Bound To Stay Bound

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Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2014 Factual and yet poetic, laced with a sadness and sensuality too sophisticated for most primary graders, and with a text too whimsical for biography report writers, this take on the life of early twentieth-century entertainer Josephine Baker defies convention as boldly as its subject did. The book positions Baker right where she was happiest-on stage-dividing her life into acts introduced with a few props on the floorboards bordered by a proscenium curtain. On comes the spotlight for “The Beginning, 1906-1917,” when little Tumpy was raised in poverty, soaking up her mother’s vaudeville dreams (“I didn’t have any stockings . . . I danced to keep warm”). By thirteen she’d hit the road with the Dixie Steppers, getting her big chance to dangle above the stage as Cupid and revel in the audience’s appreciation of her clowning. Success in America was always hobbled by Jim Crow, but Paris embraced her and she lit up the City of Lights (“The Black Pearl climbed down a palm tree, wearing a skirt of bananas and a necklace of shells. She wiggled like a serpent, slunk like a panther, and boxed like a kangaroo. Mais oui”). While Powell celebrates Baker’s triumph on stage and Robinson matches every superlative with punchy colors and doll-like figures at once slinky and naïve, it is clear that demons of poverty and bigotry impelled much of that on-stage ferocity and that comedy masked great sadness. Unlike Jonah Winter’s Jazz Age Josephine (BCCB 2/12), this title brings readers right up to Baker’s bittersweet end, with bills to pay, adopted children to support, and a comeback in her late sixties. Author and illustrator notes are included, as well as quotation sources and a short bibliography. You can bet that middle-schoolers will know that the best stuff is on YouTube, and Baker’s banana dance is just a search term away. EB - Copyright 2014 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

Booklist - 02/01/2014 Josephine is a free-verse biographical poem that pulls its inspiration from the life of a fascinating performer and civil rights pioneer. Josephine Baker grew up in the shantytowns of St. Louis, often considered the home of ragtime music. At only 13, she left home to travel with a dance troupe, honing her silly on-stage persona and earning pennies. Through a series of unlikely but fortunate events, her talent was discovered and soon she was dancing the Charleston on a stage in Paris. While most of the milestones of her notorious career and turbulent life are included, Powell focuses on events that carried the most personal weight for Baker, such as almost losing her leg in a childhood accident, her refusal to dance in segregated American dance halls, and her first time on a transatlantic boat trip. Quotes from Baker punctuate the engaging narrative poem and Robinson’s gorgeous, colorful acrylics (with cute Lego-faced characters) honor the colorful exuberance of both the Jazz era and Baker’s life. Well researched and spirited, this features innumerable points of discussion for young readers. - Copyright 2014 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 02/01/2014 Gr 5–8—This charming biography invites readers to step inside the vibrant and spirited world of performer and civil rights advocate, Josephine Baker. Robinson's paintings are as colorful and rich as Josephine Baker's story, offering page after page of captivating and animated illustrations and rhythmic text, which is written in blank verse. In a few short and well-organized parts, readers learn the story of one of the world's most well known female performers who danced and sang her way from the poor and segregated streets of St. Louis to the dazzling stages of Paris all the way to Carnegie Hall. Text and illustrations work in tandem to accurately document Josephine's extraordinary life and the era in which she lived. Clear and lively descriptions of Josephine's story play out creatively in the text, introducing readers to basic principles of poetic structure in storytelling and offering an accurate portrait of a woman who fought for racial equality and civil rights through her life's passion: performance. Reluctant readers of nonfiction and poetry lovers alike will be drawn to this book's musical, theatrical nature, making for a fun, enriching, and holistic reading experience. This unique and creative work is a first purchase.—Natalie Braham, Denver Public Library - Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

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