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liftyourheavyeyelids's review against another edition
5.0
The illustrations are wonderful, and this would be a great book to use to help introduce poetry to a child, or to help a child find a poet they would like to explore more.
crystal_reading's review against another edition
5.0
Ashley Bryan collected a poem for each letter of the alphabet. Each poem was written by an African American and each highlights a letter though the letter may appear anywhere in the poem and anywhere in a word. He then created some fabulous illustrations that pertain to the word or phrase in the poem that is highlighted. I especially enjoyed the excerpt from Langston Hughes' poem Refugee in America, but there were many others that I will be using with students for poetry month and all year long.
worldlibraries's review against another edition
2.0
This is a lovely book.
That said, using ABCs as an organizing principal is irrelevant to the mission of this book. The mission of this book is to inspire people to discover new African-American poets and their poetry and enjoy Ashley Bryan's illustrations of said poems. Any young people who would be learning ABCs are way too young for the poetry presented here. This causes using the ABCs as an organizing principal to feel gimmicky and as a sales tool.
A second problem with this book: what child will read it? This poetry, easily appreciated by adults, would not be something a child would be drawn to on their own. It's okay for this to be a picture book for adults, but the ABC focus in the title causes most people to buy it thinking it will be for children. Crossed purposes, yes?
That said, using ABCs as an organizing principal is irrelevant to the mission of this book. The mission of this book is to inspire people to discover new African-American poets and their poetry and enjoy Ashley Bryan's illustrations of said poems. Any young people who would be learning ABCs are way too young for the poetry presented here. This causes using the ABCs as an organizing principal to feel gimmicky and as a sales tool.
A second problem with this book: what child will read it? This poetry, easily appreciated by adults, would not be something a child would be drawn to on their own. It's okay for this to be a picture book for adults, but the ABC focus in the title causes most people to buy it thinking it will be for children. Crossed purposes, yes?
cetaylor05's review against another edition
5.0
According to the Forward in which the author explains the artistic process that resulted in his work, this book is unlike a traditional alphabet book in that it is “not so much to teach the alphabet to the very young, but to introduce a world of poetry and art to all children.” Bryan employs a joyous tone to celebrate various aspects of the black experience, using “only the lines of the poems which inspired the images and capitalizing the alphabet letter wherever it occurred in those lines.” Bryan’s use of tempera and gouache paints in a bright color palette as well as a heavy brush stroke provide a texture and depth to the illustrations that is mimetic of the cultural richness he showcases. The author extends the text with his illustrations by introducing this technique on the title pages where the book’s folk art style is used to create patterned borders that are reminiscent of kente cloth and sustaining the technique in his depiction of the subjects’ skin tones and the fabrics they wear. The artistic revelry is strictly contained by and balanced within a large frame on each opening that regiments the placement of the poetry, the appropriate letter, and the poet’s name on the backdrop of the illustration. Bryan’s litany closes not with the letter Z but with acknowledgements that list the sources for all of the poems.
ubalstecha's review against another edition
4.0
A picture book that cites selections from notable African American poets as the basis of the ABCs. Each letter can be found within the quotation.
Mean for older children, this is a great book for teachers looking to introduce their students to the beauty of African American poetry. It is also a launching off point, giving names of poets for further reading.
Mean for older children, this is a great book for teachers looking to introduce their students to the beauty of African American poetry. It is also a launching off point, giving names of poets for further reading.
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
A very different ABC book which features stanzas accompanied by Bryan's colorful illustrations.
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