Spotlights a commendable role model and his rich heritage.
A nation honors an extraordinary warrior who never forgot his identity.
Every year since 1942, the Osage people have sung their ceremonial drum song to remember the first Native American general, Clarence Tinker, who was killed during the Battle of Midway in World War II. Rogers (Wichita) shares Major General Clarence Tinker’s heartaches and successes and honors his legacy of service. She explains how, years before he was born, the Osage were removed from their land by European settlers. As a child, Tinker was sent to boarding school and made to give up his Indigenous customs. He refused to forget them, however, and constantly reminded himself that he was Osage. He joined the Army Air Corps and longed to serve in World War I, but his commanding officer wouldn’t allow it. (“Is it because I am Osage?” he wondered.) He eventually realized his dream of becoming a pilot, and in 1942, he became the highest-ranking Indigenous American in history. The repeated phrase “I am Osage” establishes a rhythm throughout the story, like a drum beat, and appears at pivotal points in Tinker’s life. Von Martin’s bold, photorealistic images complement the text; lighter, superimposed images of his ancestors make it clear that Tinker’s Osage identity was a constant source of strength. Rogers’ storytelling brings to life a kindhearted, resilient historical figure who was devoted to his community.
Spotlights a commendable role model and his rich heritage. (author’s note, Osage and Wichita history, timeline, note from author-curator of Heartdrum) (Picture-book biography. 6-10)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9780063081161
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Heartdrum
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era.
The New Orleans school child who famously broke the color line in 1960 while surrounded by federal marshals describes the early days of her experience from a 6-year-old’s perspective.
Bridges told her tale to younger children in 2009’s Ruby Bridges Goes to School, but here the sensibility is more personal, and the sometimes-shocking historical photos have been replaced by uplifting painted scenes. “I didn’t find out what being ‘the first’ really meant until the day I arrived at this new school,” she writes. Unfrightened by the crowd of “screaming white people” that greets her at the school’s door (she thinks it’s like Mardi Gras) but surprised to find herself the only child in her classroom, and even the entire building, she gradually realizes the significance of her act as (in Smith’s illustration) she compares a small personal photo to the all-White class photos posted on a bulletin board and sees the difference. As she reflects on her new understanding, symbolic scenes first depict other dark-skinned children marching into classes in her wake to friendly greetings from lighter-skinned classmates (“School is just school,” she sensibly concludes, “and kids are just kids”) and finally an image of the bright-eyed icon posed next to a soaring bridge of reconciliation. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era. (author and illustrator notes, glossary) (Autobiographical picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-75388-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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