Black: The Many Wonders of My World (The Colors of My Life)

by Nancy Johnson James (Author) Constance Moore (Illustrator)

Black: The Many Wonders of My World (The Colors of My Life)
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade

A celebration of the color black, from the team who created Brown: The Many Shades of Love

Black is a wonderful color. Black is special. It is true. It's the sky when the morning is new. In this loving and lovely ode to the color black, a girl describes the many wonders of her world--from the black of starry nights to her own black eyes, clear and bright.

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Kirkus

An eye-opening tribute to an often underrated color.

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2--The duo behind Brown: The Many Shades of Love returns with a poetic tribute to the color black and how it represents beauty in the world. A poetic, mostly rhyming, pattern in the first person lists various things that are black, including "mama's braids," "my puppy," and blackbirds, as well as more ethereal things such as shadows, clouds, and musical notes. It acknowledges that some people are afraid of black/darkness, while celebrating it as ink, silence, and more. While the rhythm and rhyme periodically strain, for the most part the lines flow smoothly and effectively. The real star here, however, is the stunning mixed-media, collage-style art. With the exception of a couple of all-black pages, Moore works on a tan canvas for brightly colored fabric art, along with cut-out watercolors of the Black female narrator, who has brown skin and curly black hair. The puppy is created with black fabric and fills an entire spread; the shadow and panther drip across the page, reminiscent of Marcia Brown's Shadow. Raindrops, a quilt, and color patterns are all conveyed with deeply saturated fabric. Most pages are full-bleed spreads. The arresting, eye-catching art seems to almost lift off the page. VERDICT While the text has a slightly purposeful feel, and the poetry a few stumbles, the gorgeous, intensely colored art, and important content raise this title up.--Amy Lilien-Harper

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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Nancy Johnson James
Nancy Johnson James is a writer and educator based in Oakland, California. She has an MFA in creative writing from St. Mary's College of California. Her poetry has appeared in several print and online publications. Her desire is to create children's literature that is inspiring and liberating. Her other books include Blue: The Many Ways I Feel, and Black: The Many Wonders of My World.

Constance Moore is an artist and educator based in Oakland, California. She has an MFA in interdisciplinary art from Goddard College. She loves teaching elementary school art. She shares her students' love of color and hopes to transmit their spirit and freshness into her work.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781951836443
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Harry N. Abrams
Publication date
April 12, 2022
Series
The Colors of My Life
BISAC categories
JUV039140 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
JUV011010 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | United States - African-American
JUV009020 - Juvenile Fiction | Concepts | Colors
Library of Congress categories
African Americans
Picture books
Color
African American girls
JUVENILE FICTION / Concepts / Colors
JUVENILE FICTION / Social Themes / Self-Estee
Black

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