Naberhaus, Sarvinder Blue Sky White Stars 32 pp. Dial 2017. ISBN 978-0-8037-3700-6 (3) K–3 Illustrated by Kadir Nelson. Spare, powerful prose presents the American flag and the American landscape and people in parallel: “Sew together one nation / So together one nation.” Evocative paintings portray the natural scenery as well as images from history, including […]
Updated not-so-new New Yorkers
July 27, 2016 by 1 Comment
We just HAD to update this post to include this beautiful Kadir Nelson cover: Read 2011’s Kadir Nelson Talks with Roger about Nelson’s book Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans and publisher Donna Bray’s 2012 profile of Nelson. There are many more…here are a couple others of note. * * * […]
Picking up dropped stitches
December 28, 2015 by 1 Comment
We are down to the wire, book-coverage-wise; after this post, it’s on to gearing up for our end-of-the-year Mock Caldecott vote. We try to discuss as many eligible picture books as we can here, but inevitably we miss some. This post is intended to catch some of those missed titles. I’m taking a slightly unorthodox approach […]
I Have a Dream
January 20, 2013 by 8 Comments
Robin and I have been figuring out how to finish things up here with some last-minute posts before the vote. Weirdly, we find that the three books we MOST want to discuss in the next two days are all about real people and have the word “Dream” in the title. I know this sounds like […]
A Profile of Kadir Nelson
June 26, 2012 by Leave a Comment
By Donna Bray It was May 2008, and I had just started my first new job in twelve years, as co-publisher of a new imprint at HarperCollins. I was energized, excited — and, frankly, a bit terrified. Being an editor without any books in the pipeline is, I imagine, like being a librarian with empty […]
2012 CSK Author Award Acceptance
June 26, 2012 by 2 Comments
By Kadir Nelson Good morning. It’s a pleasure to be here with you to celebrate the work of African American authors and illustrators whose books have been chosen as the best of the best of 2011. I feel privileged to share the company of esteemed peers whom I have long admired. I have always considered […]
Reviews of the 2012 CSK Author Award winners
January 23, 2012 by 1 Comment
Winner: Kadir Nelson for Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans (HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray) “Most folks my age and complexion don’t speak much about the past,” begins the unnamed narrator of this graceful and personalized overview of African-American history. But this doesn’t stop her from telling the story in a sweeping account […]
Kadir Nelson Talks with Roger
January 23, 2012 by 1 Comment
Roger Sutton: Your new book, Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans, weaves together historical facts—about slavery, the Emancipation Proclamation, real people like Rosa Parks and Dr. King—with the stories of the relatives of your fictional narrator. It must have been quite complicated to do. What was your entry point? Kadir Nelson: […]
Kadir Nelson Talks with Roger
November 24, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Talks with Roger is a sponsored supplement to our free monthly e-newsletter, Notes from the Horn Book. To receive Notes, sign up here. Sponsored by Roger Sutton: Your new book, Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans, weaves together historical facts — about slavery, the Emancipation Proclamation, real people like Rosa Parks […]
Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
October 19, 2011 by 14 Comments
So, our loquacious friends at Heavy Medal are burning up the internet talking about a picture book, Kadir Nelson’s Heart and Soul. Do read that discussion and then ask the big question, “Is this a picture book or an illustrated book?” I know, half of you are rolling your eyes and saying, “Isn’t that the […]
