"I'm bright as the light each day brings.
There is love where my change sings.
I show others tolerance,
Though it might take some courage."
If you were expecting marvelous work from Amanda Gorman following her President Biden inauguration poem, you won't be disappointed with her first picture book. You will be again captivated by her words in this new anthem for children.
She writes in rhythmic verses, using a first-person narrator. The young girl carries a guitar and moves through urban streets, observing a huge mural of Martin Luther King Jr., and his wise words. She is joined there by another child who is playing a French Horn. Together, they clear garbage, provide food for the needy, deliver groceries to an elderly woman and, with help from a young trumpet player, build a ramp for a young girl in a wheelchair. She is the drummer in their procession, and they add one more band mate from a nearby park. He plays the trombone. Their work is not done; their willingness to be helpful sets an example for others.
"I also walk our differences,
to show we are the same.
I'm a movement that roars and springs,
There's a wave where my change sings."
The book reads like a song and feels like one as well. Loren Long fully complements the rich text with acrylic and colored pencil images that extends meaning to story form. Alternating between full color and white space backgrounds, he gives life and presence to each of these children who change the world through the song they sing within their hearts. Uplifting, confident, and a joy to read.
Please put this admirable book in your library or on your family bookshelf to be experienced again and again!
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