Black History Month Reviews | October 2003
by Saviour Pirotta
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It’s Black History month soon, so I thought I’d do a round up of favourite books written by black writers or dealing with race issues. Here are some gems I enjoyed recently. Some of them are old favourites, some brand new finds….

Picture books, older:

So Much by Trish Cooke. Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury
So Much is a luscious, dazzling book which won a bagful of awards when it was published in 1994. It deserved every single one of them. The plot is beguilingly simple. Relatives keep turning up to give the baby a hug and a kiss, because they love him so much. But is that the only reason why more and more of them keep arriving?

Trish Cooke’s text is pacy, rhythmic and full of humour. Helen Oxenbury’s pictures are a visual treat, capturing all the tenderness of a loving, urban Afro-Caribbean home.

Zoom by Trish Cooke. Illustrated by Alex Ayliffe
In ZOOM, Hurricane Kieron and his sister, Rush Around Ria, cause havoc as they rush-rush-rush everywhere. No one can stop them, until one day they discover that there are different ways of making a hurricane. The text is perfect to read aloud to very young children who will admire and relate to these toddlers. There are many sound words, like zzzzzooooooommm and Yow! Yow! Yow1 for them to join in with, all picked out on the page with large, bold, curving fonts. Alex Ayliffe’s illustrations capture the hectic atmosphere of the story perfectly.

The Colour of Home by Mary Hoffman. Illustrated by Karin Littlewood.
The Colour of Home was written by the best-selling author who gave us Amazing Grace and its sequels. It tells the story of Hassan, a young Somali refugee struggling to adapt to his new life in England. At school, he escapes from the drab greyness around him by drawing a sun-splashed picture of his old home in Somalia. It is full of the colour of his desert village. But soon other colours invade the picture. The colours of war, and suffering. Through painting, and words and colours, Hassan retraces his dangerous journey from Somalia to England, thus embarking on a healing journey of self-discovery. The book ends on an uplifting and positive note as Hassan starts to recognise the exciting colours of his new home.

Hassan’s story is told with utmost sensitivity by Hoffman who manages to impart a lot of information about the plight of refugees around the world without straying from the main narrative. Littlewood’s illustrations are a feast for the eye, bringing Hassan’s world alive with bold brushstrokes.

An Angel Just Like Me by Mary Hoffman. Illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu.
In An Angel Just Like Me, a boy called Tyler is looking forward to Christmas but there is one thing that bugs him. He can’t find an angel for the top of the tree that looks like him. All the ones in the shops, on the cards and wrapping paper are white, or rather pink. Tyler is about to settle for second best, a gold star - after all, stars are the same for everyone - when he meets a Santa who looks just like his father. The encounter results in Tyler’s dream coming true. Once again Mary Hoffman manages to tell a humorous and engaging story that makes readers think.

NON FICTION

Black Profiles: Chinwe Roy, Artist by Verna Wilkins
The seventh book in Tamarind’s "Black Profiles" series, tells the story of the artist who was the first black painter to do a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II. Chinwe Roy is a Suffolk artist who was born in Nigeria. The book follows her story from her birth in Awka, Eastern Nigeria, through the Biafran war, her battle with Myasthenia gravis, a disease which attacks the muscles, her move to England to study art and her subsequent rise to fame as a painter. Told by Verna Wilkins, who held several in-depth interviews with the artist, this book highlights the life and inspiration of a positive role model for children everywhere. Full-colour reproductions of Roy’s paintings are included.

POETRY

Can I Buy A Slice Of Sky? Poems from Black, Asian and American Indian Cultures ed. by Grace Nichols.
The Guyanese poet Grace Nichols brings together an exciting mix of poems from various cultures. Over 70 poets contribute to the anthology, including John Agard, James Berry and Valerie Bloom. It is charged with energy and celebrates diversity with zest, humour and insight. There is something here for everyone. Even the most reluctant reader will fall for the humorous charms of Nikki Giovanni’s Two Friends, or John Agard’s anarchic sense of humour in What The Teacher Said When Asked What Er We Avin For Geography Miss?

Hot Like Fire by Valerie Bloom. Illustrated by Debbie Lush
Children love listening to Valerie Bloom’s mixture of standard English and dialect, a legacy of her childhood in Jamaica and her adult life in Kent. This new anthology will add to the award-winning poet’s reputation. It celebrates the joy of summer, as well as touching on other fun subjects like pirates, tame frogs and chickens from outer space. My favourite poem in the book is the short, perfectly formed gem Trees on Parade but I’m sure you’ll find your own riches to treasure in this wonderful collection.

FOLKLORE

Tales From West Africa, retold by Martin Bennett
Here is a collection of ten folk tales from West Africa, a place where stories ‘grow on trees’. Find out how the crafty shark was tricked out of his dinner; why monkeys live in trees and how the crocodile lost his sharp teeth. Some of the tales star Kweku Ananse, the unrepentant trickster. Bennett’s imaginative use of language make these popular tales come alive, brining a sense of the African landscape to the classroom. Perfect for the literacy hour.

ACKER BACKA BOO! by Opal Dunn. Illustrations by Susan Winter
In this 48 page picture book, language specialist Opal Dunn has collected games from all over the world, each one accompanied by a rhyme and clear instructions. The different sections are helpfully labelled according to genre. There are Hide-And-Seek games, ball games, whose-turn-is-it games and even singing games. Music is included at the back of the book, along with invaluable tips for parents, teachers and carers. The games come from all over the world, including the Caribbean, America, Asia, Europe and Africa. A celebratory and educational collection that will come that can be put to good use on rainy, as well as sunny days; I recommend this for children of all ages.

OLDER FICTION

Cairo Hughes, by Millie Murray
This is the story of a sixteen year old back girl whose adoptive parents are white. Cairo often feels as if she doesn’t really belong until the family move to London and she meets the irrepressible Diane. Her new friend introduces her to a whole new, funky world. Cairo is enchanted, but she soon realises that she has to understand her own heritage before she can be true to herself.

Mille Murray, an accomplished author, dramatist and a facilitator of writing and drama workshops, has a warm and dynamic style. Her characters are immediate and believable. Cairo Hughes caught the imagination of every reader I lent the book to. Get one for your school.

The Big Diss, by Yinka Adebayo
Yinka Adebayo is a London school teacher who writes books about black, urban kids. His series about the Drummond Hill Crew was written to give his pupils ‘something they would relate to, something they would enjoy, something to think about.’

In The Big Diss, Tenisha Markham is asked out on a date by a cool boy from the posh Bluecoat School. But Tenisha, who is considered to be too much of a swot to have street-cred, has no idea if he’s serious. And even if he was, could she convince his stuck-up parents that she was good enough for him?

Adebayo’s prose is snappy and full of cool street-slang. [Check the list at the back of the book if you think ‘bigging up your chest’ means using a chest-expander]. His plots are taut. His characters are endearing…what more could you want from a book?

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