…remarkable…another triumph in picture book design…Fifty Cents and a Dream doesn't pretend to be a full-blown biography of Booker T. Washington. Instead it is a story about the desire for justice and the gift of education—squarely aimed at young school-age children, and told with poetic and soulful candor. School here is "magic," teachers are "the greatest marvels of all," and students who struggle and strive attain "wisdom." There is clearly a lesson in all this, and together, Asim and Collier make its value abundantly and inspiringly clear.
The New York Times - Pamela Paul
The founder of the Tuskegee Institute is portrayed as a boy and young man who never gives up on his dream of an education. Going from illiterate slave to child worker to student, a near-penniless Washington walks an incredible 500 miles to attend school. Collier’s (Dave the Potter) sophisticated design elements will have readers revisiting his extraordinary collages. In one, a contemplative Washington sits in a clearing, as ethereal faces and hands—representing those who figuratively support him—fill the dark brown bark of the trees that literally “stand behind” him. “Booker listened/ and carried their dreams with him.” An artist’s note points out other symbolic touches (e.g., Booker’s shirt is made up of pieces of maps), while author notes and a time line flesh out the rest of Washington’s life story, including criticism that labeled him as too willing to compromise in the face of overt racism. Asim’s (Boy of Mine) lyrical narrative is succinct yet illustrative, and, combined with the artwork, makes an impressive addition to any biography collection. Ages 3–6. Agent: Joy Harris, Joy Harris Literary Agency. Illustrator’s agent: Marcia Wernick, Wernick & Pratt. (Dec.)
A School Library Journal 2012 Editor's Choice ListKirkus Best Children's Books List SelectionPraise for Fifty Cents and a Dream Kirkus (starred review) School Library Journal (starred review) Publishers Weekly (starred review) Booklist American Spelling Book -reverberates with the importance of books and learning."—The Horn Book New York Times Book Review
"Remarkable...[a] triumph in picture book design...told with poetic and soulful candor."
New York Times Book Review
"Everything about the bookmaking here-from the carefully chosen typography to the look of parchment paper to the endpapers taken from Webster's American Spelling Book -reverberates with the importance of books and learning."
Gr 2–4—Here sits a barefooted boy leaning against a tree trunk, eyes closed, dreaming about reading. Here he is following his master's daughter to school, carrying her books, feeling their "magic seeping into his hands." Booker was born a slave, and slaves were forbidden to read. Emancipation came while he was still young. He worked with the men in his family, first shoveling salt, then in a coal mine. He learned to read from a spelling book his mother gave him. He attended the school for Negroes after work and dreamed of Hampton Institute, where he could study writing. He walked there-hundreds of miles through the mountains of Virginia, unloading ships in Richmond when his food money ran out. A janitor job at Hampton paid his room and board. Written in simply stated narrative, in a font that looks hand-printed, this story covers more of Washington's life and offers more detail than Marie Bradby's More Than Anything Else (Orchard, 1995), a brief, movingly told, beautifully rendered introduction to Washington for younger children. Collier's patterned and textured watercolor and paper collage paintings perfectly mirror the narrative, reiterating details and settings in handsomely constructed glimpses of the young Booker at school and at work; the teen-aged Booker traveling on foot toward a better education; the student dreaming of great things to come. His dreams are shown as luminescent bubbles or rays of light that reach toward the sky; his shirt is map-patterned. Two pages of biographical endnotes include a time line of his significant accomplishments. An inspirational life, memorably presented.—Susan Scheps, formerly at Shaker Public Library, OH
A former slave fulfills his quest for an education and much more in this superbly designed tribute to an oft-maligned African-American educator and author. The young Washington, who learned his letters from a spelling book his mother gave to him, hears about Hampton College in Virginia, over 500 miles away. With the help of neighbors who share their precious coins, he travels, mostly on foot, from West Virginia with hunger, cold and weariness as constant companions. Asim's lyrical text transforms the journey into a spiritual awakening for a young man who had "a dream in his soul." Collier is in brilliant Caldecott Honor style, using his signature watercolor paintings and cut-paper collage to incorporate elements from Booker's life and visions into each illustration. A map route is a design on his shirt, and letters and words from the speller he cherished decorate the pages. Each tableau is beautifully composed and balanced with textured colors and patterns. The cover display type and the endpapers, which are taken from Webster's American Spelling Book , embellish this ode to book learning. Washington's was not a life filled with anger and fiery oratory. Rather, Asim and Collier laud his steadfast determination and lifelong dedication to learning. An outstanding achievement and a life worthy of note. (additional facts, author's note, illustrator's note, bibliography) (Picture book/biography. 4-8)
