Bird
This picture book for older readers is a touching look at a family coping with addiction. When his beloved older brother starts acting strange, Bird turns to his elders for advice and learns that “you can’t fix a broken soul.” Readers will be heartened by Bird’s quiet resilience, and moved by the healing power of putting pencil to paper.
Lee & Low Books
$19.95
ISBN: 978-1600602412
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“In this beautiful picture book for older readers, Elliott and Strickland tell a moving story in spare free verse and clear mixed-media pictures of an African American boy who loves to draw. At first Bird’s mentor is his older brother, Marcus, a graffiti artist. Then Marcus becomes a junkie who is eventually kicked out of their home. Drug use among family members is a reality for some young people, but it is rare to find books for the age group that reflect that experience. Marcus’ need for “a fix” and his eventual death are both handled with subtlety: “Marcus never got better. After the funeral, Granddad went to bed.” Bird’s elderly friend, Uncle Son, keeps the young artist strong and tells him a story from slavery times of the people in chains who could fly when their spirits broke free. The spacious scenes of the boy beneath birds soaring high above the city streets echoes what Bird discovers: that art can inspire, comfort, and elevate.”
~Booklist
Awards
- Lee & Low New Voices Honor Award
- Best of 2008, Kirkus Reviews (& starred review)
- 2009 ALA Notable Children’s Book
- Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent & Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator Award (won by Shadra Strickland)
- Bank Street College Best Children’s Book 2009
- 2009 Paterson Prize for Books for Young Readers
- 2011 West Virginia Children’s Choice Book Award
See the publisher’s webpage for a complete list of reviews.