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Reviews

Skipping Stones Honor Award 2022

Booklist Continuing Series Nonfiction Showcase
"The Civil Rights Era series seeks to introduce middle school students to influential individuals who figured prominently in the struggle for civil rights. Engaging biographies, usually five per volume, provide detailed looks at subjects’ lives, motivations, contributions, and legacies. Each book’s unique introduction sets the political and social scene with pages filled with graphics (time lines, fact boxes, photos, reproductions, posters, album covers) and short paragraphs highlighted in blocks of color and set off by different fonts. Insets offer quotes, open-ended questions (what’s the big idea, how would this make you feel, what might you have done), and QR codes that link to news stories, speeches, music, and other primary sources. Important vocabulary words are defined in a comprehensive glossary, and additional back matter includes a list of resources and a selected bibliography. Singing for Equality profiles such musicians as Bob Dylan, Mavis Staples and the Staple Singers, Sam Cooke, James Brown, and Nina Simone. Sitting In, Standing Up spotlights leaders, including Thurgood Marshall, Fannie Lou Hamer, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X (who are covered in one chapter), John Lewis, and Ella Baker. There is necessarily some overlap in coverage, but the revisited material comes across as reinforcement as opposed to repetition. Overall, these volumes provide accessible entries into a complex period."

School Library Journal
Gr 6-9–"This collective biography spotlights five iconic musicians whose careers influenced the Civil Rights Movement. Each chapter discusses the highlights of the artist’s career, how their music impacted the quest for equal rights, and how the era affected their careers. Bob Dylan, Mavis Staples and the Staple Singers, Sam Cooke, James Brown, and Nina Simone were prominent figures in the time period and galvanized change in small and large measures. The chapters are easy to read and provide an accessible narrative. The text includes bright colors and many photographs. QR codes link to YouTube videos that feature songs of each singer and offer questions to keep readers thinking. Activities and projects listed at the end of each chapter help to extend classroom discussion. A table of contents, a glossary, an index, and further reading are included. The layout and design features are almost like a textbook. VERDICT This title will appeal to young readers who want to further their interest in music or the civil rights era. A worthwhile purchase."

Children’s Literature
“The writing is breezy and conversational and encourage active participation through research activities, QR codes linking to YouTube videos, and “Wonder Why” questions that allow readers to make connections to their own lives and experiences. Although the narrative is engaging enough for pleasure reading, the format lends itself well to browsing, with quote pullouts, textboxes, timelines, primary source photos, and lists.”

Praise for other titles by Diane C. Taylor

The Renaissance Artists: With History Projects for Kids
Booklist STARRED Review
"This is a wonderfully enticing introduction to the Renaissance via the lives of five artists: Michelangelo, da Vinci, Titian, Botticelli, and Raphael. An accessible introduction offers a concise overview of just what exactly the Renaissance was, establishing social and historical context, and then five chapters explore the contributions and lasting impact of each painter. The heavily illustrated text covers basic biographical information—family background, training, relationships (including sexual orientation), even personal appearance and grooming.  This appealing package will attract browsers and be a boon to student researchers and their teachers."

Gutsy Girls Go For Science: Engineers With Stem Projects for Kids
School Library Journal Series Made Simple
"These sprightly biography anthologies spotlight five women whose curiosity and determination led them to break barriers and change perceptions. QR codes support information relayed in time lines, archive photos, reflective questions, sidebars, and pull quotes. The codes are used to their very best effect, sending readers to news reports, archival video, websites, TEDx talks, and even a webcomic. Each link is listed in the backmatter. The five or six activities per book range from simple observation to rather involved projects and forgo detailed instructions, instead encouraging readers to make choices and assemble materials and create their own challenges. Engineers is a standout for showcasing little-known stories like water safety pioneer Ellen Swallow Richards, while Programmers has the best activities and uses real programming tools. VERDICT: A holistic approach incorporating personal stories, history, and STEM content."