Rise!

Rise!

Juvenile herstory
"My grandmother believed that courage started with the
simplicity of realizing that there are no monsters under the bed. Or,
if you do have human monsters to overcome, courage was an inner virtue
that could be developed early. As she moved past the pains of her own
childhood and managed that pain, she came to believe: 'My mission in
life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some
passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style."...
In a world that tried to thwart that mission. Maya Angelou (née
Marguerite Annie Johnson) was born into the Jim Crow world in 1928.
And race wasn't the only hardship she faced early on. There was
trauma in her early years including rape by her mother's then
boyfriend when she was six. The above quote by her grandson, Colin
Johnson, is taken from the forward to Bethany Hegedus' Rise: From
Caged Bird To Poet Of The People.
It takes a masterful story teller to tailor Angelou's story to
elementary school students without Disneyfying it. Hegedus does this
masterfully. Tonya Engel's illustrations that combine realism with
the portrayal of emotion are the perfect accompaniment to the text.
*Maya and her brother, Bailey, spent significant amounts of time with
their grandmother, Annie, in the small rural town of Stamps,
Arkansas. It was a place of peacefulness for them.
"...safety lies in the sameness
of the faces who greet
and are greeted.
after laboring in the fields,
handing over their hard earned coins
each day."
A picture combines the faces of the two children with a map containing
pictures of familiar and beloved places.
*The man who molested Maya spent only one night in jail and then was
found dead. Sure that she had caused his death, she became mute for
nearly six years.
A picture in scary nighttime colors shows Maya curled up on a bed with
a menacing shadow on one wall.
*At the age of eighty-six,
this phenomenal woman
who spent a lifetime breaking free,
finally rests her wings.
As her heart
beats its last beat..."
An empty cage with open door is in the corner. Two hands release a
beautful bird that soars into the sky...
...and when you turn the page you see a girl reading her books.
"...her words
her words
still rise.
They will always
rise
rise
rise."
Rise! is a perfect way to introduce younger readers to one of
America's most significant writers. It's also a wonderful read for
her many adult fans.
On a purrrsonal note,



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