Dark was the Night - a review

Dark was the Night: Blind Willie Johnson's Journey to the Stars

By Gary Golio

Illustrations by E.B. Lewis

Nancy Paulsen, 2020

 

Little is known about musician, Blind Willie Johnson, but his unique style of blues and slide guitar made him a popular musician—at first in church, and then on street corners throughout Texas, and finally, with the advent of the phonograph, on records. His song, "Dark was the Night," was selected for inclusion on The Golden Record, sent into space on September 5, 1977.* 

He was not born blind in 1897, but lost his sight and his mother as a young boy. 

Gary Golio answers the questions he poses in the book, 

So how does a blind boy get along? 

How does he make his way in the world?

Willie Johnson's is a story of perseverance and the blues, and it offers a tiny glimpse of the African American experience at the turn of the turn of the 20th century. The inclusion of his music on The Golden Record is a metaphor for our humble beginnings, how far we've come, and how far we've yet to go.

Fitting with the vague details of Willie Johnson's life, E.B. Lewis' watercolor art is indistinct, allowing the reader to gather the feel and mood of the era, the place, the people, and the music—rather than a concrete rendering. The palette is dark, but sun and starlight signify the light of music that reaches all of humanity, even the blind.  

Dark was the Night is an ode with a musicality to it that evokes a bluesy mood. I defy any reader to read this book without seeking out Willie Johnson's music. It will call to you and you won't be able to resist.

 

* You can track the current location of  The Golden Record's copy of "Dark was the Night" on the Voyager spacecraft's website. [https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/status/]

My copy of Dark was the Night was a digital copy provided by the author.

A Dog Called Homeless - a book trailer

In preparation for an upcoming 4-week club for kids that I'll be hosting, I created a book trailer for A Dog Called Homeless, winner of the 2013 Middle Grade Schneider Family Book Award,  The Schneider Family Book Awards "honor an author or illustrator for the artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences."

A Dog Called Homeless is written by Sarah Lean and published by Harper Collins. I hope you enjoy it.

I'll be adding this to my Multimedia Booktalks page.

Colors of the Wind - a review

National Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15 - October 15. What a great time to celebrate the life and work of Mexican-American painter, George Mendoza.  

Powers, J.L. 2014. Colors of the Wind: The Story of Blind Artist and Champion Runner George Mendoza. Cynthiana, KY: Purple House Press.

As a child, George Mendoza began seeing brilliantly-colored lights, shapes and squiggles, eventually losing most of his sight except his peripheral vision and the ever-present colors.  Unable to play basketball or other do other things he wanted, George took up running. He excelled in the sport and competed twice in the Olympics for the Disabled.  In the back of his mind, however, he'd kept a long-ago word advice from his youth.

One day, a flyer arrived in the mail,
advertising a contest for blind artists.
George remembered the priest, who told him,
"You should paint what you see."

George started to paint,
just like the priest told him to do.

And so began the painting career of George Mendoza.

The text appears in a plain, small font on white pages, accompanied by simple blank ink drawings, often highlighted with colors from Mendoza's paintings.  Each facing page contains a full-bleed image of one of Mendoza's paintings.

Biographical information, photos of Mr. Mendoza, and painting titles are included in the book's back matter.

The joyful, riotous colors of Mendoza's paintings will certainly appeal to children, as will his story of perseverance and purpose.  Enjoy!

You can see photos from Mendoza's "Colors of the Wind" exhibit at the Ellen Noel Art Museum here.  The exhibit is listed with the Smithsonian Affiliate Exhibition Exchange.


My copy of the book was provided by the author.

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes

Auxier, Jonathan. 2011. Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes. New York: Amulet.

(Advance Reader Copy provided by the publisher and signed in New Orleans by the young, very friendly, and tall Jonathan Auxier. Some lucky young reader will be the recipient of this great new book!)

A sightless, orphan boy under the control of a heartless man, the Dickensian Peter Nimble uses his remarkable senses to survive, becoming as unseen as he is sightless - a master of thievery, lock picking, diversion, filching, clipping and pilfering.  It is a mean and demeaning life until the day he steals an elaborately guarded, locked and fortified box containing three sets of eyes - eyes which catapult him into a strange and fantastic journey to the spaces that have heretofore been left blank upon the maps of the world.  His destiny is a quest for the Vanished Kingdom. To accomplish his mission, he has only his new companion, the part feline/part equine/part human Sir Tode (a most miserably enchanted knight), an unfinished riddle, his burgle-sack, and of course, the Fantastic Eyes.

The language of Peter Nimble is the straightforward language of action and adventure, which is not to say that this book is simple or unsophisticated. In fact, the plot has many twists with depth equal to the cruel mines of the Vanished Kingdom. There is some obvious foreshadowing, but this may be a planned device, offering the reader a sense of accomplishment while following this exciting adventure as it changes perspective when new characters enter and expand the story.

As Peter Nimble is blind, the reader depends upon the narrator and good Sir Tode to set the visual scene. Peter's view of the world is colored, so to speak, by his other senses.  He tells the time of day by the "feel" of the sun or moon.  He can "smell the dew percolating up from the ground."  He can judge the size of a chamber or hall by the echo of voices or machinery. But he cannot do it all alone, and enlists the help of the loyal Sir Tode, a fish, thieves, a raven, and "the Princess," in a fierce battle to aid the author of the riddle,

Kings aplenty, princes few,
The ravens scattered and seas withdrew.
Only a stranger may bring relief,
But darkness will reign, unless he's --

For ages 10 and up, readers of Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes can expect some violence and even death (no quest is without danger!), but Peter and his allies are up to the challenge, and when they falter, they are reminded,

There are times when Justice demands from us more than we would give.

A satisfying and captivating debut novel that certainly leaves open the possibility of future adventures. (Read more about that in this BookPage interview with author, Jonathan Auxier.) A treat for fans of action, adventure, magic and fantasy!

(I love the cover art!)
True story: I have never encountered the word sternutation before reading Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes. After looking it up, I shared my discovery with my family that evening only to have my son tell me that he, too, had learned the word sternutation that day - from a Snapple cap!  A strange coincidence to be sure!

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