I Remember

Starred review from August 19, 2019
An inclusive collection of poets and artists pays homage to cultural and familial inheritance through a series of illustrated memories. Compiled by Hopkins, readers are treated to an intimate look into the childhoods of poets such as Naomi Shihab Nye and Kwame Alexander. Every work opens with a personal dictum from both poet and artist (“Painting is the voice that helps me share,” says Rafael López). And the following poems evoke an immediacy that connects readers with another’s memory—of travel, food, ritual, story—while drawing out readers’ own fond remembering (“When Abuelita visits/ time seems to stop,” writes Margarita Engle). The corresponding artwork demonstrates a wonderful range of visual language and technique; there is truly something for everyone in these pages. The index includes mini biographies and then-and-now photographs of the book’s contributors. A rich celebration of the cultures and moments that shape people. Ages 8–up.

Starred review from October 1, 2019

Gr 3-8-This vibrant quilt of poetry and art features the works of 30 unique poets and artists from a wide array of cultural backgrounds. Poems recount the writers' memories of their family traditions and how their experiences growing up in America as second-generation children often shaped their views of their heritage and cultural identity. Contributors such as Kwame Alexander, Jorge Tetl Argueta, Nick Bruel, and Janet S. Wong offer a varied approach to poetic form, allowing readers to experience rhythm, meter, and verse. Illustrations using all types of media sing through the pages. Each poet's work is preceded by a statement addressing what poetry means to them and how its format can tap into a person's heart and soul. VERDICT Pairing the works of some of today's most important voices in children's poetry with illustrations by artists of equal talent makes this is a must-have for all elementary and middle grade collections.-Liz Allen, Middle Country Public Library, Centereach, NY

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2020
Fourteen writers contribute poems that speak to their ethnic heritage. A full-page illustration by a different artist accompanies each piece, with much varie­ty to ensure wide appeal. The poems, too, range in type, from more traditional rhyme schemes ("My Quincea�era" by Guadalupe Garc�a McCall) to conversational pieces ("Amazing Auntie Anne" by Cynthia Leitich Smith) to stream of consciousness ("Here's What I Remember" by Kwame Alexander). Certain oft-seen themes crop up, such as the importance of extended family, whose "hidden roots still give you strength" ("Rez Road" by Joseph Bruchac). Margarita Engle writes, in "La visita, " that during visits with her abuelita, she would not only learn to embroider but would "begin to feel like a wise old cubana / while she becomes young and American." While many writers celebrate their differences, others note difficulties: Nick Bruel describes the challenge of having to check just one ethnicity box on a form, while Janet Wong describes a classmate's taunts to "say something Korean." The placement of page-turns amidst multipage poems, and with interspersed full-page illustrations, may occasionally cause confusion. But the art itself�? by sixteen illustrators including Simone Shin, Sean Qualls, and Michele Wood (and with artist statements accompanying each one)�? is compelling enough that viewers will enjoy seeing what those page-turns bring. Chock-full of information, this multifaceted collection invites repeated perusal. Appended with brief contributor bios featuring current and childhood photos. Julie Hakim Azaam

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2020
Fourteen writers contribute poems that speak to their ethnic heritage. A full-page illustration by a different artist accompanies each piece, with much varie�ty to ensure wide appeal. The poems, too, range in type, from more traditional rhyme schemes ("My Quincea�era" by Guadalupe Garc�a McCall) to conversational pieces ("Amazing Auntie Anne" by Cynthia Leitich Smith) to stream of consciousness ("Here's What I Remember" by Kwame Alexander). Certain oft-seen themes crop up, such as the importance of extended family, whose "hidden roots still give you strength" ("Rez Road" by Joseph Bruchac). Margarita Engle writes, in "La visita," that during visits with her abuelita, she would not only learn to embroider but would "begin to feel like a wise old cubana / while she becomes young and American." While many writers celebrate their differences, others note difficulties: Nick Bruel describes the challenge of having to check just one ethnicity box on a form, while Janet Wong describes a classmate's taunts to "say something Korean." The placement of page-turns amidst multipage poems, and with interspersed full-page illustrations, may occasionally cause confusion. But the art itself--by sixteen illustrators including Simone Shin, Sean Qualls, and Michele Wood (and with artist statements accompanying each one)--is compelling enough that viewers will enjoy seeing what those page-turns bring. Chock-full of information, this multifaceted collection invites repeated perusal. Appended with brief contributor bios featuring current and childhood photos.

(Copyright 2020 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from August 15, 2019
Curated by poet Hopkins, a collection of poems and illustrations sourced from a diverse pool of creators. Each double-page spread or multipage sequence captures a childhood memory, an artist paired with a poet welcoming readers into an expansive space of youth and memory. Storyteller G. Neri describes his "Creole, Filipino, and Mexican" heritage as a "great example of globalization," and other contributors celebrate their mixed cultural heritages: Juliet Menendez (Guatemalan/Irish), Janet S. Wong (Korean/Chinese), Janine Macbeth (Asian/black/white/Native), and Nick Bruel (Chinese/Belgian). Insoo Kim doubles down as a poet and illustrator in "Speak Up," in which a young boy challenged to "say something Korean" confronts his dual identity as a U.S.-born Korean American. Poets and artists are generally paired loosely by identity, with Naomi Shihab Nye's Palestinian heritage and Sawsan Chalabi's Lebanese background contributing to their collaboration, for instance, and Abenaki author Joseph Bruchac's poem "Rez Road" juxtaposed with Mohawk artist David Kanietakeron Fatdden's symbolic painting. Brief statements by each creator accompany their contributions, and select vocabulary is defined discreetly in tiny type at the ends of poems. The compilation ends with a wonderful section that includes child and adult photos and bios of all of the book's contributors, a nice touch that inspires, as it puts names to faces for youth to see that people of all cultures are accomplished artists. A perfect addition to the bookshelves of culture, poetry, and art. (Picture book/poetry. 8-12)

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Starred review from March 1, 2020
Grades 3-6 *Starred Review* Compiled by the late Hopkins, this stirring poetry collection celebrates the breadth and diversity of the American experience, including contributions from two Young People's Poet Laureates (Margarita Engle and Naomi Shihab Nye), a Newbery winner (Kwame Alexander), and winners of Coretta Scott King and Pura Belpr� Awards (Carole Boston Weatherford and Guadalupe Garcia McCall). Their poems touch on racism, biculturalism, and class, with a running theme of family heritage, fond childhood memories, and connection to identity. Many selections are laced with the pain of never quite fitting in and the danger of feeling like the other. In Route 66, Marilyn Nelson writes about childhood road trips: I sit behind Daddy's beautiful close-shorn head / and his broad, strong uniform-blue shoulders, / loving him, and feeling fear for his life. / What if somebody who hates black people / drives past our car and shoots him in the head? Short glossary entries cover terms that children may not be familiar with and translations of non-English words, plus quotations from the contributors about their inspirations or thoughts on poetry, as well as short biographies. Done in each artist's signature style, the illustrations highlight each poem's message, making entries even more poignant and thought-provoking. A gorgeous must-have for all poetry units and an excellent collection for all libraries.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)