by Floyd Cooper (Author) Floyd Cooper (Illustrator)
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A quiet and informative picture of belated emancipation. (afterword) (Picture book. 4-9)
Copyright 2015 Kirkus Reviews, LLC Used with permission
K-Gr 3—June 19, 2015 will mark the 150th anniversary of the day the Emancipation Proclamation made it to Texas (two years after the rest of the country heard it). This title offers context for that occasion, hailed as "Juneteenth." Cooper's signature oil wash and eraser technique elevates the presentation beyond the purely instructional. Like some of his predecessors who told this story (Valerie Wesley, Carol Boston Weatherford, etc.), this author frames the history of freedom in Texas with a present-day family's commemoration. Mazie is a young African American who bristles at age-related limits, such as cookie consumption and bedtime. Her father mentions that she will have a chance to celebrate tomorrow; explaining that her restrictions aren't so terrible, he says: "Well, Great, Great, Great Grandpa Mose heard 'no' even more." As he narrates, listeners see the profile of a boy in an endless cotton field, a man and woman running toward the North Star, the proclamation being read from a Texan balcony. Mazie's father covers ensuing civil rights' milestones, declaring, "Black people still struggled to stand shoulder to shoulder with White people." Cooper depicts the Selma to Montgomery March, a schoolroom, a church, and the rear view of a historic inauguration, making this a useful title for a bird's-eye perspective of the subject. For a treatment that focuses solely on that long ago day in Texas and imagines what the impact of the announcement would be on one slave family, see Angela Johnson's All Different Now (S. & S., 2014).—Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library
Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.copyright (c) 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.
When Floyd Cooper discovered children's book illustrating, he found a way to complement his career in advertising. An apprentice of Mark English, Mr. Cooper began his freelance career while still a student at the University of Oklahoma. After graduating, he made his way to Missouri, where he secured a position at a greeting card company.
copyright (c) 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.