I received a copy of this book to review from Charlesbridge Publishing Company. I was struck by the fact that the whole book is black and white. My first thought was that color illustrations would appeal to young readers. Then I realized how powerful the illustrations are because they are black and white. Nina tells her life story as a bedtime story to her young daughter.
The most powerful lines in the book for me are: "The white keys are whole notes and the black keys are flats, or half notes," my teacher explained. I asked why. "Because that's just the way it is." Yes, that's the way it was. White was whole. Black was half. It was that way everywhere and for everyone. When Nina gives a performance at her church, her mother has to give up her seat in the front row for white people. Like Martin Luther King's dream, Nina dream was for her daughter to be able to spread her wings and fly! I highly recommend this book for all readers. |
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