Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 08/01/2016 PreS-Gr 2—Based on the real childhood experiences of fashion model Georgie Badiel in Burkina Faso, this offering tells one child's story in an unspecified African locale. Princess Gie Gie tries to rule over her domain. She tames wild dogs with a song, makes tall grass dance when she dances, and plays hide-and-seek with the wind. However, try as she might, she can't draw clean water any closer to her home. Instead, the girl and her mother must make a long trek to gather water from the well with the rest of the women. They try to fill their time with music, imagination, and laughter, but the hardship and physical effort are palpable. Despite the daily struggles to get water, Princess Gie Gie never gives up looking for a solution. "I am Princess Gie Gie. My Kingdom? The African sky. The dusty earth. And, someday, the flowing, cool, crystal-clear water. Someday…." Perhaps, someday has now arrived. Badiel is helping to raise awareness and funds to bring clean drinking water to the people of Burkina Faso and other countries in Africa. While the text is informative and poetic, it is the imagery that will stick with readers. Reynolds's evocative watercolor, gouache, and digital ink paintings capture the glow of the hot sun, sparkle in the night sky, and will transport children to Princess Gie Gie's imagined kingdom. Kids will have to look to the author note and elsewhere for more specifics and possible solutions. VERDICT A lovely picture book, filled with messages of perseverance and hope.—Megan Egbert, Meridian Library District, ID - Copyright 2016 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 09/01/2016 Verde joins Badiel (fashion model and clean-drinking-water activist) to create a story based on Badiel’s childhood experiences in Burkina Faso, one of many African countries where women walk miles every day to fetch water. In it, the fictional protagonist—Princess Gie Gie—and her mother set off for the river before dawn, and they return at dusk. Gie Gie’s frustration is evident at first, but it soon dissipates in the romance of the walk with her mother. They sing and laugh and dance, bathed in the golden glow of Reynolds’ charming rendition of sunlight on a vast, empty African plain. Gie Gie’s questions about her village’s lack of water are unanswered, but her day ends with a dream of one day bringing water to her “kingdom.” Rich purple and tawny hues create an evocative backdrop to the story, while the friendly font softens the exhausting, arduous nature of fetching water. Readers are left to wonder if the power of dreaming can change reality, and inquisitive ones might be moved to look up the true story on Badiel’s website. - Copyright 2016 Booklist.