Titles for February

Today I want to share three wonderful and touching books you may want to use or recommend during Februay. The first is Abe's Honest Words. When you pick up the book, the cover is incredible, you will never forget it. It is a large picture of Lincoln's face with the American flag in the background. It is a truely beautiful cover. The illustrator is Kadir Nelson, an extremely gifted artist you may have heard of since he has been involved in many great projects ( www.kadirnelson.com ). This book is no different, the artwork is so realistic, lifelike and stunning, it draws me into each page. A picture book by nature, it is much, much more than that. It is a moving account of his life with strong quotations from his speeches or writings on each page. These quotes actually finish the author's thoughts for each segment of his life. A book not to be missed by young or old. The next book is actually a poem written by Langston Hughes entitled The Negro Speaks of Rivers. It is illustrated by E. B. Lewis and it another stunning book. According to Lewis' note in the back of the book, Hughes wrote this amazing poem when he was just 18 years old. Now what a great book to share with high school students to introduce the poetry of Langston Hughes. I hope my secondary friends are not making fun of me when I saw these things. I do believe them with all my heart. I will be visiting with some of my high school LMS friends in March and I plan to have this book with me! We'll see. It was a labor of love for Lewis and it is well worth it for me the reader. Lastly, another picture book. Going North is written by Janice N. Harrington who actually had the experience of going north as a young girl. It could be a very dangerous thing for a Negro family to travel north during segregation and this book with its beautiful yet haunting pictures shares this story in a lyrical verse. You feel the tension in the story as Daddy gets close to running out of gas just trying to find a station welcoming to Negros. Awesome book that really gives students a first hand look at a different aspect to segregation- moving north. That's all folks!