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Review of Bridges Instead of Walls

The Story of Mavis Staples


A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP


cover of picture book biography Bridges Instead of Walls about Mavis Staples

Rocky Pond Books

(Penguin Random House)

(pub. 7.9.2024)

48 pages

Ages 6 - 9


Author: Mavis Staples and

Carole Boston Weatherford

   Illustrator: Steffi Walthall


Character: Mavis Staples


Overview:


" At 85, Mavis Staples is still singing in front of large audiences and sharing her message of love, faith, and justice. She’s been performing since age eight as part of her family’s gospel group The Staple Singers, and has become one of America’s most admired musicians, with multiple Grammys, a Kennedy Center Honor, and a place in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.


But Mavis has been more than a thrilling singer; she has also stood alongside Martin Luther King, Jr., at numerous Civil Rights protests where her voice was a rallying cry to the country."


Tantalizing taste:


"And perhaps the highest compliment,

she heard her golden oldies

sampled by new generations -

hip-hop artists like Ice Cube,

Whodini, Big Daddy Kane, and more.

Rap lyrics and the Staples's hits;

an unbroken circle of song,

with Mavis's mighty contralto

soaring above it all.


And something more: Lovely dedications in the book:


"To my dear family: Pops, Mom, Pervis, Cleedi, and Yvonne Staples " - Mavis Staples

" To all who lift their voices in protest and praise" - Carole Boston Weatherford

"To the music makers in my life" - Steffi Walthall

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