Family
relationships are explored and affirmed in this joyful anthology of
poems celebrating the diversity of African American families. Michael
Strickland, has collaborated with his mother, noted educator Dorothy
Strickland, to bring us this warm collection. Rich and powerful poems by
Eloise Greenfield, Lucille Clifton, and others are rooted in deeply
felt values of belonging and mutual respect.
From Publishers Weekly
Using works by Lucille Clifton, Nikki Giovanni, Langston Hughes and
other African American poets, this determinedly upbeat collection
focuses on happy childhood experiences-getting hugs and kisses, going on
family outings and saying a tender good night. The poems selected are
rarely representative of the poets’ best writing; moreover, they tend to
stereotype pretty little girls and big strong boys. The larger problem,
however, is that in “celebrating the African American experience,” the
editors try to be both inclusive and exclusive at the same time. Little
here suggests either the uniqueness or the variety of black culture;
conversely, the Stricklands’ own initial poem extolling “all kinds of
families” and poems that applaud children of “every color skin” seem at
odds with the uniformly black faces Ward depicts in his acrylic
paintings. But even though the focus is blurred, many teachers and
parents will welcome the volume for its use of an African American cast
in paying tribute to middle-class family values. Ages 5-8.
- Age Range: 5 – 8 years
- Grade Level: 2 – 3
- Paperback: 32 pages
- Publisher: Wordsong (February 1, 1996)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1563975602
- ISBN-13: 978-1563975608
- Product Dimensions: 0.1 x 7.8 x 10.8 inches
From School Library Journal
Grade 2-5-A fine collection of 23 poems that feature African-American
families. Youngsters’ voices come through vibrantly in these
traditional and contemporary works that express the joy, sorrow, and
excitement of childhood. Gwendolyn Brooks’s “Andre” is about a boy who
dreams of having to choose new parents; Eloise Greenfield’s “Missing
Mama” poignantly expresses a child’s sorrow at the death of his mother;
and Lindamichellebaron’s “Hugs and Kisses” is a delightful selection
about a boy’s hidden approval of his mother’s affection for him. Other
poems are by Arnold Adoff, Lucille Clifton, Nikki Grimes, Nikki
Giovanni, Langston Hughes, Naomi F. Faust, Julia Fields, and E. Alma
Flagg. Black characters are depicted in the attractive acrylic
illustrations, and some poems express themes directly related to
African-American culture; however, the verses represent and impart
universal feelings and moments, making this a book to be shared and
enjoyed by all children.
From Publishers Weekly
Three brothers take a Saturday morning trip to Sam’s barber shop in
this affable if slim story, narrated by the youngest sibling. Though
their mother sends them with a note instructing the barber not to trim
her sons’ Afro cuts too short on top, the boysAand SamAhave a different
style in mind. Strickland, who has compiled several poetry anthologies
for children, shapes credible dialogue and gives his narrative a bouncy
cadence: awaiting their turn in the barber’s chair, the brothers “watch
the men cut hair and talk, cut hair and joke, cut hair and argue, cut
hair and laugh, cut hair and boogie to
the oldies on the radio.” Holliday’s (First by Secondhand) 1970s’
palette underscores Mom’s old-fashioned ideas and the barbers’ banter
about boxers Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. Rendered with airbrush and
pastel chalk, his pictures showcase the animated expressions of the
characters with close-to-photographic clarity against faded backgrounds
of chartreuse, mauve and beige. Ages 4-8.
- Age Range: 4 and up
- Grade Level: Preschool and up
- Hardcover: 32 pages
- Publisher: Boyds Mills Press; 1st edition (September 1, 1998)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1563975629
- ISBN-13: 978-1563975622
- Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9.4 x 0.4 inches
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-It’s Saturday morning and haircut time for three
African-American brothers. While their mother insists on natural Afro
cuts, the boys yearn for the contemporary shorter styles worn by their
friends. Readers follow the children as they walk to Sam’s Barbershop
where they give Sam the envelope from their mother that contains
instructions and money for the haircuts. Three barbers work on the
siblings and when they are finished, the boys have the haircuts they
wanted. The pastel and airbrush illustrations lend a light, cheery tone
and portray a lively community. The photographic quality of the facial
expressions invites readers to join in the joking and horseplay at the
barbershop. Both the first-person narrative and the illustrations reveal
the close-knit relationships of the brothers and their surroundings.
The text flows well and is a good choice for reading aloud. For similar
books, see Margaree King Mitchell’s Uncle Jed’s Barbershop (S & S,
1993) and Natasha Tarpley’s I Love My Hair (Little, Brown, 1997).
Shawn Brommer, Southern Tier Library System, Painted Post, NY
A timely survey of an important sector of American letters, African
American Writers, examines a multitude of black cultural leaders from
the eighteenth century to the present as it focuses on novelists,
essayists, scholars, activists, critics, teachers, poets, playwrights,
and songwriters. Biographical information covers important events in a
writer’s life, education, major works, honors and awards, family and
important associates, and more. Includes illustrations, bibliography,
and index.
From Library Journal
This unique title profiles several hundred African American fiction
and nonfiction writers from Colonial times to the present. The table of
contents lists the authors alphabetically and then divides them into 17
categories (novels, short stories, slave narratives, etc.) and nine
themes (Folktales, the Harlem Renaissance, Trickster Tales, etc.);
authors whose work
spans several categories are listed separately under each. The profiles
themselves, presented alphabetically and ranging from a paragraph for
less well known writers like Ai Ogawa to three pages for writers like
Ralph Ellison or Terry McMillan, are both biographical and critical,
although the amount of criticism varies. Included in each entry are the
writer’s birth and death dates, the categories into which he or she
fits, and any pseudonyms. Black-and-white illustrations, references,
genre lists, a comprehensive index, and chronologies of the writer’s
life dates and of African American literary firsts complete this
impressive title. Hatch, a freelance writer, and Strickland (creative
writing, Boise State University.) are to be commended; no other single
work seeks to include all past and present African American writers of
significance in such an affordable format.
- Series: Literary Companions (ABC)
- Library Binding: 484 pages
- Publisher: ABC-Clio Inc (June 1, 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0874369592
- ISBN-13: 978-0874369595
- Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.3 x 1.7 inches
Finding information about African American writers has always
entailed searching in a variety of resources. Children\rquote s writers,
political writers, poets, songwriters, novelists, and speechwriters are
covered in different sources, some easy to find, others not.
Information about some writers, such as Toni Morrison and Phillis
Wheatley, is readily available. Information about other, more obscure
writers, such as Abby Fisher, who authored the first published cookbook
by an African American woman, is harder to locate. And unearthing facts
about those who penned comic strips, compiled bibliographies, or wrote
scripts or political columns is even more challenging.
This very complete and readable dictionary helps to meet that
challenge. Spanning the entire history of African American expression,
it covers more than 530 individuals, including writers of commercials,
hymns, newspaper editorials, and rap songs along with screenplays,
novels, autobiographies, essays, and poetry. Publishers, editors, and
patrons of the arts are included as well. Entries vary from just a
sentence for actor Laurence Fishburne to 10 pages for Richard Wright. A
handful of important movements, publications, and genres (e.g.,
Harlem Renaissance, Negro Digest, Spirituals ) are also treated.
Each author entry begins with the author’s birth name, followed by
pseudonyms or alternative names and birth and death dates if available,
as well as the genres appropriate to the individual. In addition to
biographical facts, the editors have included information about what
inspired the authors to compose their works, in the hope that the volume
would be a springboard for further investigation or even a source of
ideas. Cross-references are in bold type, and each entry ends with
abbreviated source references. The book is sprinkled with photographs
and concludes with an appendix of writers by genre, a chronology of
writers and a chronology of firsts, full bibliographic references, and
an index.
… And
Reading levels are inviting to reluctant readers.
- Each series features a multicultural cast of characters with strong group friendships.
- Engaging plots deal with peer rivalry, mystery, virtual reality, and much more!
The Club:
- Age Range: 10 and up
- Grade Level: 5 and up
- Series: Summit Books
- Paperback: 119 pages
- Publisher: Perfection Learning (August 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0789155427
- ISBN-13: 978-0789155429
- Product Dimensions: 0.3 x 4.2 x 6.6 inches
From About.com:
If you have kids or teens who are reluctant readers because they read
below grade level and can’t find books they can read that interest
them, try some of these hi-lo books. The Hi-Lo reading lists focus on
books at the reader’s interest level (“Hi” stands for “high interest”)
but written at a lower reading level (“Lo” stands for “low readability,”
“low vocabulary,” “lower reading level”) to encourage reading. Kids and
teens reading below grade level are more apt to want to read a book if
it is not only at their reading level but also at their interest level.
- Shell’s Gold:
- Age Range: 10 and up
- Grade Level: 5 and up
- Series: Summit Books
- Hardcover: 117 pages
- Publisher: Perfection Learning (August 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0756908558
- ISBN-13: 978-0756908553
A hi-lo book, broadly defined, is a title that offers highly interesting subject matter at a low reading level, according to
Publisher’s Weekly.
A number of publishers have focused on producing these books, though
they often take slightly different approaches to creating the products
that best fit a particular market. The abiding goal, says Arianne
McHugh, president and co-owner of Saddleback Educational Publishing, “is
to offer age-appropriate content—something that will grab [readers']
interest—at a readability level that is accessible.” As examples, McHugh
notes that for a struggling reader in middle school or high school,
although The Hunger Games would generate enormous interest, it would be a
discouraging undertaking. On the other hand, “You can’t give them
Clifford; we don’t want to embarrass them,” she says. Somewhere in the
middle is the book that’s just right, she says.
This
book This book profiles the lives and work of ten African American
poets: Gwendolyn Brooks, Haki R. Madhubuti, Rita Dove, Eloise
Greenfield, Langston Hughes, Imamu Amiri Baraka, Maya Angelou, Paul
Laurence Dunbar, Phillis Wheatley and Nikki Giovanni.
From School Library Journal:
Gr 7-12. ‘Ten African Americans are highlighted in these essays. Each
7-to-10 page sketch contains basic biographical information about the
poet, showing how the African-American experience affected their work,
along with a portrait (usually a photograph) and one of their poems. The
writers range from former slave Phillis Wheatley to contemporary
authors such as Maya Angelou, Eloise Greenfield, and Rita Dove. Also
included are Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, and Nikki Giovanni. The
clear, focused writing makes this a solid choice for reports, especially
in multicultural units.‘
It’s
in the future, but I really don’t want people to think of this as
dystopian. It’s not. The world is basically in fine shape. But virtual
reality technology has gone through the roof and most people are
obsessed with it. Like I said earlier, the line between what’s real and
what’s not gets blurred, which sets the stage for some fun twists and
mind-bendy stuff. I think my fans will have a good time with it. – James Dashner
