The Roots of Rap: 16 Bars on the 4 Pillars of Hip-Hop

K-Gr 4--Award-winners Weatherford and Morrison team up to document the history of hip-hop. The four pillars (graffiti, break dancing, rapping/MCing, and DJing) each play a role in the 16 bars that make up the book. Weatherford writes spare rhyming text, which follows hip-hop's roots in folktales and spirituals to its current status as a cornerstone of culture. The verses contain Weatherford's characteristically powerful and flawless wordsmithery: "Dropping, scratching, beat juggling/matching wax on wheels of steel." The author captures a complex art form in just a handful of short stanzas; the extensive back matter fills in any gaps. Morrison, a former dancer for the Sugar Hill Gang, has superbly captured Weatherford's narrative in his mural style and portrait-quality illustrations. New York cityscapes, the fashion styles of the previous decades, and the key figures of the genre fill each page. The artist plays with perspective and scale in such a way that each page stands out uniquely from the last. There are several pages where the text and its illustration fall on separate sides of a page break, which could be tough for read-alouds. VERDICT A winning addition to music history collections, pair with Eric Morse's and Nelson George's What is Hip-Hop? and Laban Carrick Hill's When the Beat was Born.--Clara Hendricks, Cambridge Public Library, MA

With short, rhyming lines and dramatic portraits of performers, the creative team behind How Sweet the Sound: The Story of Amazing Grace offers a dynamic introduction to hip-hop. "I was not raised on rap, but I was rooted in the African American musical- and spoken-word traditions that preceded it," Weatherford writes in her author's note. She begins the book's text by contextualizing the movement, honoring some of the poets (Langston Hughes) and musicians (James Brown) whose work helped to influence hip-hop's birth. Celebrating all four "pillars" of hip-hop artistry--"graffiti, break dancing, rapping/MCing, and DJing/scratching/turntablism"--the pages pair succinct, informative rhymes with Morrison's vibrant paintings of street artists, b-boys, and DJs along with their gear: spray paint, giant boom boxes and turntables, "sheets of cardboard for a stage." Female MCs dominate two spreads, one an unforgettable portrait of Queen Latifah. With a closing spread that emphasizes hip-hop's international reach as a "language that's spoken the whole world 'round," and a glossary of terms aimed at a digital generation (vinyl records are defined), this artful introduction to one of the most influential cultural movements of the 20th century pulses with the energy and rhythm of its subject. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Rubin Pfeffer, Rubin Pfeffer Content. Illustrator's agent: Lori Nowicki, Painted Words. (Jan.)