On the day of its unveiling, the flag covering the Statue of Liberty’s face was mistakenly lowered too soon; Drummond imagines how it happened. The harbor was filled with boats—some of them bringing new immigrants to this country, and one containing women protesting the new statue. They found it odd that liberty should be portrayed as a woman when women were not allowed to vote in the US, and in fact only one woman and one small girl were allowed at the unveiling ceremony on the island. But the island was crowded with men—men who helped build the statue, put it together, and transport it from France. And in the crowd was a small boy enlisted by Mr. Bartholdi to signal him with his handkerchief. While everyone was waiting, the young French girl sneezed, and the young boy offered his handkerchief. And that is how the world came to see the Statue’s face a little too early. Enhancing the story are Drummond’s (Casey Jones, 2001, etc.) marvelous watercolors full of bright yellows, blues, and reds. The rainy gray day is reflected in the grayish-green water and the dark clothing and umbrellas of the crowds, while the excitement and importance of the event are seen in the brightly colored flags of France and the US. As the story mentions the men who put the statue together in America or made the statue in France, vignettes show the various stages and steps involved in its construction. In closing, Drummond reminds readers what freedom really means. An author’s note introduces the story, separating the facts of the day from those details he imagined and giving more historical information about Lady Liberty. (Picture book. 4-10)
Pub Date: April 3, 2002
ISBN: 0-374-34385-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Frances Foster/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2002
An inspiring story of young boy's compelling desire to read. As a boy of nine, Booker works in a salt mine from the dark of early morning to the gloom of night, hungry for a meal, but even hungrier to learn to read. Readers follow him on his quest in Malden, Virginia, where he finds inspiration in a man ``brown as me'' reading a newspaper on a street corner. An alphabet book helps, but Booker can't make the connection to words. Seeking out ``that brown face of hope'' once again, Booker gains a sense of the sounds represented by letters, and these become his deliverance. Bradby's fine first book is tautly written, with a poetic, spiritual quality in every line. The beautifully executed, luminous illustrations capture the atmosphere of an African-American community post-slavery: the drudgery of days consumed by back- breaking labor, the texture of private lives conducted by lantern- light. There is no other context or historical note about Booker T. Washington's life, leaving readers to piece together his identity. Regardless, this is an immensely satisfying, accomplished work, resonating first with longing and then with joy. (Picture book. 5- 8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-531-09464-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1995
A white youth from Ohio, Sheldon Russell Curtis (Say), and a black youth from Georgia, Pinkus Aylee (Pink), meet as young soldiers with the Union army. Pink finds Say wounded in the leg after a battle and brings him home with him. Pink's mother, Moe Moe Bay, cares for the boys while Say recuperates, feeding and comforting them and banishing the war for a time. Whereas Pink is eager to go back and fight against "the sickness" that is slavery, Say is afraid to return to his unit. But when he sees Moe Moe Bay die at the hands of marauders, he understands the need to return. Pink and Say are captured by Confederate soldiers and brought to the notorious Andersonville prison camp. Say is released months later, ill and undernourished, but Pink is never released, and Polacco reports that he was hanged that very first day because he was black. Polacco (Babushka Baba Yaga, 1993, etc; My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother, above) tells this story, which was passed down for generations in her family (Say was her great-great-grandfather), carefully and without melodrama so that it speaks for itself. The stunning illustrations — reminiscent of the German expressionist Egon Shiele in their use of color and form — are completely heartbreaking. A spectacular achievement. (Nonfiction/Picture book. 4- 8)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1994
ISBN: 0-399-22671-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1994
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