# 37- Sojourner Truth’s Step-Stomp Stride

Sojourner Truth’s Step-Stomp Stride (2009)

Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney

This vibrantly illustrated book echoes the voice projected by historical figure Sojourner Truth, following her from her early days as a slave named Belle to a vocal feminist with her own name.

Illustrations are sketches that portray movement and intimate close-ups with the main character. In each scene Sojourner’s posture mirrors the confidence that the narrative describes. She lifts her arms up expressively before a crowd on one page. The warm yellow palette and sound effects highlight the force with which Sojourner shares her ideas with her society. This story’s narrative also echoes African American dialect of the period, as well as including some of Sojourner’s famous quotes. She proclaims, “Ain’t I a Woman,” and the narration gives this powerful statement context that can be interpreted by children.

Students will enjoy learning about Sojourner Truth’s beaming personality and the injustices she suffered in this picturebook. Teachers can introduce or contextualize the word “abolitionist” using this text. Particularly interesting is the portion about how Olive Gilbrert documented her story, which was published in 1850 as “The Narrative of Sojourner Truth, A Northern Slave.”

# 36- A Library for Juana: The World of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

A Library for Juana:

The World of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (2002)

Pat Mora

Illustrated by Beatriz Vidal

After appreciating the poetry of Sor Juana as a college student, I was ecstatic to find this book. Mora tells the story of the inquisitive Juana as a child, always reading and questioning her world.

On the first page, young Juana is pictured surrounded by books, with images from her books floating above her. Like many picture biographies, the story tells an overview of the poet’s life. Juana “cared more about her books than her looks,” as a child, spending her time reading and writing plays, songs, riddles, and rhymes. Mora includes a glossary of Spanish terms and an author’s note with additional information.

Vidal does an excellent job of portraying this artist’s life in a bright palette using watercolor and gouache. The book mentions that the technique is similar to that used for illuminated manuscripts more than 100 years ago, a detail that gives more authenticity to the story and links it with the time period. Illustrations are framed by a white border, portraying the story of the social world that surrounded Sor Juana. One full page spread, also on the back cover, shows a crowd in a marketplace or plaza full of movement and vendors selling everything from fruits and vegetables to calla lilies. Another page shows Juana as a young woman, seated at a tremendous round table with male scholars who asked her questions to prove her intelligence. The pages with text alternate from verso to recto and include elegantly drawn vignettes that add to the narrative.

This is an important story that brings up issues of justice. Though Sor Juana’s poems may be difficult for children to interpret, Pat Mora and Beatriz Vidal have created a biography that younger readers can appreciate.

# 23- Diego Rivera: His World and Ours

Diego Rivera: His World and Ours (2011)

Duncan Tonatiuh

Tonatiuh’s collage illustrations in his version of this famous Mexican muralist and painter’s biography bring the pages alive with texture. Starting with the opening, readers will want to notice how the hair on Diego’s head is a glossy cutout of a photograph of real hair, the way the books on the shelf shine, and how the pants he wears are cutouts of green tweed. Other examples throughout the book abound, each outlined boldly in black marker.

The faces of the people in this book are all profiles, drawn in the likeness of Mayan and Aztec hieroglyphics. I thought of the illustrations of the Popol Vuh. Scenes like the struggle of Mexican independence and an eclectic combination of modern and traditional activities that take place in Diego’s native country are featured in this book, brilliantly relating to modern day life. One double page spread pictures a paper airplane zooming through the air, roller skates, remote controlled cars and planes, and a laptop computers. Like the text, they challenge the reader to imagine what the artist would paint if he were alive today.

Children will easily relate to these engaging illustrations, especially the scene of the Lucha Libre men in the ring and a scene with aliens in outer space.

There is also a glossary of words and references and a more detailed author’s note about Rivera, as well as an image of “The Great City of Tenochtitlán” that was the inspiration for some of the illustrations.

# 33- José! Born to Dance (2005)

José! Born to Dance (2005)

Susanna Reich

Illustrated by Raúl Colón

Tomás Rivera Mexican-American Children’s Book Award

This biography of Mexican dancer José Limón tells a story of one creative artist’s quest to find his passion. What I most enjoy about the story is how José practices and develops many different talents in his life, such as drawing and playing the piano, before he finds his passion for dance.

José grows up during the civil war in México and after his family is forced to hide in the cellar for three days and three nights, they immigrate to the U.S. He grows up dreaming about being an artist an “is famous for his pictures of trains” among his siblings.

As a young adult, José grieves the death of his mother, works in a factory, and dreams of living in New York someday. When he moves there and takes a job as a janitor, however, José becomes discouraged by the works of art he sees in museums and grows lonely. It is when a friend invites him to see dancers that he finds his true passion and “became what he was born to be.”

Colón’s textured paintings feature images that give the reader a sense of being enclosed with his use of lines. In the background of the illustrations that alternate from verso to recto, the round shapes of José and other characters are always framed by photograph frames, a blackboard, and several doors, walls and windows. The somber colors in most of the book portray the main character’s times of suffering, and color enters when José finds joy in his creative endeavors.

The endpages include a historical note about Limón, as well as a bibliography. Teachers and students may enjoy using some of these resources to compare the narrative story with facts and discuss the author and illustrator’s interpretations.

# 29- Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: A story of the Young Jimi Hendrix (2010)

Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: A story of the Young Jimi Hendrix (2010)

by Gary Golio

Illustrations by Javaka Steptoe

In this biography about the childhood of Jimmy Hendrix, Javaka Steptoe features several closeups that portray the astute musical personality of the artist. In the endpages of the book, Steptoe explains how he got to know Jimmy. “You have to do things they did, see the things they saw,” he relates, telling readers how he visited the elementary school the musician attended and picked up an electric guitar.

Steptoe used acrylic on plywood and created a collage to capture the sound, vibrations, look and feel of the guitars. Each spread in the book is a full page bleed rich with sounds and colors that elaborate on the details offered by Golio in the text. Some of these spreads are vertical, giving the reader a sense of Jimi’s ever-changing life and how he “moved around a lot.”

“The sounds of life were calling out, and Jimmy Hendrix wanted to answer them,” Golio narrates, pointing out the everyday sounds that Jimmy heard as music and imitated in a variety of ways. The author also points out Jimmy’s musical inspiration, such as gospel, jazz, blues, and Muddy Waters. Readers will want to listen Hendrix’s music, as well as to these influential styles and artists to gain a better sense of the artist’s experiences.

The endpages of the book feature additional information about Jimi, as well as insights into the creative processes of both author and illustrator.

# 26- Lost City: The Discovery of Machu Picchu, (2003)

Lost City: The Discovery of Machu Picchu, (2003)

Ted Levin

Levin has created a beautifully realistic watercolor experience for readers in this historical tale about Hiram Bingham’s search in 1911 for Vilcapampa, the lost city of the Inca. Instead the explorer, with the help of a small Quechua boy as his guide, comes across the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu in Perú.

The endpapers encountered as the reader opens the book’s cover depict the lush greenery of the forest, and each watercolor and pencil full-page spread provides a new perspective of the enchanted scenes that Bingham explores. The artist’s cool tones depict scenes rich with depth and perspective, picturing vibrant iris mountains, grey stone ruins, and a sky highlighted in a warm orange hue. As we accompany Bingham on his journey, readers marvel at the sites constructed by the Inca and wonder how they were constructed alongside the explorer. We, too, are led by his young guide who utters phrases in Quechua to discover something other than what Bingham was searching for. The boy is featured smiling in a square frame on the back cover of the book, his bright red clothing contrasting with the lush greenery behind him.

In the author’s note, Levin shares that the most exciting part of working on the paintings was the challenge of re-creating Machu Picchu as it must have looked under 500 years’ worth of vegetation. Students will enjoy taking the journey through the picturesque imagery in this text, highlighted with pieces of the Quechua language and rich with historical detail and a sense of awe. A study of factual information about the Inca, Machu Picchu, and Bingham’s exploration can deepen the experience for older readers.

# 20- Snowflake Bentley (1998)

Snowflake Bentley (1998)

Jacqueline Biggs Martin

Illustrated by Mary Azarian

Caldecott Medal

This award-winning book features a narrative biography alongside an informative piece about Wilson Bentley, a pioneer photographer who specialized in micro-photography. The narrative text tells of the passion that Willie felt for observing, illustrating, and then photographing snowflakes throughout his life. The story includes the voices of his loving parents, who purchased the microscopic camera that he dreamed of having as well as the skeptical neighbors who laughed at his ideas. On a panel on many of the pages the reader will find additional information about Bentley told in a more informative tone.

Azarian’s framed ink and watercolor illustrations appropriately look like woodcuts for this biography set in the 19^th century. The informative panels are decorated with unique snowflakes, and most of the pages are covered in snow to represent Willie’s passion.

# 6- Magic Trash, A Story of Tyree Guyton & His Art (2011)

Magic Trash, A Story of Tyree Guyton & His Art (2011)

J.H. Shapiro

Illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton

This book brings to mind the phrase “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” telling the story of Tyree Garden, a painter and sculptor who used trash and color to create art.

Brantley-Newton uses mixed media to illustrate Guyton’s biography. The coollages include text in the framework of buildings, cutouts of brand names and images, keys, buttons, bottle caps, and other realia. Like Guyton, the artist has “zapped fun into amazing junk that others tossed away.”

The narrative in this story has the potential to inspire students to continue developing their talent throughout their lives. Tyree experiences shifting neighborhoods, riots, as well as taking on many forms of employment (soldier, car part inspector, firefighter). Though his parents warn him that being an artist is “not a job,” Tyree persists and decorates his street as an adult. The endpages feature actual photographs of the polka dotted house in the illustrations alongside a picture of the artist.

# 2- The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer’s Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors (2009)

The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer’s Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors (2009)

Chris Barton

Illustrated by Tony Persiani

This brilliant picturebook about the inventors of Day-Glo offers an inspiring story with several science and social studies connections.

The storyline follows brothers Joe and Bob through their experimentation with neon colors and emphasizes their persistence in improving the product they developed throughout their lives. Initially, Joe used their discovery to create illusions for his magic shows, and Bob thought of more practical uses for the colors that could pay his medical bills after an accident thwarted his dreams of becoming a doctor. Barton later reveals important uses for day-glo and fluorescent colors, including a variety of uses during World War II.

Persiani’s strategic use of neon color in the book mirrors the brothers’ enlightenment as each discovery is made. The first pages engage the reader by depicting impossible scenes like neon green pyramids and a bright orange Statue of Liberty, then going on to explain the discoveries made by the Switzer brothers. The drawings look like 1950s cartoons and feature a black and white palette. Neon images in the digitally created scenes highlight the discoveries and various uses of fluorescence and Day-Glo.

The endpages feature bright neon yellow, orange and green tones that appear throughout the book, as well as a section explaining the differences and basic scientific principles behind fluorescence and Day-Glo. There is also a link to an animation about how regular, fluorescent, and daylight fluorescence work: www.charlesbridge.com/day-glo-animation.html

Children will be inspired to explore their surroundings and make the best of the situations they find themselves in just as the Switzer brothers did. Teachers will enjoy the delightful science connection in this book, and will want to point out how Joe’s original idea began as he read his favorite magazine, Popular Science.