stand up. Outkast vibes run through it, though some readers may wish for an instructional cue. Throughout, Bryan's bright tempera and watercolor paintings offer readers harmonious forms and flowing lines, smiling black children and adults arranged as if in tropically colored stained-glass windows. The two masters together deliver another powerful addition to their separate, award-winning catalogs.A small but mighty collection sure to remind readers that love, again, can prevail over all if given the chance. (Picture book/poetry. 4-9) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
