From the monthly archives:
Talkin’ About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by E. B. Lewis (Orchard, 2002)
The first African-American woman airplane pilot’s story is told in approximately two-dozen fictionalized poems a.k.a. eulogies about her life.
PBS features a bio and photo of Coleman on their Fly Girls page.
Tallchief: America’s Prima Ballerina by Maria Tallchief, with Rosemary Wells, illustrated by Gary Kelley (Viking Juvenile, 1999)
Native American ballerina Maria Tallchief tells the story of her own childhood up to her move to New York at seventeen in pursuit of a dance career.
A few images of Tallchief can be seen at The Ballerina Gallery.
Django by Bonnie Christensen (Neal Porter Book/Roaring Brook, 2009)
Djano’s story, told in a jazzy beat, plays to the heart. Born in poverty, this dreamer, found his home in music. And when tragedy struck, like a phoenix, he rose, relearned how to play and soared.
The Chicago Tribune reported on what would have been Django’s 100th birthday celebration with a bash.
Paul Cezanne: A Painter’s Journey by Robert Burleigh, illustrated by works from the National Gallery of Art (Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2006)
French artist Cezanne and his work are featured in this introduction to this talented Post-Impressionist painter.
The National Gallery of Art exhibit, Cezanne in Provence, offers a chronology, images and background. Visit today!
Mack Made Movies by Don Brown (Roaring Brook Press, 2003)
“In 1900, twenty-year-old Mack Sennett was a horse’s rear end.” Who can resist an opening line like that? Read more about the silent moviemaker of the slapstick Keystone Kops and Charlie Chaplin.
A mini-biography and a listing of Sennett’s work is available on a movie database site.
