Christo & Jeanne-Claude's Fabrics of Freedom
A TRUE TALE WITH
A CHERRY ON TOP
Abrams Books for Young Readers
(pub. 8.16.2022) 48 pages Author: Elisa Boxer
Illustrator: Susanna Chapman
Characters: Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Overview:
" This biography chronicles Christo's humble childhood in Soviet-controlled Bulgaria—under a regime that suppressed individuality and creativity—to his international fame as a bold (and controversial) innovator in the art world. Christo discovered an early love of art and found a way to make a living out of his passion by wrapping bottles, cans, stacks of magazines, and even an air conditioner. When he met his wife, Jeanne-Claude, they moved to New York City as undocumented immigrants and became equal partners in both life and work—he, the artist, and she, the dealmaker.
Together, Christo and Jeanne-Claude made elaborate, visually stunning installations that transformed public spaces around the world, all free to the public. Christo never explained why he felt compelled to wrap things in fabric—rather, his work celebrated individual interpretation and the simple joy of seeing something familiar in a new way. And though each work was temporary, their awe-inspiring designs, uniting nature with the manmade, stayed with viewers long afterward. Covered in Color inspires readers to appreciate the beauty around us, however fleeting, and to push the boundaries of 'possible.'"
Tantalizing taste:
" For four weeks,
millions of visitors streamed into Central Park
to gaze up at the orange flags forming The Gates.
For twenty-three miles,
one million square feet of fabric
hung from more than five thousand tons of steel.
When the wind and the light were just right,
the cloth panels would touch together,
creating an orange ceiling of sunshine.
With his wild, wide-open creations,
and with Jeanne-Claude's help,
Christo freed himself
from the regressive governments
and their rigid rules
in the lands he had left behind as a young man."
And something more: Matthew Burgess, in the Author's Note, explains that "Christo and Jeanne-Claude never accepted donations or sponsors. Their public art was funded entirely thorough the sale of Christo's smaller-scale work. And while that work is still housed in museums across the world, Christo and Jeanne-Claude always emphasized that their large-scale public art was, in fact, designed to end. Which is ironic, of course, because such wild, wondrous, temporary works stay forever in the hearts and minds of all who see them."
The Story of Senator
Tammy Duckworth
A TRUE TALE WITH
A CHERRY ON TOP
Candlewick Press
(pub. 9.27.2022) 48 pages
Author: Christina Soontornvat
Illustrator: Dow Phumiruk
Characters: Tammy Duckworth
Overview:
" Senator Tammy Duckworth has logged a long list of 'firsts' during her tenure as the first Thai American woman elected to Congress, including being the first woman with a disability to serve in the House and Senate. But while she dreamed of serving her country from a young age, Tammy’s path was not without its challenges.
In this dramatic account, award-winning creators Christina Soontornvat and Dow Phumiruk chronicle Tammy’s journey. From her childhood fight to keep her family from homelessness, to her service in the US Army, to her recovery from grievous injuries sustained in the line of duty, Tammy never lost her determination to keep going against staggering odds."
Tantalizing taste:
" The doctors fit Tammy with prosthetic legs. Her right leg was gone all the way to the hip, and controlling her new prosthetic was like balancing on the end of a broomstick.
Each day was a battle against gravity.
Inch by inch, falling, getting up, and falling again.
And again.
Get back up.
Keep fighting."
And something more: The last page of the book includes this quote by Tammy Duckworth:
"That day, I lost both of my legs, but I was given a second chance at life. It's a feeling that has helped to drive me in my second chance at service – no one should be left behind, and every American deserves another chance."
The Wong Kim Ark Story
A TRUE TALE WITH
A CHERRY ON TOP
Little, Brown and Company
(pub.11.23.2021) 40 pages
Authors: Martha Brockenbrough
with Grace Lin
Illustrator: Julia Kuo
Characters: Wong Kim Ark
Overview:
" When American-born Wong Kim Ark returns home to San Francisco after a visit to China, he’s stopped and told he cannot enter: he isn’t American. What happens next would forever change the national conversation on who is and isn’t American. After being imprisoned on a ship for months, Wong Kim Ark takes his case to the Supreme Court and argues any person born in America is an American citizen.
I am an American: The Wong Kim Ark Story is an important picture book that introduces young readers to the young man who challenged the Supreme Court for his right to be an American citizen and won, confirming birthright citizenship for all Americans."
Tantalizing taste:
" Long ago, a boy was born in an apartment
above a shop in San Francisco.
His name was Wong Kim Ark - and
he believed something that would change
this country.
I am an American.
...When Kim Ark was growing up, hard financial
times hit. Many people blamed the Chinese.
They said people of Chinese heritage could never
be American.
Kim Ark knew this was not true.
I am an American."
And something more: More About the Story at the back of the book explains that "Even after Wong Kim Ark won his Supreme Court case, he and other people of Chinese ancestry continued to experience unfair treatment.
He always had to carry a certificate of identity with him to prove he was American."
I appreciate that the Back Matter not only includes an explanation of The Fourteenth Amendment, but also a discussion of who argued against and for Wong Kim Ark, in particular "Thomas Riordan [who] defended the rights of people of Chinese ancestry in San Francisco and challenged other racist laws in court. He fought two other cases all the way to the Supreme Court."
