Cover Image

DeShawn days

by Medina, Tony.

Format: Print Book 2001
Availability: Available at 1 Library 1 of 1 copy

Available (1)
Location Collection Call #
ACLA Mobile Library Services Preschool Children's Picture Books J PS PB MEDI
Location  ACLA Mobile Library Services
 
Collection  Preschool Children's Picture Books
 
Call Number  J PS PB MEDI
 
 

Summary
Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. This book is made up of reflections of ten year-old DeShawn as he thinks about his family, his life in the projects and the world around him. Medina's poetry is immediately accessible to young readers and he sketches a world filled with learning, love, fear, joy and loss' - Black Issues Book Review 'Christie's exceptionally fine acrylic paintings capture both the physical and emotional nature of DeShawn...to get right to the heart of the character' - CCBC, Book of the Week'
Published Reviews
Publisher's Weekly Review: "Medina (Love to Mam : A Tribute to Mothers) attributes the first-person poems in his prosaic collection to 10-year-old DeShawn Williams, who invites readers to "come see who I live with / who I love!" Poet Medina doesn't stint on details, convincingly melding the warmth of family life with the stark realities of the streets. DeShawn answers the question "What is life like in the 'hood/ People walking everywhere/ broken bottles in the stairs/ / and dog mess smell in the air." But home is a safe place where the boy can tell his grandmother "anything/ she never tells my secrets," where his Uncle Richie consoles him when he has a bad dream, and where he lies "under the table/ listening to the grown-ups/ telling stories and the kitchen/ is warm and the windows wet/ with the smell of cornbread/ and baked chicken." Because Medina's portrait of the hard-working family is so positive, Christie's (The Palm of My Heart) bleak and sophisticated paintings seem misplaced; sharp angles and corners doorways, beams of light, people's heads and bodies dominate the compositions. In two standout spreads, words and artwork are completely in sync: when DeShawn's grandmother dies, and when his mother comforts him. Here a mood of sorrow and joy remembered create a perfect balance. Ultimately, however, the starkness of Christie's illustrations belie the life-affirming joy apparent in Medina's sweet-natured and imaginative hero. Ages 6-up. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved"
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Additional Information
Subjects African American boys -- Juvenile poetry.
African American families -- Juvenile poetry.
Inner cities -- Juvenile poetry.
Children's poetry, American.
Inner cities -- Poetry.
African Americans -- Poetry.
Family life -- Poetry.
Publisher New York :Lee & Low Books,2001
Edition 1st ed.
Contributors Christie, R. Gregory, 1971-
Language English
Description 1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 28 cm
ISBN 1584300221
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