"Elegant picture-book biography. . . drawing readers into the world of this powerhouse dramatist."
**STARRED REVIEW** "Chapman’s mixed-media illustrations are sophisticated and engrossing, packed with visual metaphors... Reading aloud for pure pleasure would be a meaningful tribute to Wilson’s legacy."
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
**STARRED REVIEW** "Chapman’s mixed-media illustrations are sophisticated and engrossing, packed with visual metaphors... Reading aloud for pure pleasure would be a meaningful tribute to Wilson’s legacy." —Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
**STARRED REVIEW** "Wilson’s passion for words and attention to the world around him emerge in Bryant’s lyrical telling."
—Publishers Weekly School Library Journal Kirkus Reviews Horn Book Magazine
★ 11/01/2019
Gr 1–4— Growing up in Pittsburgh in the 1950s with his sisters and his mother, Daisy, August Wilson found refuge in books. Daisy Wilson stressed that knowledge could be a tool of liberation: "If you can read, you can do anything—you can be anything." Wilson's passion for words grew after he obtained his first library card. As the years passed, he devoured anything he could get his hands on, especially the works of Langston Hughes, Paul Lawrence Dunbar, Ralph Ellison, and Richard Wright. While Wilson loved to learn, virulent racism forced him to drop out of high school. Nevertheless, his mother's wisdom echoed in his mind. The acceptance of Jitney by the Playwrights' Center in Minneapolis turned the poet into a published playwright. Bryant's text forms a clear and striking portrait of the Pulitzer Prize winner. Bryant's poetic descriptions effectively chronicle Wilson's artistic journey. Chapman's illustrations, created using ink, colored pencil, acrylic paint, and cut paper, bring the narrative to life. Characters feel as though they've been captured in mid-dialogue. Some educators and parents may balk at the usage of the N-word at the beginning of the book, but others may recognize it as an opportunity to teach children about our country's legacy of racism and anti-blackness. VERDICT This empathetic and informative study of August Wilson's early years explores the complexities of the black experience in America. A book that will resonate not only with bookworms and fans of the playwright but with black children wishing to see themselves reflected in the world around them.—Vanessa Willoughby, School Library Journal
David Sadzin's stellar narration and sophisticated production values are all the art necessary to bring this picture book biography of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson to life. The story of how and where Wilson found his muse is told in two acts. Each “scene” is composed of free verse set to music and enhanced by the sounds of Wilson's world—city noises, ringing phones, and men talking, for example. Sadzin sets a contemplative mood. He pauses to carefully highlight points or rhymes but never breaks the melodic rhythm of the verse. When Wilson's family wins a contest but is denied the prize because of the neighborhood where they live, both the music and Sadzin's narration slow to fit the demoralized walk back home. A timeline and an author’s note are included in the production. L.T. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine
2019-09-29
August Wilson, the Pulitzer Prize-winning African American dramatist, is best known for his 10-play Century Cycle, which chronicles the African American experience through different decades in the 20th century. Because his work is targeted toward adults, many young readers might be unfamiliar with Wilson's life or achievements. Thanks to this timely and elegant picture book, that oversight is now corrected. Conceptually separated into two acts, the book frames Wilson's life as a play in free-verse form, immersing readers in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, a multiracial enclave where Frederick August Kittel Jr. is raised by his hardworking single mother. Act 1 chronicles Wilson's search for his name and voice, and Act 2 showcases his extraordinary life's work of using them to bring the African American experience to the stage. The book's primary goal may be to present Wilson's life, but it is also an eloquent love letter to literature and a celebration of its power to inspire, to instruct, and to provide hope, guidance, and direction. Bryant's accomplished free verse and newcomer Chapman's evocative, realistic illustrations operate in perfect synergy, celebrating the genius of Wilson the playwright while never losing sight of the complications, hardships, and imperfections of Wilson the man.
A must-have for those who want children to learn about one of the stage's greatest bards. (Picture book/biography. 6-9)
