A needed celebration of America’s potential.
Magoon and Freeman collaborate for a picture-book biography of the first Black female Supreme Court justice.
Ketanji Brown Jackson’s parents named her “lovely one,” dressed her in dashikis, and kept her hair natural, helping her to develop pride and belief in herself and her future. As a young person, she exuded confidence and sought ways to spread her “shining light,” from student government to the debate team. She excelled at Harvard College and Harvard Law School. She married, had two daughters, and held 10 different law-related positions before being nominated to the Supreme Court, an event that placed her in the national spotlight, where once again she inspired people with her poise. Her 2022 confirmation as the first Black woman Supreme Court justice broke a new barrier. Magoon’s straightforward prose allows Ketanji’s life story to speak for itself. While younger readers may get lost in some of the details of Ketanji’s adult experiences in law, the theme of Ketanji’s “shining star” connects the phases of her life and shows how she found her purpose. Freeman’s digital illustrations work hardest on spreads showing relationships between characters, highlighting the special roles of her parents and children in her life. The images of Ketanji become a bit repetitive, but readers won’t tire of the still too rare positive imagery of a superstar Black woman. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A needed celebration of America’s potential. (author’s note, glossary, timeline, bibliography, further reading) (Picture-book biography. 6-10)Pub Date: June 20, 2023
ISBN: 9780063296169
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
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
An inspirational look at one girl’s quest to make sure that all skin tones are visible and available in the classroom.
A Black girl’s simple observation propels her into activism.
Woodard, who launched the More Than Peach Project—which arranges for classrooms and children in need to receive kits that include art supplies and boxes of multicultural crayons (crayons in a variety of skin tones)—relates the incident that sparked her journey. As the book begins, she is dropped off at school and notices that her family’s skin tone differs from that of her classmates. While it is clear that she is one of a few children of color at school, that difference isn’t really felt until her friends start asking for the “skin-color” crayon when they mean peach. She’s bothered that no one else seems to notice that skin comes in many colors, so she devises a unique way of bringing everyone’s attention to that fact. With support from her family and her school, she encourages her fellow classmates to rethink their language and starts an initiative to ensure that everyone’s skin tone is represented in each crayon box. Appealing, realistic artwork depicts Woodard’s experiences, while endpapers feature More Than Peach crayon boxes and childlike illustrations of kids of different ethnicities doing various activities. The story is stirring and will motivate budding activists. (This book was reviewed digitally; the review has been updated for factual accuracy.)
An inspirational look at one girl’s quest to make sure that all skin tones are visible and available in the classroom. (note from Woodard, information on Woodard’s journey into activism, instructions on starting a drive) (Picture-book biography. 6-10)Pub Date: July 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-80927-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2022
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