Review of ELLA FITZGERALD: THE TALE OF A VOCAL VIRTUOSA

Pinkney, Andrea Davis, and Brian Pinkney. 2002. ELLA FITZGERALD: THE TALE OF A VOCAL VIRTUOSA. New York, NY: Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children. ISBN 0-786805684

PLOT SUMMARY:
ELLA FITZGERALD: THE TALE OF A VOCAL VIRTUOSA is an account of some of the high points in Ella Fitzgerald’s life. Told from the perspective of Scat Cat Monroe who was there from “the get-go,” the story follows Ella’s life from dancing on the street corner to becoming honored by two U.S. Presidents for her talent. Infused with period terminology, Pinkney’s version of Fitzgerald’s life may be difficult for young readers to understand. However, older readers and people familiar with her work will love the celebration of Ella’s successes through both text and delightful illustrations.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney team up to produce a vibrant retelling of Ella Fitzgerald’s musical career. This nonfiction piece utilizes accuracy, organization, design and style to relay the story. The incorporation of African-American culture further contributes to the story’s meaning and overall presentation.

The accuracy of this book is validated by the author’s research. In collaboration with Quincy Troupe and the Carnegie Hall Archives, Pinkney’s story is wholly believable. In addition to research done at the Museum of the City of New York, Pinkney offers a bibliography to support the facts presented in ELLA FITZGERALD. At the end of the book is a listing of resources, including books, videos, and records. Whether or not they are interested in continuing to learn about The Queen of Scat, older readers will find these items both interesting and entertaining.

Each era in Ms. Fitzgerald’s life is organized into a “track” (chapter). The tracks follow Ms. Fitzgerald from dancing on the street corners in her home town of Yonkers, New York, through her rise in popularity as a singer in Harlem, to nationwide recognition. The book ends hailing her legendary status as The First Lady of American Song. Scat Cat Monroe, a self-proclaimed expert on Ella Fitzgerald, is the reader’s guide.

The illustrations are sometimes surreal and always embody the music they celebrate. The musicians and dancers portrayed in ELLA FITZGERALD illustrate African-American music and culture during jazz’s swing and bebop popularity. Brightly colored suits and dresses and wing-tip shoes adorn each character. Brian Pinkney’s scratchboard technique, bright colors, and ability to convey movement make the illustrations the best part of this biography.

The culture of this book is demonstrated via voice and vocabulary. The narrator, Scat Cat Monroe, embodies Harlem and jazz in the thirties. “Baby, I’m in a class all by myself.” Later, Scat Cat refers to another musician as “a finicky bird. Easy to ruffle.” These phrases and others, such as strut her shuffle, shade the high notes, grits with gravy, milked the backbeat, and ham-hock jabber offer a window to the culture of the music scene in Harlem in the 1930s. However, they are overused and potentially confusing—especially for English language learners. On the other hand, the racial issues of the time are mentioned only in passing, “…a true star has no color.”

This account of Ella Fitzgerald’s life is by no means exhaustive. By offering a list of references in a variety of formats at the end of the book, as well as comprehensive Notes from the author and illustrator, readers are encouraged to study jazz and the contributions made by the Vocal Virtuosa.

REVIEW EXCERPTS:
"The prose, while occasionally labored, swings to a syncopated beat and piles on the synesthesia ("Ella rolled out a tune sweet enough to bake"). …A `skippity-hop-doo-dee-bop' picture book." (Publisher’s Weekly)
"In a playful, conversational tone, this work nearly sings the rhythms of scat. …Bright colors, jazzy words, and energetic artwork bring the music of scat and Fitzgerald to life." (School Library Journal)

CONNECTIONS:
Other books by Pinkney about African Americans:
DUKE ELLINGTON: THE PIANO PRINCE AND HIS ORCHESTRA
ALVIN AILEY
DEAR BENJAMIN BANNEKER
LET IT SHINE: STORIES OF BLACK WOMEN FREEDOM FIGHTERS
BILL PICKETT: RODEO-RIDIN’ COWBOY

Other books about Jazz
DUKE ELLINGTON: THE PIANO PRINCE AND HIS ORCHESTRA by Andrea D. Pinkney
CHARLIE PARKER PLAYED BE BOP by Chris Rascka
DIZZY by Jonah Winter
JOHN COLTRANE’S GIANT STEPS by Chris Raschka

Review of TONING THE SWEEP

Johnson, Angela. 1993. TONING THE SWEEP. New York, NY: Orchard Books. ISBN 978-0-531-086261

PLOT SUMMARY
Emmie and her mother are going to the desert to collect Ola, Emmie’s grandmother. Unlike her annual summer visits to Ola’s house, this time Emmie is helping her move to Cleveland to live with them. Before they leave, Emmie sets out to gather memories for Ola by videotaping her friends and neighbors. Not only does she learn how much her grandmother is loved, but also why her own mother is sometimes so sad and angry. In this slow-moving novel, a young girl helps her mother and grandmother through a process of healing and closure. Author Angela Johnson attempts to reveal how emotional hurt runs as deeply as that of physical ailments in TONING THE SWEEP.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
TONING THE SWEEP is the story of a 14-year old African-American girl who travels to her grandmother’s house with her mother. The girl, Emmie, has visited Ola, her grandmother, every summer since she was two. This visit, however, is different. Through the use of language, characterization and setting, Angela Johnson writes a story which allows the reader to watch a family deal with life-threatening disease and the loss of loved ones through a uniquely African-American lens.

As the characters talk to one another, their relationships as well as their culture are exposed. “Girl, you’d better put that hat on…” (p. 8). “I hope you never get to see hate, baby” (p. 33). The characters’ concern and love for one another comes through in their dialog. Further, terms of endearment such as baby, girl, honey, and sister are terms often used in African-American culture. Other phrases which connote generational as much as ethnic culture are used throughout the novel. As Emmie practices using the video camera she admits, “guess I’ll get it when I chill a little” (p. 19).

While ethnicity is never an overt topic in TONING THE SWEEP, characterization provides hints throughout the story. The main character, Emmie, has a variety of characteristics. Her grandmother affirms she is a “smart ass”—a typical teenage trait. However, Emmie admits to not having a clue about how to be cool. She thinks to herself that most of her friends wouldn’t admit to liking their grandmothers as she does. Ola is an irreverent and bold character. At one point in the story she tells Emmie, “Hair should be kept at home—not loaned out to people who want to put strange objects and creams in it…when you know your pets will be scared of you when you get back to the house” (p. 44). This statement can be attributed to Ola’s lack of vanity. However, it may also be a rejection of the phenomenon of Black people buying into the White definition of beauty. Ola surrounds herself with good friends such as the aunts. The aunts are described in the story as wild and free. They tell stories, braid hair, and roll on the floor laughing. With Johnson’s description, it is easy to draw a mental picture of these senior African-American sisters.

The dry, seemingly infertile setting of the desert is juxtaposed with the thriving, fertile personalities which inhabit it. While Ola initially wonders what she will be able to grow in “the dry,” it is clear she has nurtured many lush relationships. These relationships helped her to survive losing her husband and growing apart from her daughter. Despite her loses, Ola’s warm and easy relationship with her granddaughter flourishes like kudzu vine in this barren setting.

The language, characterization and setting in TONING THE SWEEP contribute to the plot and cultural relevance of the story. As the characters interact with the setting and one another, the reader senses the familial bonds and culture which Johnson has set forth.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
“Johnson's spare, beautifully written first novel—a thematic extension of Tell Me a Story, Mama (1989)—portrays a crucial turning point for African-American women from three generations.” (Kirkus Reviews)
“PW, in a starred review, praised this “thoughtfully nuanced and penetrating” novel about three generations of women from an African American family who must cope with a beloved grandmother's illness.” (Publisher’s Weekly)
Coretta Scott King Award, 1994

Reviews obtained from Follett Library Resources and accessed at:
http://www.flr.follett.com/main?SID=b8eed00e8fcf7b8bd35cecbbffabda05

CONNECTIONS
Other books by Angela Johnson:
Bird, ISBN 978-0-14-240544-4
The Other Side: Shorter poems, ISBN 978-0-531-07167-0
The First Part Last, ISBN 978-0-689-84923-7
Heaven, ISBN 978-0-689-82229-2

Books by Jacqueline Woodson:
Behind You, ISBN 978-0-14-240390-7
Between Madison and Palmetto, ISBN 978-0-399-23757-7
Locomotion, ISBN 978-0-14-240149-1

Review of MONSTER

Myers, Walter Dean. 1999. MONSTER. New York, NY: Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-06-028078-9

PLOT SUMMARY
Sixteen-year old Steve Harmon is on trial for murder. His part in the crime is said to be that of making sure the coast is clear. Steve didn’t pull the trigger. He didn’t actually do anything, did he? Steve’s life is explored through his thoughts, memories, and conversations. Told from a movie director’s perspective, Steve provides his side of the story. Sparse flash-backs give clues as to what actually happened. However, the reader must decide if the story told is the truth or a movie version of an innocent boy wrongly accused.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
MONSTER explores the cultures of Harlem and prison. The two settings take turns creating the world in which Steve Harmon lives. While the majority of the voices and characters in the story are likely to be African Americans, ethnicity is not always clear. Walter Dean Myers delves into the cultures of Harlem and prison through the use of language, characterization and setting.

The story begins with a young man in prison. He is frightened by those with whom he shares his cell and those with whom he must interact. He is disgusted by the smells and lack of privacy. In his attempt to deal with his fears, Steve resorts to writing a screenplay about his experiences. “If I didn’t think of the movie I would go crazy. All they talk about in here is hurting people….I hate, hate, hate this place” (p. 45). Prisoners blame their situation on “the man.” They threaten to hurt each other; beating up those who show weakness. In Myers depiction of the Manhattan Detention Center, prison guards are unwilling or unable to stop the violence. In the courthouse guards taunt defendants and defendants taunt each other—thus extending the culture of prison beyond its walls. Nothing in Steve’s past has prepared him or his family for this experience with prison. On visiting day, his father admits, “it just never came to me that you’d ever be in any kind of trouble…” (p. 112).

Harlem, a historically black neighborhood and Steve’s home, is the setting of his flashbacks. Steve is a good student who excels in film class. His father is a college graduate. By all accounts, Steve should be a good kid. Good kids can become associated with a criminal without becoming one, can’t they? Steve associates with young men who see stealing and gang membership as a way of life. While he never overtly accepts these behaviors, neither does he reject them. Through the community members, readers see the neighborhood’s culture including an acceptance of crime. When asked if he was shocked by a murder, one resident replied, “I ain’t shocked. People getting killed and everything and it ain’t right but I ain’t shocked none” (p. 121). The characters are rounded out through language. Use of the word ain’t peppered throughout the dialogue and well-placed examples of Black New York vernacular add to the flavor of Harlem’s culture without confusing the reader.

Myers’ young adult novel, MONSTER, offers a perspective on the culture of prison life as well as the lives of Harlem residents. While these two cultures are certainly not inextricably linked, the reader must see Steve’s life in Harlem in order to fully understand the impact prison has on him and how he got there. Perhaps it is the community’s resignation to senseless murder that places Steve in harm’s way. Perhaps his place of residence—with its poverty and unemployment—places him on the path toward a life of crime. After all, he did not go looking for trouble. In her closing argument, the prosecution declares “if he had chosen priests and Boy Scouts as his companions, I’m sure we wouldn’t be here today” (p. 261). Indeed, would any of us?

REVIEW EXCERPTS
“Balancing courtroom drama and a sordid jailhouse setting with flashbacks to the crime, Myers adeptly allows each character to speak for him or herself, leaving readers to judge for themselves the truthfulness of the defendants, witnesses, lawyers, and, most compellingly, Steve himself.” (Horn Book)
“Myers combines an innovative format, complex moral issues, and an intriguingly sympathetic but flawed protagonist in this cautionary tale of a 16-year-old on trial for felony murder.” (BookList)
Coretta Scott King Award, 2000
National Book Award Finalist, 1999
Michael L. Printz Award, 2000

Reviews obtained from Follett Library Resources and accessed at:
http://www.flr.follett.com/main?SID=b8eed00e8fcf7b8bd35cecbbffabda05

CONNECTIONS
Other books by Walter Dean Myers:
Bad Boy, ISBN 978-0-06-447288-3
The Beast, ISBN 978-0-439-36842-1
The Glory Field, ISBN 978-0-590-45898-6
Malcolm X: A fire burning brightly, ISBN 978-0-06-027708-6
Slam!, ISBN 978-0-590-48668-2
Street Love, ISBN 978-0-06-028080-2

7 More Children in Kabul are Dead

Parvana's story continues...
Read the full Associated Press story at:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AFGHANISTAN?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-06-18-09-42-37