Product Description
When happy things come to you, hold them close and never let go.
From celebrated author of Your Name Is a Song Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, fine artist Patrick Dougher, and photographer Jamel Shabazz, Hold Them Close is a picture book celebration of Black past, present, and future—a joyful love letter to Black children.
As affirming as it is touching and warm, Hold Them Close encourages young children to hold close their joy, the words of their ancestors and elders, as well as their power to change the world. A perfect book for shared story time, this book will inspire young people to march forth with pride, glow, and happiness.
"A love poem to Black children that both educates and bolsters." —Kirkus Reviews
From School Library Journal
Gr 1-4-In this love letter to black children, the author encourages them to hold on to the good things, to not look away from the bad things, and to never forget their story. Dougher's mixed media collage includes black-and-white photographs by Jamel Shabazz, patterned paper, and paint. Together the images create the homey chaotic feel of a Brooklyn neighborhood, where both illustrator and photographer grew up. Through the illustrations, readers follow a boy and girl into their world and family, where they see the love that carries them through real life: dinner tables and school friends, family members who were incarcerated, and those who were enslaved or experienced violence. No subject is out of reach. While the verse may be too abstract for younger readers, this book is an uplifting family story as much as it is a beautifully fearless introduction to much of Black history and why learning about it is essential for understanding the modern world. Back matter gives context and depth to images and names of historical figures and victims of violence that are worked into the collage. VERDICT This is an important book for any collection that serves older picture book readers, but especially good for classroom use.-Hillary Perelyubskiyα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review
Hold Them Close is a true work of art. This is a book to be savored and reread in classrooms and homes. — Booklist (starred review)
[This] book is an uplifting family story as much as it is a beautifully fearless introduction to much of Black history and why learning about it is essential for understanding the modern world. — School Library Journal (starred review)
"Thompkins-Bigelow (Abdul’s Story) pens a stirring free verse love letter to Black children and community, carrying readers through a range of experiences to be held tight or dismissed." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"The resulting images simultaneously emphasize a painful past, a tumultuous present, and a hopeful future, making for a tribute both sobering and jubilant." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A love poem to Black children that both educates and bolsters." — Kirkus Reviews
About the Author
Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow is an educator and writer who centers Black and Muslim children in her work. She is the author of Mommy’s Khimar, Your Name Is a Song, and Abdul’s Story and is a contributor to the Once Upon an Eid anthology. She teaches writing to youth in Philadelphia, where she lives with her family.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Patrick Dougher is a self-taught artist, musician, poet, writer, and spiritual activist. He has worked as a teaching artist in New York City public schools, as an art therapist working with HIV-positive children, and as the director of a community arts organization. Patrick uses the arts to empower and support the socioeconomic growth and health of disenfranchised youths of the city. Through his art, Patrick seeks to inspire and celebrate the noble beauty and divine nature of people of African descent.
