Wednesday, February 3, 2021

Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Cozbi Cabrera - ADVISABLE

Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Cozbi Cabrera.
PICTURE BOOK, BIOGRAPHY Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2020. $18. 9781419734113 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - ADVISABLE 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE 

From a very young age, Gwendolyn Brooks loved poetry. At 7 her mother compared her to Paul Laurence Dunbar! She wrote poems about everything. At 11 she was published in the newspaper, but then the Great Depression slowed her momentum. She did well in school, attended college and married, writing poetry was never enough to pay the bills, but she kept writing and submitting her poems. Eventually she published several books and won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry. 

This is a nice picture book biography. Slade's text is also poetic, a great nod to Brooks. I loved that she quotes the poet's own work as well. Cabrera's illustrations are wonderful. Colorful and realistic, there's plenty to get lost in looking at the pictures. Oh, to see those skies. Magnificent.

Lisa Morey

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