5.0 out of 5 stars
BEAUTIFUL PICTURES COMPLIMENT A BEAUTIFUL SONG, Jun 5 2004
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.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
pictures to sing to, Mar 31 2004
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.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Educators Recommend, Mar 15 2004
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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