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Maya Angelou's brave, defiant poem celebrates the courage within each of us, young and old. From the scary thought of panthers in the park to the unsettling scene of a new classroom, fearsome images are summoned and dispelled by the power of faith in ourselves.
Angelou's strong words are matched by the daring vision of artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, whose childlike style reveals the powerful emotions and fanciful imaginings of childhood. Together, Angelou's words and Basquiat's paintings create a place where every child, indeed every person, may experience his or her own fearlessness.
In this brilliant introduction to poetry and contemporary art, brief biographies of Angelou and Basquiat accompany the text and artwork, focusing on the strengths they took from their lives and brought to their work. A selected bibliography of Angelou's books and a selected museum listing of Basquiat's works open the door to further inspiration through the fine arts.
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I must say, that beyond my expectations, I have helped to create a Maya fan. My daughter immediately took to the book, on Christmas Day, no less, amid hundreds of dollars worth of toys. We read the book about a dozen times in the first two days. She still reads it daily, and even took it to school to share with her class.
Maya's poem picks up on the fear and anxiety causing incidents of youth, and allows the child to tromp his/her fear into the ground. After reading it, my daughter felt fearless, realizing that she was the master of her emotion and was not at the mercy of 'scary things'.
I highly recommend this book, either for a child, or as a lover of art and poetry. Additionally, a tremendous collectible title for the future.
My only reservation lies in the question "Who is this book really for?" While Basquiat's dynamic use of line and color and space make for fascinating pictures, and his style is consciously influenced by the artwork of Native Americans and small children, his habitual use of skeletal imagery and jagged, leering facial expressions might prove too intense for little ones. On the other hand, the beautiful simplicity of Angelou's poetry will probably fail to appeal to kids who are experienced enough to expect a certain level of plot in their reading.
My advice to parents is this: don't give this book to your kids - buy it for yourselves, and keep it someplace where it won't get all trashed up by dirty little hands. When you think they're ready, let your youngsters look at this book with you, so if the pictures should strike them the wrong way, you'll be there for them. Better not do this at bedtime until you're sure how they'll react - this could be the stuff nightmares are made of. But even if they love it, hang on to the book yourself, so that in a couple of years when your child loses interest (they may begin to see it as a "baby book"), you'll still have a beautiful coffee-table book of post-modernist art to share with your friends. And eventually, your kids might grow up into little intellectuals who can see what a delightful creation this book really is. It may not be perfect for anyone, but it certainly has something for everyone.
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