In Their Footsteps

Without them, what would we have overlooked or not pursued?  Without them, what are we losing?  Without them, what kind of future is there?  Throughout history, there have been those who would discount, obstruct, and overlook their ideas, endeavors, and accomplishments.  They made choices no one else dared to make.  They continue, regardless of their age, to do what is best for the largest number of individuals and our planet.  We should never doubt the capacity of any committed woman.  They serve, protect, and seek.

  

There are creators, authors and illustrators, of children's nonfiction who are bringing the achievements of those committed women to readers.  In two weeks, Women's History Month 2022 begins at the national level and the international level in a few other countries.  It is hoped these three titles will motivate others to follow their own positive pursuits.  

In the summer of 1776 the United States Declaration of Independence was drafted and signed by fifty-six delegates.  After reading Her Name Was Mary Katharine: The Only Woman Whose Name Is On The Declaration Of Independence (Christy Ottaviano Books, Little, Brown And Company, January 25, 2022) written by Ella Schwartz with illustrations by Dow Phumiruk, you will marvel at the tenacity and courage of this woman.  Given the time and place in which she lived, her accomplishments are bold and brilliant.

Before America was even a country, a young girl lived in the colony of Connecticut in a busy port town with her parents and younger brother. 

Mary Katharine, her mother, and younger brother stayed in this community until the early death of her father.  The siblings were in their teens and both were being educated by their mother.  In Rhode Island where Mary Katharine and her mother relocated, William, having completed his apprenticeship as a printer, opened the first newspaper there. 

Eventually, William left Providence to start another paper in Philadelphia.  Mary Katharine continued to run the paper in Rhode Island until William decided to sell it and asked her and her mother to come to Philadelphia.  There she ran his paper, the Pennsylvania Chronicle.  It should be noted that in both papers, the Goddard family (Mary Katharine) had no issues with speaking their minds about the hardships of being under British rule.  When William opened a third newspaper, the Maryland Journal, and the Baltimore Advertiser, Mary Katharine moved to Baltimore.  

Regardless of her brother's activities, including time spent in jail, Mary Katharine ran the newspaper in Maryland.  When she was thirty-seven, she did a courageous thing adding her initials to the paper, M. K. Goddard, in reference to ownership.  After a postal system outside of the British system was devised, Mary Katharine was the first woman postmaster in the colonies in 1775.  When the first Declaration of Independence was printed, the signatures of only a few were shown.  What they declared was grounds for treason.  When the Continental Congress asked Mary Katharine to print a new version, the first version with all the signatures, she added her name at the bottom as the printer.  Her allegiance was aligned with delegates.  

The painstaking research by author Ella Schwartz is evident in the facts presented within the narrative of Mary Katharine Goddard's life and work.  Tying each portion together is the repetition of the main title phrase with additional words changing to reflect an important time in her life.  There are quotes attributed to her as seen in the newspaper on several pages within the text to reinforce her political stance. Here is a passage.

Mary Katharine had been handed a great honor and a big

responsibility.  Her printed version of the Declaration of 

Independence would announce the birth of a new nation and

was intended to be preserved forever for future generations.

The people named on the document pledged their honor,

fortunes, and lives in the formation of the United States of 

America.  If the war was lost, every person named on that

document would be sentenced to death.

Her name was Mary Katharine

and she had an important job to do. 

The image you see on the front of the dust jacket contines on the other side of the spine for about a fourth of the space.  The words of the hand-written Declaration of Independence and those same words on the printed document shine through the flag and blue background on the bottom of the front of the jacket and the entire back of the jacket.  Mary Katharine proudly stands holding the results of her work on the front.  On the back, in a small square-framed image, we see her at work.  She is setting the type for her initials and last name to appear on the next newspaper.  On the front of the dust jacket, Mary Katharine, the Declaration of Indepence, and the title text are varnished.

On the book case, on either side of the spine, are two different illustrations.  On the left, we see Mary Katharine standing in the doorway of the Providence Gazette as a group of men on the street comment on the newspaper.  In the background citizens are gathering and holding signs in protest.  On the right, Mary Katharine is close to us.  She is holding the printed Declaration of Independence as she stands outside the newspaper shop doorway.  Again in the background there are supporters of independence, moving to the right on a brick street with a building in the background.

On the opening endpapers are tiny elements representing the life and times of Mary Katharine Goddard.  On a pale blue background are single letters used in printing, her name printed twice with and without her full name, books, American flags of that time period, the Declaration of Independence, candles, quill pens, bundles of letters awaiting delivery and other printer tools.  On the closing endpapers are framed blocks holding letters ready to be set for printing.  The colors here are black, gray, and hues of gold.

On the title page we are inside the newspaper shop near the printing press shown on the left.  The dedication and publication information is placed with intention here.  On the right stands Mary Katharine, hands folded in front of her and wearing an apron.  A stack of paper is placed on the table to the right of her.

Artist Dow Phumiruk rendered these illustrations 

digitally in Adobe Photoshop with scans of watercolors and textures.

In each double-page picture several perspectives are shown as well as different times and places.  The blending of the times and places is superb.  The double-page picture of the delegates at work is shown as if we are looking down on them.  In another two-page visual, across the top the two armies are meeting at Lexington and Concord.  The main image shows the American troops gathering on the left and on the right Mary Katharine is working at her press to continue printing during the war.

One of my favorite illustrations is a blend of the inside of a building on the far left and far right with the outside of buildings in the middle.  On the left, the Continental Congress is in session.  In the middle people are reading Mary Katharine's newspaper.  On the right, she is standing inside her building looking outside.  Where there would normally be sky, we see in gray tones a collage of American soldiers during battle.

After reading Her Name Was Mary Katharine: The Only Woman Whose Name Is On The Declaration Of Indepence written by Ella Schwartz with illustrations by Dow Phumiruk, when you think of people representative of the word courage, Mary Katharine Goddard will come to your mind.  At the close of the book is a two-page author's note, a page of important terms, and selected sources.  You will want to place this book in the who-knew-but-grateful-to-know-now category of titles to be read and shared widely.  You will want to have a copy in both your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Ella Schwartz and Dow Phumiruk and their other work, please access their websites by following the link attached to their names.  Ella Schwartz has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Dow Phumiruk has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  The cover reveal for this book with conversations with the creators was hosted by librarian, lecturer, and writer John Schumacher on his site, Watch. Connect. Read.

There are those who relish fairytales.  There are those who are fans of animation.  There are those who will watch movies hour after hour.  For those who enjoy all three of these pastimes, they need to read Out Of The Shadows: How Lotte Reiniger Made the First Animated Fairytale Movie (Abrams Books For Young Readers, February 8, 2022) written and illustrated by Fiona Robinson.  When things we love become our life's work, the world reaps the benefits.

Once upon a time

in Berlin . . .

. . . there was a little girl who

loved fairytales.

Lotte Reiniger had grandparents and parents who supported her love of fairytales, reading to her for hours, day in and day out.  When she learned to read, she could finally enter the world of fairytales on her own.  Although Lotte liked nothing better than the books holding those stories, she was equally fascinated with a new technology, movies.

Her grandmother often took her to the movies, silent at the time with an orchestra creating music.  Once after Lotte received Chinese puppets as a gift, she began to perform her fairytales.  She also learned the fine art of Scherenschnitte, papercutting.  Lotte started to design her own characters for presentation based on the movable parts of the Chinese puppets and her papercut figures.  

Her interest in films and filmmaking grew.  Lotte studied at a school where she could observe the work of Paul Wegener.  One day he noticed all the papercuts she had made of him as she watched his troupe work.  Lotte was now working on his film crew!

In defining moments for her, Lotte used stop motion animation to make a memorable scene in the Paul Wegener movie, The Pied Piper of Hamelin.  Then, Wegener had her meet Hans Curliss and Carl Koch, directors at an animation studio.  Here Lotte thrived.  She and Carl worked together creating her short film, The Ornament of the Loving Heart.  Their relationship blossomed into love and marriage.  Lotte's making of short animations blossomed, too.

In 1923, Lotte was asked by a wealthy patron to make a full-length silhouette animated movie. She, Carl, and a team of animators moved to work in a space at the patron's home.  In order to get the effect she wanted, Lotte invented the 

first multiplane camera, 

consisting of a series of glass plates in a Tricktisch.  She wrote her own story weaving together components from other fairy tales.  Three long, work-filled years later The Adventures Of Prince Achmed premiered on May 2, 1926 in Berlin, Germany.  The details of this feat, including the 8,000 handwritten invitations, were wondrous.  So was the audience's response.  

The manner in which author Fiona Robinson reveals the facts of Lotte Reiniger's life is as if we have stepped into a fairytale.  Her word selections are rich in their descriptions of the people, places, and time periods.  The narrative is divided into three parts, each labeled with a span of dates.  Within those parts, we are awed by Lotte's choices, her work, and the insertion of process methods which are a part of her story.  Here are two passages.

One day, Lotte was given a gift that would transform her from a reader and

viewer of stories into a teller of stories.  Chinese puppets allowed Lotte to

physically perform her beloved fairytales.

Like a fairy casting a spell with her wand, Lotte flicked her wrist and brought

the sleeping puppets to life.  Swooping down low, stretching up high, she led

them in a dance around the room.

She created a plot.  She drew a storyboard showing sketches

of key moments in her five-minute-long animation.  She

cut and hinged characters.  And she sat at the Tricktisch

for hours on end, making incremental movements as Carl

shot each frame from above.  The film was then dyed with 

special ink to make the animation colorful.

When you open the book case, to the left, on the back, is information you might see on a dust jacket's flaps.  The canvas is black.  The only other colors are lavender and white.  On the outside of an intricately framed oval, in white letters, is information about Fiona Robinson and the book's publication.  Dancing on top of the ISBN are three tiny lavender creatures.  Inside the oval in black is Lotte Reiniger's name in a large font.  Under and to the right of her name is text about the book.  To the left, a hand holds a pair of scissors.  

On the right of the book case, the color palette used frequently throughout the book and exquisite elements are shown to readers.  Lotte is shown making one of her papercut figures.  This is bordered in frames of film.  Every detail is placed with a purpose.

On the opening endpapers we are inside a darkened theater.  Along the bottom of the page are papercut figures in black against a gray background.  They are waiting.  On the closing endpapers the background is glowing and golden.  The members of the audience are displaying jubilation.  The title page is a stunning depiction of cut-paper art.  Two peacocks on either side of a double-page picture hold film in their beaks.  Frames of the film hold the words of the secondary portion of the title.  This illustration is in golden yellow and black.

The images in this book were rendered by Fiona Robinson 

using scissor-cut silhouette, watercolors, and felt pen.

Each page turn will have you gasping in amazement at the layout, design, and artwork.  Each of the three parts begins as a frame in a silent movie with white on black.  Lotte steps into the pages of a fairytale story with a wolf peeking over the top corner.  She dances with her Chinese puppets.  When she is learning Scherenschnitte, a younger cutout of Lotte in white, scissors in one hand and a character in the other hand, dances as cut paper falls like snowflakes.  On the left side of this scene a large hand holding scissors cuts into the paper holding the text.  There are several single pages with enlarged frames of film holding the text.

Single pages hold the passage of time with a variety of smaller illustrations changing as your eyes move from left to right.  Perspectives change, drawing us deeper into the story.  We are given an overview and then brought directly into a particular moment.

One of my many favorite illustrations is a double-page picture asking readers to view it vertically.  The text, in white, is placed outside the roof of the garage in a deep blue night sky.  Under the roof, Lotte, Carl, and other animators are working with the multiplane camera.  Lotte is in color but the others are shadows and a silhouette.  To the right of them are five frames portraying the results of their work.

As soon as you finish reading Out Of The Shadows: How Lotte Reiniger Made the First Animated Fairytale Movie written and illustrated by Fiona Robinson, you will immediately read it again.  You will study the narrative and the artwork, not wanting to miss a single feature.  At the close of the book are two pages containing an author's note, a note about The Adventures Of Prince Achmed, Lotte Reiniger Movies Suitable For Children, a bibliography, a recommended film about Lotte Reiniger, and institutions housing her work.  I highly recommend this title for your personal and professional collections.

To learn more about Fiona Robinson and her other work, please visit her accounts on Facebook and  Instagram.  At the publisher's website, you can scroll through pages showing the other acclaimed books by Fiona Robinson.  

When you've spent nearly your entire life living in a state that is the only place in the world where a certain stone is found, you find yourself in search of that stone whenever you can.  There is no better place to find that unique piece of rock than along the beaches of northern Michigan. The beauty of searching for one thing is that it leads you to other discoveries.  Dragon Bones: The Fantastic Fossil Discoveries of Mary Anning (Roaring Brook Press, February 15, 2022) written by Sarah Glenn Marsh with illustrations by Maris Wicks is about a family of seekers and a girl in that family who loved nothing more than roaming along the seacoast, especially after a storm.

Little Mary Anning loved to treasure hunt.

There were plenty of storms in her community of Lyme Regis, England.  After those storms, Mary, her father, and brother would grab their tools and dig in the newly washed sand and rocks.  Mary would venture inside caves hoping to find something special.  After their hunts, the family would sell the found fossils to help pay for food.  Mary would much rather study the fossils, but she understood.

She sold 

snakestones, devil's fingers, and verteberries.

The family was successful, working together, until one autumn, Mary's father died.  It was now up to Mary to lead the hunts regardless of the weather.  Each time she and her brother went on a hunt, she dreamed of finding something no one else had ever unearthed.  And one day, her brother did find something.

He found a fossil of a giant head with a long nose and rows of sharp teeth.  He gave up digging, but Mary wanted to find the entire body.  She did it!  A collector of fossils bought it and someone at the museum named it Ichthyosaur.  Mary did not believe it looked like a lizard.  To her it looked like a dragon!

Over the years, Mary found other Ichthyosaur fossils.  She studied the insides of fish to understand them better.  Mary continued hunting without her brother Joseph, but her canine Tray was good company.  Mary, one winter, unearthed another different and entire skeleton.  A man named it plesiosaur.  He wrote about it, never giving Mary any credit.  At twenty-seven years old, Mary opened the Anning's Fossil Depot displaying her discoveries.  Mary kept digging, especially after the wildest of storms, constantly seeking a new treasure.

When you read this book, author Sarah Glenn Marsh has written in clear, concise sentences as if we are sitting across from one another in conversation about this remarkable woman.  She reminds us, through the repetition of certain words, what guided Mary Anning throughout her life.  By mentioning Mary imagining her father with her, we understand her on a more intimate level.  The narrative reinforces Mary's consistent curiosity, her desire to study and expand on what she knew, and her documentation of her findings.  We are also well aware of the lack of credit given to Mary during her lifetime for her contributions to the field of paleontology.  Here is a passage.

Through wind and rain,

she carefully unearthed the

mysterious creature that would

become her next major discovery.

A man bought the skeleton and named

it "plesiosaur," which meant "near-lizard."

He wrote papers about it that lots of scientists

read with amazement.  He never mentioned Mary.

When looking at the matching and open dust jacket and book case, there are several things you immediately notice.  A single illustration spans left to right crossing the spine.  On the left is one of the cliffs along the seacoast in Mary Anning's community.  We are looking through the rock where an assortment of fossils are embedded.  To the right of the cliff, Mary is holding up a tooth.  Her stance and facial expression suggest her determination to keep searching for something new and different.  In a clever design technique fossils are used in the title text.  Mary and the text are varnished.

On the opening endpapers in two tones of brown we are shown an underwater scene from prehistory.  All the creatures, in various stages of movement, are frozen as fossils.  When we look at the closing endpapers, the scene has changed.  It is now in full color as it was when all those beings were alive and moving through the water.  Above them creatures fly between the water's surface and sky.  A double-page picture is used for the dedication, verso, and title pages.  It is a close-up of Mary working near the head of one of her dinosaurs.  In addition to the fossil, all we see are her hands and her pickaxe resting nearby.

Artist Maris Wicks made these illustrations 

with HB pencil on plain printer paper, scanned, and colored in Photoshop.

The size of the pictures vary to complement and enhance the text.  There are two-page pictures of seascapes and vast expanses.  We are brought closer when the sea starts to flood the Anning home and Mary and her brother are being placed in a boat outside the home's window.

When Mary is dreaming about the creatures associated with the fossils, they are drawn as if they are ghosts, dreamy imaginings.  Several times single-page visuals blend together as if they are one.  As a reader we are never in doubt as to Mary's devotion to her passion.  Her exuberance is apparent in every line and perspective.

One of my many favorite illustrations is a double-page picture.  Mary and her father are seated and working together at a table exhibiting newly uncovered fossils.  Many are coated in dirt which they are working to wipe and brush clean.  Mary's father is on the left.  We see most of his body except for the top portion of his head.  Mary is on the right wiping a fossil.  Her tongue is partially out of her mouth as she concentrates.  To the right of her are "fossil ghosts" from her mind.

This book, Dragon Bones: The Fantastic Fossil Discoveries of Mary Anning written by Sarah Glenn Marsh with illustrations by Maris Wicks, is an admirable blend of writing and artwork showcasing the determination and dedication of one woman who faced poverty, danger, and bias against women her entire life.  Her successes have stood the test of time and are to be commended.  At the close of the book are four pages highlighting Mary, the creatures whose bones she unearthed, how to become a paleontologist and a selected bibliography.  This book is sure to inspire others who seek a similar vocation.  Your personal and professional collections won't be complete without a copy of this title.

To learn more about Sarah Glenn Marsh and Maris Wicks and their other work, please follow the link attached to their names to access their websites.  Sarah Glenn Marsh has accounts on Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.  Maris Wicks has accounts on Instagram and Twitter.  At the publisher's website, you can view interior images.  The Lyme Regis Museum has a page featuring Mary Anning with helpful resources.

They Lifted Their Voices

Women of distinction on an international, national, community or familial level achieve this designation by taking a stand.  They stand firm in their beliefs and in following their individual calling.  No challenge, large or small, deters them from their life-long pursuits.  They are an inspiration to many during their lives, and for those who follow in their paths.

During the recent Democratic presidential candidate process, one of the women who later withdrew is now running as the Democratic candidate for Vice-President.  Kamala Harris: Rooted In Justice (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, August 25, 2020) written by Nikki Grimes with illustrations by Laura Freeman looks at this accomplished woman's life from her birth to present day.  It gives readers a deeper understanding of how her beliefs and calling were shaped. 

Eve slammed the door when she

got home from first grade.

"Eve!" You know we don't slam doors

in this house," her mom said.

"What's going on?"

Eve is upset about an incident at school.  When asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, she said she wanted to be President.  Another classmate, a boy, said girls can't be President.  

With this introduction, the mother begins the story of Kamala Harris.  During the narrative, from time to time, Eve and her mother converse about a word or an important event Kamala experiences.  We first learn of the meaning of Kamala's name.  The explanation of a lotus flower's beauty and roots is an apt comparison.

Kamala's mother was born in India and her father was born in Jamaica.  She was born in Oakland, California.  Even as a baby, yet unable to walk, Kamala was a part of her parent's involvement in seeking social equality.  She and her younger sister, Maya, learned the same lessons when visiting their maternal grandparents in Zambia when her grandfather was a diplomat.

When Kamala was seven her parents divorced.  From her new home in Berkeley she was bused to school at Thousand Oaks Elementary where she met students from diverse ethnic and social backgrounds. Her days were filled with studies, outside interests including evenings at a cultural center showcasing Black Americans in the arts and literature.  Kamala, her sister, and mother were deeply involved in their local church, the girls attending on Sundays when they did not visit their father.

When she was in middle school, Kamala's world took another turn when her mother got a job in Montreal, Canada.  Trading sun for snow was a huge shift.  Kamala returned to the states to attend college at Howard University where she won her first election.

Month after month, during her time at Howard University and in the subsequent years every choice, every career decision, lead Kamala Harris to her present place in politics as the second African American woman to be voted into the United States Senate.  Her focus, learned from her family, has been service for the people she represents. In less than two months, we will all see if her dedication will be amplified.

The literary technique of having Kamala Harris's story told through the conversation between a mother and her daughter is highly effective when used in the masterful hands of author Nikki Grimes.  Her careful research is obvious in the specific details she includes.  She takes readers step by step, using her gift with words, to build this distinctive woman's life layer by layer.  Here is a passage.

Once, when tiny Kamala was fussing,

her mother couldn't figure out

what was the matter.

"What do you want, little girl?" she asked.

"Freedom!" said Kamala,

and a waterfall of laughter

sputtered from her mother's mouth. 

The strength of Kamala Harris's character, the people who shaped her life, and her commitment to serving people and this country is depicted with excellence on the front, right, of the open and matching dust jacket and book case.  The design is eloquent in every respect, as are the color choices.  The text is raised.  

To the left, on the back, a much younger Kamala is seated at a neighbor's table, a red-and-white checkered tablecloth in front of her.  Her head is tilted as she listens to the woman (who we can't see) speak.  Behind her are portraits of famous African American woman and African face masks on the wall.  (This is a portion of an interior illustration.)

The opening and closing endpapers are a bright yellow.  On the title page a younger Kamala Harris, wearing a backpack, is headed to her home.  Two signs in the yard display the title and subtitle.  

These illustrations by Laura Freeman rendered digitally are bold, rich, and warm.  They are double-page pictures and single-page pictures, edge to edge.  Our focus is always maintained by the vivid depictions of Kamala, regardless of her age or the setting in which she finds herself.  Laura Freeman has portrayed her so well, we expect her to come to life at any moment.  If we pause at each illustration, we can see the individual elements included which are all a part of who Kamala Harris is today.  

One of my many, many favorite illustrations is at the beginning of the book.  It is when Eve's mother is starting the story of Kamala Harris's life.  Across two pages is a collage of large lotus flowers, left to right, among teal water with floating smaller lotus flowers and pads.  In the first large lotus flower is baby Kamala grasping a small lotus blossom.  In the second large flower is little girl Kamala, eyes closed, as she smells a larger lotus blossom she holds in both hands.  On the other side of the gutter, a much older Kamala, among large lotus petals, is studying.  This leads us to present day Kamala.  She fills nearly half of the right side, smiling, and with her eyes wide open.  The lotus pattern is overlaid on her clothing.

This woman has left her mark in each portion of her life which is clearly defined in Kamala Harris: Rooted In Justice written by Nikki Grimes with illustrations by Laura Freeman.  Each time you read this title; your respect continues to grow for her commitment to her calling.  You are inspired.  At the close of the book is a timeline of significant occurrences in her life.  A small list of sources is included.  You'll want to have a copy of this book in your professional and personal collections.

To learn more about Nikki Grimes and Laura Freeman and their other work, please follow the link attached to their names to access their websites.  Nikki Grimes has accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.  Laura Freeman has an account on Instagram.  The cover reveal for this book was hosted by Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries, John Schumacher, at Watch. Connect. Read.  I believe you will enjoy the conversation between Nikki Grimes and John Schumacher.  At the publisher's website you can view multiple interior images, several of which are my favorites.

This next woman's words still ring with clarity in the music she made.  You can't read or hear her name without one of her songs keeping you company throughout the day in your mind.  You might find yourself humming one of her tunes.  Her voice, like her persona, is larger than life.

As the first woman inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame her place in the world of music is forever etched in history.  R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, August 25, 2020) written by Carole Boston Weatherford with art by Frank Morrison is a tribute in words and art to the power of a single person to effect change for the greater good on a worldwide scale.  Even at this moment, I can hear her singing. 

B-L-E-S-S-E-D

Cradled by the church, rocked by an ebony sea,

Aretha says a little prayer each night on bended knee.

This introductory sentence is the first of fifteen single hyphenated words followed by one or two explanatory sentences. We learn of the strong foundation of faith present in Aretha's life.  We learn of the family's move to Detroit where the parents and children lift their voices in Gospel song.

Aretha's parents separate, but her musical talent soars.  She is a gifted pianist, playing by ear.  She also listens to her father's voice in the fight for equality across the spectrum.  

At the age of fourteen, Aretha records her first album.  Her father knows true talent when he hears it, a voice able to span 

three-plus octaves.

This woman is not only a strength in the world of music, but a source of power in the civil rights movement.  She gives concerts for free to raise funds.  A moment everyone will remember is her singing of "My Country 'Tis of Thee" at President Barack Obama's inauguration.  Throughout her life Aretha Franklin returns to the foundation from which she rose, deep in her religious beliefs, the Queen of Soul, using her gift from God.

The manner in which author Carole Boston Weatherford unfolds her appreciation for Aretha Franklin in this narrative is akin to a call and response.  A single definitive word is presented, followed by a factual, but lyrical rhyming description. Only twice during this book does she break this cadence to use quoted phrases.  Here is another passage.

G-I-F-T-E-D

Young, gifted, black, Aretha hears a melody.

Then she plays the tune by ear---plinking perfectly.

You cannot help but gasp, at least inwardly, if not aloud, when you view the opened dust jacket of this book.  Artist Frank Morrison displays Aretha Franklin young, vibrant, and definitely a queen from left to right in a majestic depiction.  Her feathered coat, continuing over the spine, barely flows past (on the left) her hand holding a microphone.  In a word, this is beautiful.  The single word main title is raised in gold foil.

On the book case on a canvas of rich, golden brown, orange, and red is a child on the front.  Her lovely, black hair frames her smiling face.  In both her hands she holds an album reading:

QUEEN OF SOUL

with the face of a singing Aretha above the words.

On the opening endpapers is a collage, as if we are looking down, of album covers, records and a record player.  Two people, one a child, and the other older are holding albums.  On the closing endpapers is the image from the book case.

These illustrations rendered in oil paint by Frank Morrison are stunning.  Across the title page is a double-page picture of a pink Cadillac from fins to front.  With a page turn the verso and dedication pages feature Aretha and her siblings playing a game of hide-and-seek at their home in Tennessee.  

Each of the following double-page images are glorious paintings portraying significant portions of her life story.  We see these occasions from multiple perspectives, as observers or participants.  The range of real emotions on the people's faces increases the very personal points of view.  With his artwork, Frank Morrison takes us completely into the experience.

One of my many, many favorite paintings is for the passage above noted.  We are looking directly down on a young Aretha Franklin.  At the top of the page, the piano keyboard extends from edge to edge.  Aretha's fingers are placed on the left and right side of her body on the keys.  We see her arms, elbows lifted, coming from the sleeves of her yellow dress.  We see the skirt of her dress spread out over her legs as she sits on a black bench.  All we see of her face is the top of her head.  The floor is wide-boards and wooden.  Along the lower edge of the image is a fringed, red patterned rug.  It's like we've stepped back in time.

This ode in pure poetic perfection enhanced by powerful paintings will be read and treasured for years to come.  In R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul written by Carole Boston Weatherford with art by Frank Morrison we get informative glimpses into greatness.  At the close of the book there is an author's note which further informs readers.  There is also a list of Chart-Toppers: Aretha Franklin's Biggest Hits.  I highly recommend this title for your professional and personal bookshelves.  You might want to pair this title with A Voice Named Aretha written by Katheryn Russell-Brown with illustrations by Laura Freeman.

To discover more about Carole Boston Weatherford and Frank Morrison and their other work, please follow the link attached to their names to access their websites.  Carole Boston Weatherford has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Frank Morrison has accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  At the publisher's website you can view the entire dust jacket, back to front.

Be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the other titles selected this week by participants in the 2020 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

Courtly Contenders

Any time of the year, anywhere in the world, it is guaranteed a sporting event is taking place in which the opponents have the spectators rooting for a favorite with every fiber of their being.  Why they cheer for one over the other is usually based on a combination of reasons.  They may believe one is superior in skill.  They may focus on the challenger from their home town, state or country.  They may have a connection from having played the sport themselves.  They may even know one or more of the participants personally.

Some rivalries last for a season.  Others have been going on for as long as anyone living can remember.  Martina & Chrissie: The Greatest Rivalry in the History of Sports (Candlewick Press, March 14, 2017) written by Phil Bildner with illustrations by Brett Helquist gives readers the reasons this competitive relationship is decidedly distinctive.

Hey, guys---
yeah, I'm talking to you.
You see those two names on the cover?
Martina and Chrissie?
That's Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert.

If you have never heard of Martina and Chrissie, the narrator of this book is about to reveal the most interesting things you need to know.  To begin we meet Chrissie who was born and raised in the state of Florida. Between five years of age and eighth grade she managed to perfect her game to be ranked the number one tennis player in the country.  Her persona on the court was one of quiet determination.  Her distinguishing two-handed backhand was legendary.

She was still in her teens when she played in her first Grand Slam tournament.  She didn't win but she never gave up, fighting her way back to take a match.  You better believe the crowd was cheering for Chrissie Evert.

Martina was from Czechoslovakia.  At the early age of four and a half you could see her swinging a tennis racket and hitting balls.  By the age of fifteen, she was the national champion.

One could say Martina's demeanor when playing was super-charged with emotion.  This woman's feelings were released for the entire world to see.  Her best strategy was rushing the net.  This was not typical for women tennis players but this is the way Martina wanted to play her game.

When Martina and Chrissie finally met on the tennis court, Chrissie won.  She did it again and again and again.  No one could beat her for five years.

Given this competition between the two you would consider them adversaries.  Add in the fact one is from the United States and the other is from a Communist country during the Cold War era, you would expect them to hardly speak.  This was not the case.  They were the best of friends.

After Martina won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon their rivalry was stepped up a notch.  Spectators never knew from year to year who would be the champion or who would be the runner-up.  In the midst of this constant exchange of being the best of the best, a new coach challenged their friendship.  It was tested.  After all was said and done, who was the winner?


Imagine sitting in a room with a circle of friends.  You are about to hear a story of one of the greatest rivalries in sport's history.  You lean in toward a guy who looks you straight in the eyes and starts chatting about two of the best female athletes in tennis.  This is exactly the way you feel when reading the words penned by Phil Bildner.  It's as if the setting wherever you are reading vanishes and you are in the same space with him.

His delivery is eager and passionate.  We know this because the enthusiasm he has for his subjects is conveyed through his sentence structure, word choices and punctuation.  For emphasis and to create a cadence he repeats certain key words.  Here is a sample passage.

Chrissie was this All-American girl.
Patience and poise and precision.
Calm and collected and completely in control.
Her ground strokes were perfect, perfect.
From the baseline, she was automatic, automatic.
And that two-handed backhand of hers---oh, man!
Everyone copied the way she hit it.
EVERYONE!


Rendered in acrylic and oil on paper the illustrations by Brett Helquist we first see on the matching dust jacket and book case (and throughout the title) are utter excellence.  Look at the design on the front.  The net holds the title text.  The two opponents, the two friends on either side of the net, are eyeing each other, ready for action.  To the left, on the back, in the center is what appears to be a replica of a photograph of the duo when they are older.  They are walking off the court side by side, holding their rackets.  Martina has her arm around Chrissie's shoulders.  The opening and closing endpapers are a deep, bright teal blue.

When featuring Chrissie, Helquist has a golden wash to his images.  For Martina the color is hues of blue.  Regardless of the size of the illustration, which he alters to heighten the narrative, there is intensity in the facial expressions and body movements.  To portray the emotional nature of Martina, he brings us very close to her face at one point.

The close-ups of the crowd scenes during games will have you pausing to look at each person in the stands.  When a match is being played he alters his style going from Chrissie to Martina almost like panels in a graphic novel.  He uses a thicker white line to separate the action, placing the frames on a diagonal.  Like the game of tennis, his images are dynamic and lively.

One of my favorite illustrations of many is when Martina and Chrissie are younger.  They are seated at a table eating lunch.  Martina is speaking and Chrissie is listening with a smile on her face.  It is an intimate moment during their friendship.  They nearly fill the left page with the table extending to the right.  A small bouquet is setting on the table with the text above it.  In this case the background color is a wash of purples.


I have already read this book not once, not twice, not three times but four times!  The words of Phil Bildner complemented by the art of Brett Helquist make Martina & Chrissie: The Greatest Rivalry in the History of Sports one of my favorite picture book biographies of 2017.  I highly recommend it for your personal and professional bookshelves.  There is a three page timeline of Martina and Chrissie Through The Years at the conclusion of the book.  It is followed by a list of sources, books, articles, audiovisual and websites.  It's also important to note that Phil, with clarity, explains the Cold War in the context of his narrative keeping the flow going.

To learn more about Phil Bildner and Brett Helquist and their other work please visit their websites by following the links attached to their names.  Brett maintains a blog here.  You can view an interior image at the publisher's website.  Phil chats about the book at educator Alyson Beecher's website, Kid Lit Frenzy, during the cover reveal.  Educator Michele Knott offers talking points for this title on her blog, Mrs. Knott's Book Nook.  Enjoy the book trailer.






I hope you will all take a moment to stop by Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to view the other selections by bloggers participating in the 2017 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

Deep Sea Dreams

A book was published in February of 1974 with one of the most haunting scenes I had (or have) every read.  Serious consideration was given to not completing the story given the fear those descriptive moments created.  As I recall the passage it spoke to those horrific, unforeseen minutes of fear which can happen, when something comes out of the dark to change our lives permanently.

Even knowing what was coursing through the water toward the nighttime swimmer, I was one of hundreds of viewers screaming and lifting my feet from the floor, as we watched Steven Spielberg's movie interpretation of Peter Benchley's Jaws in the summer of 1975.  You don't forget that kind of terror. In her Author's Note Heather Lang talks about her fear of sharks sparked by the movie as a child but also how it drove her to learn as much as possible about a trailblazing woman.  Swimming With Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark (Albert Whitman & Company, December 1, 2016) illustrated by Jordi Solano is one of those stunning picture book biographies highlighting an incredibly brave human being determined to disprove the status quo.

Little Genie stood on the railing and pressed her face against the mysterious glass tank.

While others feared what she watched, she found these fish fascinating.  She dreamt of being in the water with them.  She wanted to swim with sharks!

On Saturday mornings she returned to the aquarium in New York City, chatting with people who came to the tank and educating them about sharks. To support her passion her mother saved money to get her a fish tank of her own.  This girl read, studied and asked questions about sharks.  She was determined to become a fish scientist.  Today this might not seem like an impossible dream but in the 1930s it was unheard of for a woman to follow this career path.

In college she took every class she could to work her way toward her goal, graduating with a degree in zoology.  Fortunately a famous someone recognized her merits.  Genie was a research assistant in California for an ichthyologist!  She lived in the water acquainting herself with every aspect of life under the surface of the ocean.

When she was twenty-seven years old and conducting a study for the US Navy, her dream came true.  Underwater collecting fish, a huge shark swam up behind her!  As still as stone Genie watched it dive deep and away.

She built a laboratory in Florida complete with a shark pen devoting herself to learning as much as she could about these often misunderstood fish.  Specific interactions would prove such things as sharks are clever, some are gentle and sharks are sophisticated.  Eugenie Clark spent a lifetime (actually diving when in her nineties) devoted to sharks and their preservation along with all marine life.


When you read about a woman like Eugenie Clark brought to life by the writing of Heather Lang you are astonished at her accomplishments, one giant step at a time.  Research and a visit with Eugenie Clark prior to her death in 2015 allow her to give us up-close-and-personal information about this remarkable pioneer in her field.  Her depictions of these incidents are vivid enough to bring us into the place and time.  The technique of including pieces of notebook paper with shark notes on them as part of the images brings us closer to her scientific revelations.  Here is a passage.

The ocean became her classroom!  Genie collected fish and studied them.  She took water samples.  She dissected a swell shark to investigate how and why it puffs up.

Wearing a face mask, Genie explored the underwater world for the first time.  Its beauty mesmerized her.  Genie couldn't wait to dive deeper, stay under water longer, and maybe even see some sharks.


Painted digitally after hand-drawn images are scanned into his computer Jordi Solano supplies readers with a world so real we expect the sharks to swim right off the pages.  The illustration on the matching dust jacket and book case on the front, the right, is extended over the spine giving us an expanded view of the aquarium tank and a fourth shark.  Even though Genie is on the outside looking in at the sharks, this initial picture seems to predict her astounding future with these creatures.

The opening and closing endpapers done in two hues of blue feature the outlines of many different types of sharks.  Beneath the text on the title page a loose circle surrounds Genie with her hands pressed against the glass at the shark tank.  Most of the images span two pages.  Solano's use of shading and shadow and his shifts in perspective give each illustration a deep sense of atmosphere and emotion.

For the first two page image we again see Genie, face against the glass at the aquarium, but this time we are closer to her and seeing her as if we are in the tank; it's a shark's eye view.  When Genie dives it's as if we are there with her.  All the shimmering shades of the ocean depths are shown.  Each picture is a study of Genie and her love of sharks.

One of my many favorite pictures is after Genie's mother buys her a fish tank.  On a single page, taking up nearly the entire area, is the tank filled with plants and tiny fish.  Behind them is the face of Genie, eyes wide open and watching everything in motion.  Solano has her hair on the outside blend with the plants on the inside.  The play of dark and light is wonderful.


After reading a title like Swimming With Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark written by Heather Lang with illustrations by Jordi Solano you find yourself first thankful for this woman and second hoping this story will inspire other women to pursue their heart's desire no matter what road blocks attempt to dissuade them.  Eugenie Clark fought against norms and prejudice and won herself a place as a highly respected scientist.  This is an excellent picture book biography!  There is, as mentioned above, an Author's Note, a More about Sharks page and a list of Selected Sources.

To learn more about Heather Lang and Jordi Solano please visit their websites by following the links attached to their names.  Heather Lang has a multitude of resources about Eugenie Clark and sharks on the page for this title.  There is a six page teacher's guide.  At the publisher's website you can get a peek inside the book including one of my favorite illustrations.  At the publisher's blog illustrator Jordi Solano talks about his process for this title.  This is his first picture book.  Scholastic's Ambassador of School Libraries, John Schumacher, showcases the book trailer premiere with commentary by Heather Lang on his blog, Watch. Connect. Read.  Heather Lang is a guest writer at the Nerdy Book Club speaking about research for nonfiction and fiction children's literature titles.  This title has been nominated at the Amelia Bloomer Project.

As this year is nearly at a close please be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy hosted by educator Alyson Beecher to see the other titles selected this week by those participating in the 2016 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge.

Piecing Together A Life

Some people have the gift of looking at something, realizing its potential to be almost anything.  They see the world in hues of color, assorted textures and a plethora of designs. These colors, textures and designs are gathered into their minds; many times they are literally collected to be used later. Their life is lived outside the box.

For nearly three decades author illustrator Lois Ehlert has created, with her wonderful sense of color, use of texture and uniquely designed collage illustrations, picture books for people of all ages.  We are entranced by their beauty as we follow a story or learn more about the simple, everyday things which surround us inside and outside our homes.  In her newest title, The Scraps Book:  Notes from a Colorful Life (Beach Lane Books), page by page, picture by picture, she takes us on a joyous journey, the evolution of her life as an artist, an author and an illustrator.

When I was little,
I read all the books
on the library shelf,
and I thought
maybe someday
I could make
a book.

Fortunately for Lois, both her parents encouraged her artistic undertakings.  As a seamstress her mother had many pieces of fabric and embellishments she shared with Lois.  From her father's workshop she was given pieces of wood.  Both passed on their skills to her and shared their tools. (She still uses her Mom's pinking shears and her Dad's paintbrush.)

A cherished childhood art table, art school, a job in an art studio by day and nights filled with book ideas, fed this artist's soul.  Grocery stores, gardens, a mischievous squirrel, a visit to an aquarium or a family member's home provided ideas which became stories.  Once written she sketched out the entire book page by page.

It was (and still is) a slow process perfecting the precise combination of text and images to tell the envisioned story.  Then the art was (is) painstakingly formed; cutting, painting, shaping and gluing everything into its predetermined space.  Bits and pieces were everywhere as Lois worked; a portion of a pizza pan became a dog's tag, a zipper his mouth and a pop can top his nose.

Photographs, painted, real and found objects, crazy tools for one-of-a-kind patterns all contribute to the style that is Lois Ehlert's alone.  If what she needs is not in her work space, she walks outside until she finds the special necessary element.  A page is not complete until it's utterly flawless.  All you have to do is open any of her books to know this is true.


Using the same informal simple sentences found in all her books, Lois Ehlert explains to readers how

Art chose me. 

from the time she was a little girl. In addition to these one, two or three sentences expressing a thought or process, she has labeled photographs, illustrations from previous books, artistic materials, notes, dummies, sketches, and personal collections on every single page.  On the final four pages she poses a query, offers encouragement and like a fairy godmother sends a wish out to the reader.

Using white to make the cheerful colors on the matching dust jacket and book case call out a welcoming hello to readers, Lois Ehlert envelopes us in her artistic world.  The opening and closing endpapers feature collages of photographed good stuff.  The formal title pages continue this theme; a collection of fonts spelling out Scraps.  With a page turn we are greeted with a frog found in two of her books on the left.  On the right in a bright, bold square text we read:

DON'T 
READ
THIS
BOOK
(unless you love books and art)

Pages are illustrated with photographs, artwork from her books, artistic tools, materials, notes, sketches, preliminary narratives, word lists, and book dummies; many held in place with paperclips.  Some of them convey a single thought on a single page with a separate visual.  Many of the illustrations cross the gutter in a splendiferous array.

I enjoyed every page in this book.  Those including sketches and book dummies with the finished artwork are wonderful.  One of my favorite two pages of illustrations are taken from Ten Little Caterpillars and Waiting for Wings.  They are filled with warmth and vibrancy.


During my first day at the American Library Association Annual Conference and Exhibition 2013 in Chicago last June, I had the unexpected pleasure of meeting Lois Ehlert.  As I was waiting in line to speak with her, I was given a mock-up of this book to read by her (I think) editor, Allyn Johnston.  At the time I knew it would be an amazing book.  Trust me when I say, The Scraps Book: Notes from a Colorful Life written and illustrated by Lois Ehlert is amazing with an A+!  It's a museum of her life's work.  It will find a place in my selection of Mock Caldecott books for 2015.


For each of the years I have worked with elementary students, I have done an author study of Lois Ehlert during the time when I am conducting the Mock Caldecott unit with the older students.  One of the highlights of this time is the viewing of her video Get to Know Lois Ehlert (Harcourt Brace).  As with Skype visits this personal connection to authors and illustrators makes their work come alive for readers.

In my personal collection of Lois Ehlert books I have nineteen of the thirty-five titles pictured at the end of this book.  I feel very luck to have one of the original Hands books in the shape of a glove.

Please follow this link to the publisher's website to see pages from this book.  Here is a link to an interview conducted by Julie Danielson at BookPage.  Robin Smith conducted an interview at The Horn Book.  Enjoy the video interview conducted by Reading Rockets.  Here is the link to their site where there are five videos all together.  

I really enjoy participating in the 2014 Nonfiction Picture Book Challenge hosted by Alyson Beecher at Kid Lit Frenzy each week.  It is one of the best spots to see what nonfiction picture books others are reading.