Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 11/01/2012 Gr 5–8—This book is similar in scope to the author's Let It Shine: Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters (Harcourt, 2000. The subjects here include Benjamin Banneker, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, A. Philip Randolph, Thurgood Marshall, Jackie Robinson, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Barack Obama, all introduced in the author's characteristically lively prose ("Black students kept on keeping on with dog-eared textbooks and dog-tired feet"; Malcolm Little's hair was transformed from "pretty-boy cotton-kink to slick-daddy bone-straight"). The distinct experiences that shaped each man are ably delineated-the childhood events, the hardships faced, the richly deserved victories won-and the results are, without exception, compelling. The large font size is perfect for the middle-grade audience, but too many blocks of unbroken text may turn away less-confident readers. Thankfully, Brian Pinkney's magnificent portraits and spot art throughout each profile help to amplify each man's story. A must-have for all libraries serving young people.Sam Bloom, Blue Ash Library, Cincinnati, OH - Copyright 2012 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2013 The ten biographies featured in this title comprise what Pinkney refers to as her “black legacy time line” and indeed, the towering figures she presents could be collectively regarded as a round-up of notable names, from Benjamin Banneker and Frederick Douglass to Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Barack Obama. Pinkney, however, relates their life experiences in a storyteller’s voice that is at once front porch intimate and Sunday preacher eloquent, a far cry from the staid tone generally reserved for biography: “To . . . antislave crusaders, Benjamin’s [Banneker] almanac was a freedom flag. They waved Benjamin’s manuscript high in the air so that pro-slavers throughout Maryland had no choice but to notice.” Approachable as Pinkney’s prose may be, the overall appearance of the volume is somewhat daunting, with lengthy entries presented on densely packed pages. Brian Pinkney’s artwork goes some distance toward making the layout more approachable with fabulous full-page watercolor portraiture and bits of spot art, but long stretches of uninterrupted text will probably leave readers aching for more pictorial relief. No specific source notes are offered, but a bibliography is included, as well as an index and timeline that clarifies the overlap of these ten remarkable lives within a broader historical context. Teachers looking for inspiring stories to share with their students will welcome this as a source for middle-school readalouds. EB - Copyright 2013 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.