Happy to be Nappy
Bell Hooks, Christopher Raschka
$14.99 /
Hardcover
From
Publishers Weekly:
This joyous ode to hair may well restart
conversations that began last year with the controversy over Carolivia Herron's
Nappy Hair. Bubbling over with affection, and injecting a strong self-esteem
boost for girls, hooks's ebullient, poetic text celebrates the innate beauty and
freedom of hair that's "soft like cotton,/ flower petal billowy soft, full of
frizz and fuzz." Waxing poetic about "short tight naps" or "plaited strands
all," hooks conjures all the lovely varieties of hairstyles that "let girls go
running free." She sings the praises of "girlpie hair," subtly reinforcing her
theme with a chorus of descriptive words like "halo" and "crown." She also
evokes the intimate warmth of mother-daughter time--"sitting still for hands to
brush or braid and make the day start hopefully." A powerful, uplifting and,
above all, buoyantly fun read-aloud, the text receives a superb visual
interpretation by Raschka (Like Likes Like). A master of minimalism, he works
here in nuanced, impressionistic watercolors and suggests his subjects with a
quick stroke of the brush here, a graceful sweep of line there. Bolstering the
theme of individuality, he provides softly shaded washes of varying hue that set
off the dazzling array of hairstyles like an aura and create a rhythmic flow of
color across the pages. Broad swoops conjure curls and braids, quick stripes of
colors make barrettes, and tiny dots create beads. Though clearly of particular
interest to African-American girls, the infectious energy and spirit of this
volume will appeal to all readers. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Cahners
Business Information.
From Kirkus Reviews
Intentionally or not, this short paean to natural, in-all-its-glory hair
constitutes a spirited response to the voices raised in protest over Carolivia
Herron's Nappy Hair (1997). Raschka pairs hook's song praising ``girlpie hair
for hands to touch and play!/Hair to take the gloom away'' with impressionistic
compositions of exuberantly dancing children, all sporting inky black locks
rendered with calligraphic brush strokes. The big daubs of background color seem
to dance and spin with the figures, visual music to match the verbal.
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