" ... at the woman on the news saying
another woman has just been - - -
now back to you, he says
and goes back to another man saying
another man has been brutally - - -
and then both are talking about
a kid my age
who couldn't breathe"
and then both are talking about
a kid my age
who couldn't breathe"
The summer of 2020 is unforgettable, to say the very least. In this new book, narrrated by a young boy, readers can feel the almost unbearable suffering that surrounds him. The pandemic is wreaking havoc on all people ... their physical and mental health, their movement, their families. His mother spends her days watching the television and never changing the channel, his sister on her phone talking about joining the protests, his brother playing endless video games, and his father confined to the bedroom with a hacking cough and fever, while the world is reeling out of control. Adding to his alarm is the news about George Floyd and the numerous young black men being killed at the hands of those police officers sworn to protect them. His fears are real.
"I'm the only person
who can tell
we're all suffocating."
Three breaths presented in three long sentences: the narrator navigates through the family's daily life, his fears and worries for that family and the alarming state of the world, to finally see that what was so important to each of them is what brought them through to a more hopeful place. So much has changed while so much has remained the same.
Jason Griffin uses mixed media artwork to help bring the family from chaos to hope. His stunning art is quite the remarkable accompaniment to the spare text penned by the gifted Jason Reynolds. What a memory this is for a time in our lives no one could have anticipated or even contemplated. The book ends with a conversation between the two Jasons about their collaborative process for creating this work during the pandemic.
Jason Griffin uses mixed media artwork to help bring the family from chaos to hope. His stunning art is quite the remarkable accompaniment to the spare text penned by the gifted Jason Reynolds. What a memory this is for a time in our lives no one could have anticipated or even contemplated. The book ends with a conversation between the two Jasons about their collaborative process for creating this work during the pandemic.
It is a book created by two astounding talents in honor of those who have never known what it is to REALLY BREATHE, and for those who cannot imagine what that must be like. It should be read in all high school classrooms; in fact, by each one of us.
No comments:
Post a Comment