Ordinary Days: The Seeds, Sound, and City That Grew Prince Rogers Nelson
by Angela Joy (Author) Jacqueline Alcántara (Illustrator)
A rhythmic, striking picture book biography of legendary singer/songwriter/performer Prince.
On ordinary days, you could see him.
A beautiful boy, but small
with a smile given only to lilacs
growing between broken sidewalks
carrying in his pockets
a sound.
Before Prince became one of the bestselling musicians of all time, he was a boy named Prince Rogers Nelson.
Often overlooked and abandoned, he found his own inspiration in the world around him—teaching himself how to play the guitar, the piano, the drums, and much more.
And when he grew up, he used these small details of the everyday to make music, and make the world around him more colorful.
With gorgeous art from Jacqueline Alcántara, Ordinary Days is a tender, profound look into Prince's early life and the moments that shaped him.
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Publishers Weekly
Via emotional verse and lavender-tinged spreads, Joy and Alcántra capture the life and artistry of Prince Rogers Nelson (1958-2016) in this evocative picture book. Growing up with financial precarity in a tumultuous household, Prince found comfort in everyday music, from clanking dishes to his father's piano playing ("Hard and round, he carried sound like seeds or lucky pennies"). After he received his first guitar, music became his "most faithful friend," allowing him "to play what he'd been hiding deep in pockets." Joy's assonant free verse and Alcántra's purple and gray watercolor washes create a contemplative mood, the art palette warming as an often-spotlit Prince finds his musical voice. A harmony of poetry and artwork conveys few biographical details, included in a lengthy author's note. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. A playlist concludes. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)
Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.School Library Journal
PreS-Gr 3--The formula for biographies aimed at children can feel stale after a while: a person is born, overcomes hardship, and succeeds. This is a fresh take, expertly marrying pictures and text to the spirit of legendary musician Prince. The cresting wave of a story details a quiet boy rising through experiences, exploding in a performance full of future potential, before gently receding to show the boy gathering seeds for future beauty. Illustrations fill in narrative gaps. Details of Prince's life are told through swirling purple-tinged pictures. This frees up the text to take on a more lyrical slant. The words focus on the birth of sound, rhythmically echoing Prince's music. It's an incredible showcase found in "shouts and silence, slamming doors; whispering lilacs, basement floors." This dabbles in themes of overcoming difficulties and hard work, but cleverly twists them to value quiet curiosity and observation. Beauty is not in the flash of genius. It's in the "ordinary day," of holding those glories close until they become extraordinary. VERDICT This is a bold biography, finding inspiration from the subject and universalizing Prince's creativity through a gentle approach. It's perfect for elementary schools, especially as applied to music and art.--Cat McCarrey
Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.Review quotes
"The rhythm of Joy's poetic text matches the rhythm of Prince's early life... [this] telling of Prince's childhood will resonate with young people who use art to find meaning in difficult days." —Horn Book
"Via emotional verse and lavender-tinged spreads, Joy and Alcántra capture the life and artistry of Prince Rogers Nelson (1958-2016) in this evocative picture book." —Publishers Weekly "In this visually gorgeous, poetic homage to Prince, readers are introduced to a brilliant musician who often drew on his painful early childhood as inspiration for his work... [T]his is a noteworthy, introductory look at a truly astonishing musician." —BCCB "This is a bold biography, finding inspiration from the subject and universalizing Prince's creativity through a gentle approach. It's perfect for elementary schools, especially as applied to music and art." —School Library JournalAngela Joy is from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Before graduating from the University of Minnesota, Angela attended NYU and Spelman College. Angela then traveled as a background vocalist, also working in television and movie soundtracks. She lives in southern California with her family. Her picture books include Choosing Brave and Black Is a Rainbow Color.
Janelle Washington is a self-taught paper cut artist from Virginia. She has permanent silhouettes housed at the Smithsonian National Museum of African-American History and Culture in Washington, DC, and Downing-Gross Community Arts Center in Newport News, Virginia. She is also a member of The Guild of American Papercutters. Choosing Brave is her first picture book.United States
African American singers
Rock musicians
Prince
African American rock musicians
