- Library Binding: 32 pages
- Publisher: HarperCollins Canada / Other (Dec 17 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0060294876
- ISBN-13: 978-0060294878
- Product Dimensions: 28.4 x 22.6 x 1.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 476 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 5--A moving visual interpretation of Holiday and Herzog's swing spiritual based on the proverb, "God blessed the child that's got his own." The song serves as the inspiration for Pinkney's depiction of the Great Migration of the 1930s. Through evocative images, the artist tells the story of one family's move north. The warm and sweeping illustrations are masterful, completely filling each spread. Although the pages are rich in detail, the well-composed paintings never seem cluttered or overwhelming. There is something new to attract readers, even after several readings. The sense of the family members as a unit, as well as their emotions of hope, anxiety, and relief, are all beautifully conveyed. A CD of Holiday performing the song is included, and while the book can be enjoyed without it, listening to the nostalgic and somewhat bittersweet music does elicit an emotional response. While a fine choice for independent reading, this title is particularly poignant when shared with a group, turning the pages in conjunction with the CD. An author's note provides background about Pinkney's inspirations and research. This offering makes an excellent tie-in to units on African-American history.--Mary N. Oluonye, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Booklist
Gr. 2-5. The references in the title Billie Holiday song have been interpreted in different ways. Here, Pinkney gives the words strength and a sense of possibility as one black family takes part in the great migration, moving from the cotton fields of the South to bustling Chicago. "Them that's got shall get, / Them that's not shall lose . . . " begins the song, and the opening spread shows a family that doesn't have much in the way of material goods. Yet the following pictures show joy in togetherness, even as grown-ups and children alike spend hours in backbreaking work. Then, in something of an abrupt transition, the family is packed and ready to move north. The next two spreads are brilliantly conceived. In the first, the old wooden house stands empty, just a rusty red wagon and a rubber tire swinging from a tree to show children once lived there. Turn the page to find Chicago--the El riding the tracks, skirting a city that is all buildings and busy people. Life is still difficult for the family, but hope for the future is evident in the last picture: a boy in school. In a note, Pinkney discusses the migration, the music, and the dreams of education. An accompanying CD brings words, music, and art together. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Them that's got shall get, Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Them that's got shall get, Read the first page
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Concordance
Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
BEAUTIFUL PICTURES COMPLIMENT A BEAUTIFUL SONG,
By Brenda "MYSHELFDOTCOM" (United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: God Bless The Child (Hardcover)
Jerry Pinkney collects vintage photographs, and it was those photos, along with the history of sharecroppers and their migration to the north, that inspired Pinkney to breathe new life into Billie Holiday's song "God Bless the Children" - not that the song needed new life, but it is a the perfect choice for the message Pinkney is trying to convey to young African-American readers--which is their history. The large book displays some memorable illustrations, each stretching across two pages. The illustrations are scenes in the life of a sharecropper family in the thirties: scenes of Bible reading, horse playing, working in the field, loading the car to move up north and scenes of the working and living in an industrial city. With the illustrations are the words to the song "God Bless the Child." The song becomes a beautiful story brought to life with these detailed, expressive images. They are absolutely beautiful; I just couldn't get enough of them. A free CD of Holiday's God Bless the Child can be found at the back of the book.
5.0 out of 5 stars
pictures to sing to,
By
This review is from: God Bless The Child (Hardcover)
Rebeccasreads highly recommends GOD BLESS THE CHILD as a perfect gift for every family who has ever known struggle, & the excitement & loss that moving from a well-loved place to a new world brings.Exquisitely illustrated by the award-winning artist, Jerry Pinkney, GOD BLESS THE CHILD, is a glimpse into another time, hauntingly accompanied by the legendary singer Billie Holiday.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Educators Recommend,
This review is from: God Bless The Child (Hardcover)
God Bless the Child is a masterpiece: visually stunning and emotionally appealing. Taking the words to Billie Holiday's and Arthur Herzog Jr.'s bluesy "God Bless the Child" as his text and inspiration, Pinkney depicts a family's move in the 1930s from the rural South to the industrialized North in what was known as the Great Migration. His exquisite "slice of life" watercolor paintings are wonderfully atmospheric, capturing perfectly the period and people. The final page is one of hope and the promise of a better future. The single painting shows a young boy sitting in a classroom holding a book, talking with his teacher. As Pinkney notes in an afterword, "At the time "God Bless the Child" was written, education was largely a privilege of the wealthy . . . Free public education was prized as the great equalizer-the stairway out of poverty for those with the courage and opportunity to climb it." This book is a labor of love. One can see this clearly in the facial expressions, the gestures, even the postures of the characters. No detail is neglected. Each page feels like an inexorable progression forward-even the endpapers. (The front endpapers show what appears to be a cabin's rough, wooden walls, while the endpapers in the back of the book show painted wallpaper.) This book receives our highest recommendation: Suitable for district-wide library acquisitions. Reviewed by the Education Oasis Staff
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