Elvis is King!

Schwartz & Wade
(Penguin Random House)
(pub. 1.8.2019) 
40 pages

A True Tale with
A Cherry On Top   

A uthor:  Jonah Winter

 and illustrator:
 Red Nose Studio
 
C haracter: Elvis Presley

O verview: 
     "Here’s the perfect book for anyone who wants to introduce rock ‘n’ roll and its king to the child in their lives. In single- page “chapters” with titles like “The First Cheeseburger Ever Eaten by Elvis” and “Shazam! A Blond Boy Turns into a Black-Haired Teenager,” readers can follow key moments in Presley’s life, from his birth on the wrong side of the railroad tracks in the Deep South, to playing his first guitar in grade school, to being so nervous during a performance as a teenager that he starts shaking . . . and changes the world!

       Jonah Winter and Red Nose Studio have created a tour-de-force that captures a boy’s loneliness and longing, along with the energy and excitement, passion, and raw talent that was Elvis Presley."

T antalizing taste: 

     "Elvis Tries to Make a *Real* Record

     But - he's just sitting in this chair,
     not moving, not excited,
     no feeling in his voice.
     The recording guy just shakes his head.

     Elvis Tries to Make a *Real* Record (Take Two)]

     So, Elvis and the other musicians are goofing around
     during a break - having fun with a popular blues song
     called 'That's All Right.'
     Elvis is standing up now and shaking his hips
     and doing these crazy moves with his knees  
     and making his voice all wobbly.
     The recording guy perks up:
     'LET'S RECORD THAT!'

And something more: Jonah Winter's Author's Note includes a detailed background about Elvis Presley and his success, including the following: "What is most amazing is just how fast Elvis went from being a shy, stuttering teenager to being on top of the pop music world... Elvis was the biggest music star in America - and he was only twenty-one years old.
     It is undeniable that Elvis owed much of his success to the essential fact that he was white during a era of massive discrimination against African Americans, an era when the music world was blatantly segregated. The first person to record him... was looking for a white musician to play 'black music' for white teenagers.... 
     Elvis took inspiration from anywhere he could find it --  rhythm and blues gospel, country and western, and crooners... he was always at heart a country boy. And this is why I have included Southern dialect here and there. I am from the South, and my ancestors are from Mississippi and Alabama. My Texas grandmother, one of my favorite people of all time, used to  say 'Good Lordy Mercy!' - as do many people from this part of the world. I included such phrases out of love and compassion."

SUPERHEROES Are Everywhere

Philomel Books
(Penguin Random House)

(pub. 1.8.2019) 
 40 pages

A True Tale with
A Cherry On Top   

 A uthor:  Kamala Harris

        and illustrator: 
        Mechal Renee Roe
 
C haracter: Kamala Harris

O verview from the front flap: 
     "Before Kamala Harris became a lawyer and a United States senator, she was a little girl who loved superheroesl 
      And when she looked around, she was amazed to find them everywhere! In her family, among her friends, even down the street there were superheroes wherever she looked. And those superheroes showed her that all you need to do to be a superhero is to be the best that you can be.

     In this empowering and joyful picture-book memoir that speaks directly to kids, Kamala Harris takes readers through her life and shows the that the power to make the world a better place is inside all of us."

Tantalizing taste: 
     "My mom was a superhero because she made me feel special. She believed in me, and that helped me believe I could do anything.
     Who makes you feel special? ...
     
     My grandfather used his voice to make India a free country.
     All of my grandparents in India and in Jamaica were superheroes for standing up for what's right.
     Who stands up for what's right in your life? ...

     Teachers like Mrs. Wilson are superheroes because they show us the whole world and help us chase our dreams.
     Who are your favorite teachers?"


And something more: The short biography on the back flap of SUPERHEROES Are Everywhere explains that "Kamala Harris serves as a U.S. senator from California. Before becoming a senator, she worked in the Alameda County district attorney's office [and every time she had to stand before a judge, she was proud to say, 'Kamala Harris, for the people."] 
     And then she was elected district attorney of San Francisco and later elected attorney general of California.
     The second African American woman and the first person of Indian descent ever elected to the U.S. Senate, she works hard to make sure all people have equal rights, especially kids."

Sisters & Champions

The True Story of
Venus and Serena Williams

Philomel Books

(Penguin Random House)
(pub. 5.29.2018)

32 pages

A True Tale with
A Cherry On Top   

A uthor:  Howard Bryant
    and illustrator: Floyd Cooper

C haracters: Venus and Serena Williams

O verview from the jacket flap: 

     "Nobody thought sisters Venus and Serena Williams would become great, and certainly not as tennis players. People thought it was weird two black girls were playing tennis at all. They said the sister weren't supposed to dream so big. But the Williams family knew better.

     From their early days of childhood tennis matches to their record-breaking careers including Olympic gold medals and multiple number one rankings, this is the inspirational story of two sisters, their determination to succeed, and their unending love for each other.

     Written by acclaimed sports journalist Howard Bryant and brought to beautiful life by Coretta Scott King Award-winning illustrator Floyd Cooper, here is an in-depth look into the lives of two of the greatest tennis players of all time and the most successful siblings professional sports has ever produced."

T antalizing taste: 
      

      "The Williams family lived in Compton, a real tough, sometimes scary part of Los Angeles.  When Venus and Serena were four and three, Richard bought them tennis rackets, believing tennis treated girls more fairly than other sports, and, if his hunch was correct, that his girls would have an athletic advantage that would change the sport forever...

     Yet not all the talk was friendly.

     The sisters were different.

     Their skin was different.

     Their hair was different.

     Venus was tall. Really tall!

     And the way the sisters hit the ball - so hard, like the boys - even harder than the boys! - was different.

     In ways big and small, people reminded them of being different every day."

    

and something more: The text includes fascinating facts, such as the fact that in "February 2002, Venus was ranked NUMBER ONE in the world.  Six months later, it was Serena's turn to be NUMBER ONE! It is the only time in history two sisters, or brothers, were ranked first and second in the world."

Girl Running

Bobbi Gibb and the
Boston Marathon

Nancy Paulsen Books
(Penguin Young Reader Group)

(pub. 2.6.2018)
32 pages

A True Tale with
A Cherry On Top   

A uthor: Annette Bay Pimentel
    and illustrator: Micha Archer

C haracter: Bobbi Gibb

O verview from the jacket flap: 

     "The inspiring story of the first female Boston Marathon runner.
     Because Bobbi Gibb is a girl, she's not allowed to run on her school's track team. But after school, no one can stop her - and she runs to her heart's content. She is told she can't run again when she tries to enter the Boston Marathon in 1966, because women are just not considered capable of running such a long distance. So what does Bobbi do? She bravely sets out to prove the naysayers wrong and show the world just what a girl can do.
     This fascinating piece of history is brought to vivid life in stunning collages. Bobbi's story will inspire readers, who will cheer her on for her passion, talent, and persistence."

T antalizing taste: 
      

     "When Bobbi crosses the finish line on her bleeding feet, the crowd goes wild! The first woman has run the Boston Marathon!
     It has taken her three hours and twenty minutes. She comes in 124th. Two hundred ninety-one men are still huffing and puffing their way to the finish lie.
     Cameras click.
     Reporters scribble in their notebooks.
     Even the governor of Massachusetts has come to the finish line to shake Bobbi's hand.
     However, race officials refuse to give Bobbi a medal.
     They insist that rules are rules.
     But Bobbi has shown that it's time for some rules to change."

 
and something more: In the Afterword, Annette Bay Pimentel explains that after Bobbi Gibb first ran the Boston Marathon in 1966, she "ran the marathon again in 1967 and 1968, each time without official sanction and each time with more unofficial female runners competing against her. Women were not officially allowed to compete in the Boston Marathon until 1972.
     In 1996, Gibb was finally officially recognized as the female winner of the 1966, 1967, and 1968 Boston Marathons and her name was added to the list of winners inscribed on a monument at Copley Square in Boston."

Nice Work, Franklin!

Dial Books for Young Readers
(Penguin Random House)
(published 1.5.2016) 32 pages 

A True Tale
with A Cherry On Top 

A uthor: Suzanne Tripp Jurmain
      and Illustrator: Larry Day

C haracter: Franklin Roosevelt

O verview from the jacket flap: 

    "FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT wanted to be like his cousin PRESIDENT TEDDY ROOSEVELT. 
     He wore eyeglasses like Teddy's. He spoke like Teddy. He even held the same public offices. But then one day everything changed. He developed polio and could no longer walk. But Franklin Roosevelt was determined not to give up. He ran for governor and won. But, about that time, a different kind of sickness spread across the nation. Businesses stopped. Banks closed. Millions lost their jobs. It was the Great Depression.  
      Franklin believed he could make the country well again, so he successfully ran for president. Then, with more hard work and great determination, President Franklin Roosevelt found new ways to help America heal." 
    
T antalizing taste: 
     
    "Now, no disabled person had ever tried to become a governor, a president, or even a mayor before, so, of course, some people objected. They said that a handicapped person like Franklin was not strong enough to carry out the business of government. But Franklin's friends just answered, PHOOEY! A governor's business 'is brain work,' they said. 'The governor of New York State does not have to be an acrobat.' And that made sense. It made such good sense that New Yorkers elected Franklin D. Roosevelt."

and something more: The Author's Note explains that although "he never regained the use of his legs, Franklin Roosevelt supported research to fight polio. In the 1950s and 1960s such support led to the discovery of vaccines that could prevent the disease. Thanks to those scientific achievements, the illness that made Franklin Roosevelt our only disabled president is now almost a forgotten disease in many parts of the world." 
    The FDR Presidential Library and Museum website includes this quote by Franklin: “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’…You must do the thing you think you cannot do”