An adoring and inspirational life story, as ardent as its subject.
A vigorous biography of politician and activist Bella Abzug (1920-1998).
Aronson begins by grounding Abzug’s progressive worldviews in her Jewish childhood and highlighting her outspoken subject’s earliest feats of activism, including reciting Kaddish for her father at age 13 in the men’s section of a gender-segregated synagogue. Abzug’s work fundraising for Zionist organizations is briefly mentioned; some readers may wish for more context. Covering her law career and political involvement—Abzug was the second Jewish woman to serve in Congress—Aronson touches on prominent allies such as Gloria Steinem and Shirley Chisholm as well as her critics’ dismissals. D’Aquino’s expressionistic ink, colored pencil, and wax crayon illustrations match Aronson’s verve and admiration, spotlighting Abzug in vivid reds and depicting her in open-mouthed poses to demonstrate her relentless campaigning for social change. The author’s fervent rhetoric sometimes results in confusing moments. Her explanation for why Abzug wore hats—“she had to wear hats, because those wide-brimmed beauties represented authority and power”—may not make sense to all readers, but many will be swept past these occasional flourishes by the combined force of Abzug’s and Aronson’s determination. An author’s note offers more information about Abzug’s beliefs and causes, from the well known (Title IX) to the overlooked (the Equal Credit Opportunity Act).
An adoring and inspirational life story, as ardent as its subject. (author’s note, timeline, bibliography, photos, photo credits) (Picture-book biography. 5-10)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781635928075
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Calkins Creek/Astra Books for Young Readers
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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Bridges Goes to School, but here the sensibility is more personal, and the sometimes-shocking historical photos have been replaced by uplifting painted scenes.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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