Way back somewhere in, oh, say, high school French class, it might have been, I once did a report on Josephine Baker. So I have been peripherally aware of her existence for some time. But how much one forgets in the decade (okay, 2 decades!) since high school.
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And so I was thrilled to receive an advance copy of
Chronicle Books'
Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker, by
Patricia Hruby Powell, to review for
Multicultural Children's Book Day.
The publisher sums up
Josephine thus:
In exuberant verse and stirring pictures, Patricia Hruby Powell and
Christian Robinson create an extraordinary portrait of the passionate
performer and civil rights advocate Josephine Baker, the woman who
worked her way from the slums of St. Louis to the grandest stages in the
world.
Well said, Chronicle Books. And here's my take:
What I loved:
The Artwork of
Christian Robinson
A fascinating life story is always a good start in a biography, but in the case of
Josephine, it is the
artwork that sets this book apart. Billed as a book for ages 7-10, and certainly appropriate for that range, the
artwork actually gives
Josephine the feel of an eclectic and quirky coffee table book, the likes of which one finds in the gift shops of the great art museums around the world.
Josephine is just as easily a book for adults as it is for children!
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| Click image to see more on Scribd. |
Multicultural Mentions
How fabulous that
Josephine mentions more than a dozen
countries (lending itself to some fun map exploration!), encourages the
bridging of racial boundaries, and promotes
world religions as being worthy of respect. What more could a world-focused family ask for in a book?!
The Inclusion of French
As the title of this post might attest, I am a huge fan of
code mixing. I love seeing, or writing, a few contextually obvious words of another language amidst the text of the primary language. Although fewer than 10 French expressions are included, they are fun ones, easily assimilated by language savvy kids.
C'est magnifique!
A caveat:
Mature Themes
As I mentioned, the artwork in
Josephine allows this book to be enjoyed long past the 10-year old top margin it is billed for. On the other end of the spectrum, however, some 7 year old children may not be ready for the
depth and breadth of issues mentioned in
Josephine. You might want to wait on
Josephine for a year or two if your 7 year old has had minimal exposure to
concepts and vocabulary such as: nickel whisky shots, race riots, the term "out of wedlock", multiple marriages/divorces, the description of men in white hoods (whose name I won't mention, to avoid coming up in web searches), etc. Children will certainly face all these topics eventually, but it could be a lot all at once for some 7 year olds, so judge your audience wisely.
Thank you!
From beginning to end, I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with
Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker. Many thanks to Chronicle Books for sending it, and a heartfelt congratulations to author Patricia Hruby Powell and artist Christian Robinson on their job well done! I wish you many successes with
Josephine, and your future endeavors!
Just in time for the the release of
Josephine, Chronicle Books is offering some fun
FREE materials for children.
And of course,
Many thanks to the generous sponsors of Multicultural Children's Book Day!
