A fascinating look at the development of early photography, the life of an African-American artist, and the world of the...
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As a young boy in Lenox, Massachusetts, James VanDerZee is introduced to a new device—the camera—that changes his life. Glowing acrylics shot with light show James as he saves up for his first camera and begins to experiment and grow as an artist, while straightforward prose focuses on notable and interesting aspects of his life. Ready for adventure, James moves to Harlem at age 18 and, after working a series of odd jobs, is able to establish himself as a studio and street photographer, depicting other African-Americans in Harlem, from politicians to musicians to sports heroes and from the middle class as well as the more commonly photographed rich and poor. When cameras become readily available to consumers, VanDerZee’s skills fall from favor, and it is not until years later, when an exhibition called “Harlem on My Mind” presents his collected work, that he receives the recognition he deserves. Children will be drawn in by VanDerZee’s struggles, inspirations, and achievements as well as the idea that photographs can be both works of art and enduring historical records—and that they can be taken by devices other than phones. Backmatter includes an afterword, a bibliography, and a selection of VanDerZee’s photographs.
A fascinating look at the development of early photography, the life of an African-American artist, and the world of the Harlem Renaissance. (Picture book/biography. 6-10)Pub Date: June 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62014-260-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Lee & Low Books
Review Posted Online: April 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2017
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era.
The New Orleans school child who famously broke the color line in 1960 while surrounded by federal marshals describes the early days of her experience from a 6-year-old’s perspective.
Bridges told her tale to younger children in 2009’s Ruby Bridges Goes to School, but here the sensibility is more personal, and the sometimes-shocking historical photos have been replaced by uplifting painted scenes. “I didn’t find out what being ‘the first’ really meant until the day I arrived at this new school,” she writes. Unfrightened by the crowd of “screaming white people” that greets her at the school’s door (she thinks it’s like Mardi Gras) but surprised to find herself the only child in her classroom, and even the entire building, she gradually realizes the significance of her act as (in Smith’s illustration) she compares a small personal photo to the all-White class photos posted on a bulletin board and sees the difference. As she reflects on her new understanding, symbolic scenes first depict other dark-skinned children marching into classes in her wake to friendly greetings from lighter-skinned classmates (“School is just school,” she sensibly concludes, “and kids are just kids”) and finally an image of the bright-eyed icon posed next to a soaring bridge of reconciliation. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era. (author and illustrator notes, glossary) (Autobiographical picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-75388-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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