history

Review: The Price of Freedom by Dennis Brindell Fradin

| Tasha

price of freedom

The Price of Freedom: How One Town Stood Up to Slavery by Dennis Brindell Fradin and Judith Bloom Fradin, illustrated by Eric Velasquez

In 1856, John Price and two other slaves escaped to Ohio and freedom.  But the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was in effect and even free states were required to allow slave owners to capture escaped slaves anywhere in the United States.  John and his friend Frank spent the winter in Oberlin, Ohio, a hub of Underground Railroad activity.  They decided to stay and not travel to the safety of Canada.  So when a group of slave catchers came to Oberlin specifically hunting for John and Frank, the residents of the city had no legal grounds to help the two men.  When John was captured though, the city rose up against the slave catchers, forcing a showdown that would be one of the defining moments in fueling the Civil War.

Filled with informational facts, this book reads more like a fictional story thanks to its inherent drama.  It begins with John Price’s escape across the ice on stolen horses, continues through the Underground Railroad but the most amazing part is the final showdown, where your heart almost stops with the bravery and daring the Rescuers demonstrate. Fradin offers just the right mix of information and heroism.

Velasquez’s illustrations add to the dramatic feel of the narrative with their deep rich colors, drawn guns and historical details.  There are so many gorgeous night images filled with danger but also with hope.

This is a nonfiction picture book that is sure to inform children about an aspect of slavery that they will not have heard of as well as a tale of what a group of brave citizens can do.  Appropriate for ages 7-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Odette’s Secrets by Maryann Macdonald

| Tasha

odettes secrets

Odette’s Secrets by Maryann Macdonald

This true story of a young Jewish girl growing up in Nazi-occupied Paris is told in verse.  Odette’s father is sent to a Nazi work camp and her mother works hard to protect Odette.  As the Jews in Paris are steadily more badly treated, Odette has to wear a yellow star on her clothing and is unwelcome in many places in the city.  Even at school, Odette is bullied for being Jewish.  When their apartment is raided in the middle of the night, Odette and her mother hide in their landlady’s cupboard.  After that, Odette is sent to the country to live.  There she learns to pretend to be Christian so that she isn’t discovered.  When her mother is forced to flee Paris, the two of them move together to live in the French countryside as peasants, but Nazis and bigotry are never far behind.  Odette learns that sometimes secrets are vital to survival and just as hard to stop keeping as they are to keep.

Macdonald writes in her author’s note about the inspiration for creating a children’s book that tells the story of the real Odette.  It is interesting to learn about the transition from straight nonfiction to a verse novel.  I’m so pleased that the end result was this novel in free verse, because Macdonald writes verse with a wonderful eye to both the story she is telling and the poetry itself.  She truly creates the scenes of Paris and the French countryside in her poems, making each place special and amazing. 

Perhaps most amazing is Odette herself, a protagonist living in a brutal and complicated time, forced to lie to stay alive.  Odette has to learn to deal with the fear she lives in every day, something that no one should have to get used to.  There was the fear of slipping and telling the secrets she held but also the fear that someone could figure out they were Jewish without any slip from Odette.  Macdonald creates quite a dramatic series of events that point out that Odette was terrified for very good reason.

Beautiful verse combined with a true story of a young girl World War II France makes this a very successful book that cuts right to the heart and lays all its secrets bare.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from copy received from Bloomsbury.

Review: Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors? by Tanya Lee Stone

| Tasha

who says women cant be doctors

Who Says Women Can’t Be Doctors?: The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell by Tanya Lee Stone, illustrated by Marjorie Priceman

Back in the 1830s, there were no women doctors, only men could have that career.  But also growing up in the 1830s was a young girl who would end up changing that.  Elizabeth Blackwell was not particularly well behaved: she was always exploring, working to toughen herself up, and even carried her brother over her head until he backed down.  Elizabeth had not dreamed of becoming a doctor, but she was inspired when an friend mentioned how much nicer it would have been to be examined by a woman.  When Elizabeth started talking about her new dream, people mocked her and told her it was impossible.  She applied to school after school, until finally the 29th school she applied for said yes!  But Elizabeth would have to face additional challenges in school and beyond as well.  This is the story of a woman who would not take no for an answer and the way that she changed the face of medicine along the way.

Stone has written a very engaging biography of Blackwell.  Much of the story is spent on her childhood and the challenges she faced getting into medical school.  I love the image of a spunky young girl who just wants to explore and demonstrates determination from a very young age.  She is an inspiring figure for youth, someone who discovered her dream and stood by it despite the many obstacles in her way and the mockery she endured.  Stone’s author’s note continues Blackwell’s story and offers a photograph of the real Dr. Blackwell.

Priceman’s illustrations done in gouache and India ink are filled with bright colors.  They bring the past to life, showing the energy of the young Elizabeth Blackwell and incorporating the vistas and buildings of the 1800s.  While they are bright and vibrant, they also serve to make sure that readers are cognizant of the period in which the book takes place.

Blackwell is a real-life heroine that young readers should be aware of.  This bright and welcoming new biography for younger readers is a welcome addition to library collections.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from copy received from Henry Holt and Co.

Review: Etched in Clay by Andrea Cheng

| Tasha

etched in clay

Etched in Clay: The Life of Dave, Enslaved Potter and Poet by Andrea Cheng

Told in virtuoso verse, this is the true story of the life of Dave, an enslaved potter who lived in the years before and after Emancipation.  Dave was an artist, most likely making over a thousand pieces of pottery in his lifetime of work of which only 170 survive today.  He inscribed some of his pieces with either his own name, his master’s name and also poetry that he wrote, brief verses that offer a glimpse into his world.  The amount of bravery that small act took is monumental, since Dave faced potential death because he was demonstrating his ability to read and write in a time when it was forbidden for slaves in South Carolina to do so.  Dave serves both as an example of the injustice and brutality of slavery and also as a remarkable example of the artistry and strength of human beings. 

Cheng tells Dave’s story in very short poems.  They are not all in Dave’s voice, sometimes instead being in the voice of his owners, his wife, or his children.  Cheng does not soften the harshness of slavery, offering poems that speak directly to the separation of families through selling them apart and the brutality of the punishments inflicted.  I would not call it unflinching, because one can sense Cheng flinching alongside the reader as she captures the moment but also makes it completely human and important. 

Cheng also did the woodcuts that accompany the poetry.  They are a harmonious combination with the subject matter thanks to their rough edges and hand-hewn feel.  Done only in black and white, they share the same powerful message as the poems.

This powerful book informs middle grade readers about a man who could have been one of the many lost faces of slavery but who through art and bravery had a voice.  Appropriate for ages 12-15.

Reviewed from digital galley received from Lee & Low Books.

Review: Nelson Mandela by Kadir Nelson

| Tasha

nelson mandela

Nelson Mandela by Kadir Nelson

In a way that only Kadir Nelson could capture, this book tells the story of Nelson Mandela’s life, imprisonment and how he became the inspiration he is.  This is a very humanizing tale of Mendela, showing his childhood before his father’s death and then his move across South Africa to study under a powerful chief.   Mandela attended school and then got involved in fighting apartheid.  The book follows him as he is jailed the first time and as he rises to be a threat to those in power and goes into hiding.  Mandela returned to South Africa to continue the fight and is then jailed again, doing heavy labor.  After being in prison for over 27 years, Mandela was freed.  His passion for righting the wrongs of apartheid and speaking for equality of all people shines from every page.

Nelson tells the story of Mandela in verse that is factual but also compelling.  He captures the long time spent in prison in a way that children will be able to understand.  Cold meals, thin blankets and beating rocks into dust.  It shows the futility and the harshness with such clarity.  Nelson’s verse also has a great sense of awe for this man and what he has accomplished, that too makes it a very special, honest book.

As always, Nelson’s images are simply wondrous.  Here they seem to shine from within whenever Mandela is part of the image.  As you can see from the cover illustration, there is all of the human inside his art; it radiates from his work.  Shown with detail, interesting perspectives, and ending with a sense of celebration, Nelson’s art is a standout.

This is the story of Nelson Mandela captured fully in a picture book that celebrates all of his accomplishments and what he stands for as a human being.  Beautiful.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from copy received from Katherine Tegen Books.

Review: Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909 by Michelle Markel

| Tasha

brave girl

Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909 by Michelle Markel, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

Clara Lemlich and her family came to America planning to find jobs, but no one will hire her father.  The factories did want girls like Clara though, and so she started working in the garment industry.  She worked from dusk to dawn in rows with other young girls, sewing as fast as she could.  If they were late at all, they lost half a day’s wages.  If they pricked their fingers and bled on the cloth they were fined, if it happened again they were fired.  The doors were locked, there was no fresh air, and the girls were inspected when they left to make sure they weren’t stealing anything.  But Clara would not be held down, she went to the library and learned English, teaching the other factory girls on their lunch break.  Then Clara learned about unions and strikes, though some thought the girls were not tough enough to strike.  So began her transformation into a union leader, through beatings and hunger, these girls and Clara are the people we have to thank for fair hours and pay. 

Markel tells the story with a strong heart and a certain thrill.  Readers get to see a quiet girl get off of the boat and steadily transform through self-education and pure tenacity into an amazing person who had strength and energy enough for several people.  Markel manages to tell the story of the times without dedicating much of her brief story to background.  Instead she uses the situation at the mill to speak on their own.  She ends the book with more information about the garment industry, giving facts and figures about how many girls were working there and the abuses they suffered.

Sweet’s illustrations are a treat.  Her paintings are turned into collage with the addition of various textiles and trims.  On one page the buildings of New York are painted and then enriched by trimmings, stitches and swatches of material.  On another the painting is smaller and then framed by material.  Clara herself is often wearing a look of determination on her face, usually with a fist clenched as if ready to do battle at any time. 

This is a wonderful picture book biography about a heroine that children can related directly to, since she is so young.  It is also a very timely read with labor under such pressure right now.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Henry and the Cannons by Don Brown

| Tasha

henry and the cannons

Henry and the Cannons: An Extraordinary True Story of the American Revolution by Don Brown

The trend for great children’s historical biographies in picture book format continue this year.  This picture book tells the story of Henry Knox.   It is the winter of 1775 and the Americans need cannons to take back Boston from the British.  Knox takes the challenge of moving 59 cannons over 225 miles across Massachusetts in the dead of winter.  It took boats, oxen and plenty of determination and innovation to get those cannons across the state.  The journey and amazing achievement is told here in a way that will entice children to learn more stories about the American Revolution.

Brown’s writing is solid throughout the book.  He carefully sets the scene, clearly explaining how unbalanced the war was with Revolutionaries vs. the world’s best soldiers.  Add to that the power of cannons, and there was clearly no hope for victory.  After that the book turns more towards adventure and peril, making for a read that must be finished.  From the impossible mission to each and every mishap, readers will be rooting for Knox.

The illustrations serve to underline the stark winter and the heaviness of the cannons.  Men and oxen strain to move the 120,000 pounds of cannon.  Snow flies, the boats seem more like twigs next to the metal, and the crossing of an iced-over river brings drama and danger. 

Strong and noteworthy, this picture book nonfiction title has history and also plenty of action and adventure.  Appropriate for ages 7-10.

Reviewed from copy received from Roaring Brook Press.

Review: Little White Duck by Na Liu

| Tasha

little white duck

Little White Duck: A Childhood in China by Na Liu, illustrated by Andres Vera Martinez

This graphic novel takes a look at the changes in China during the 1970s through the eyes of a young girl.  Da Qin lives in Wahun with her family, including a younger sister.  The book opens with the death of Chairman Mao in 1976 and shows a way of life that was disappearing.  In eight chapters, Liu reveals this transitional and fleeting time in China through experiences in her own childhood.  Along with the main character, readers get to celebrate New Year, capture pests, learn the value of rice, and visit a rural Chinese village.  Throughout, it is a remarkable view into a closed society that is just starting to open itself to the outside.

Liu writes her stories with a wonderful frankness about the playfulness of childhood filled with dreams of riding on cranes, but also tied down to the earth by the everyday nature of the tales.  There is a focus on the small moments of life in China.  Some are amazing to those of us who didn’t live them, like everyone participating in catching the four pests by bringing in a certain number of rat tails. 

Martinez’s art is a study in sepia toned memories made brilliant by the colors of childhood.  Against a gray background, the bright dragon dances at New Year’s.  Orange and yellow flames cook green and brown food.  And even after the drab poverty of the rural village, there are dreams of flying on a crane high in the sky.

Informative and remarkable, this graphic novel takes a fresh and frank look at a childhood in China.  Appropriate for ages 8-10.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The Wild Book by Margarita Engle

| Tasha

wild book

The Wild Book by Margarita Engle

Told in poems, this is the story of Engle’s maternal grandmother and her struggle with dyslexia.  Known as Fefa, her grandmother was diagnosed with “word blindness” and told she would never read or write.  Luckily, Fefa’s mother has an idea.  She gives her daughter a blank book to fill with words, as if she is scattering wildflower seeds on the ground.  At first Fefa’s words are hesitant and stilted, like seedlings.  But steadily her writing and reading improve as she learns to take her time and gains confidence.  And that reading is what saves her and her siblings from being kidnapped in the chaos following Cuba’s fight for independence.

Engle writes a gripping series of poems that range from celebrating the written word to the difficulties of dyslexia to the triumph of overcoming.  Over the entire book the threat of violence and kidnappings hangs low and dark.  It is clear that this is not a modern story from the very beginning and Engle cleverly reveals the extent of the chaos the family is living in the midst of through Fefa herself and her own growing knowledge.

As always, Engle’s verse is exceptional.  Often her individual poems could be read one their own.  Yet it is as one complete story that they really show their beauty.  There are many exceptional stanzas to share, but one of my favorites comes early in the novel:

Frog Fear

 

My little brothers love

to frighten me

by hiding lizards,

bugs, and spiders

in my bloomers.

 

Today it’s a frog,

but they tell me it’s a snake,

so I scream and tremble

until I can clearly see

that the little creature

jumps around

like jittery letters

on a blinding

page.

 

The skin of a frog

feels just as slippery

and tricky as a wild

inky word.

Engle traces the love of words and poetry Fefa’s own mother, who shares poems with her family.  It’s a beautiful celebration of that history and those words.

This novel in verse is a powerful look at Cuba’s history and also at dyslexia and overcoming challenges.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from library copy.