This episodic biographical picture book details the life of one Bass Reeves, a legendary lawman who, by the time the Indian Territory became the state of Oklahoma, had arrested some 3,000 lawbreakers, in the process taking the lives of only fourteen people. In the wild and lawless West, this was remarkable. The picture of Bass Reeves that Nelson paints with her words is one of a genuinely good man, a hero even, who did his job with honor and integrity. He even worked toward rehabilitating the outlaws he apprehended by talking to them about the Bible and about doing right. He would also stop at nothing to “get his man,” even assuming different personas to catch the ne’er-do-wells.
This book is chock full of historical detail, and it contains all sorts of additional information in the back: a glossary of Western terms, a timeline, bibliographies and website lists for futher reading, short sketches about some of hte historical figures and regions mentioned in the book, and even an interesting note from the author about how she came to know about this little known African American hero. I like what she said at the close of her note: “Bass’s story is so incredible it comes close to sounding like a tall tale. But it isn’t. It’s true. And I’ve done my best to tell it true.” I like that–I thought some of the story read like a tall tale, and it’s amazing to learn that Bass Reeves’ exploits did in fact happen.
R. Gregory Christie, three time recipient of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award, is the illustrator whose work fleshes out the story for us. The illustrations really evoke the feeling of the Old West. You can see an example illustration from Bad News for Outlaws here, or visit R. Gregory Christie’s website to gain an even broader appreciation of his artwork.
Although I have not shared this book with my children yet, I am excited to add this one to our collection. As regular Hope Is the Word readers know, my girls are interested in “pioneery” things (to borrow the terminology of my old boss, the librarian at the public library where I worked while in undergraduate school), so I think this one will be a winner with them when they’re old enough to understand some of the lawlessness and the violence that marked the Old West. I think this book would be appropriate from grades four through high school. (I’m an adult, and I really liked it. It made me want to know more about Bass Reeves!) What’s more, Carolrhoda Books has created several different resources for use with this book that would really help to broaden the study into something meaty.
I give this one a Highly Recommended!
I received no compensation, other than a free copy of the book, for writing this review.
Filed under: Award Book, Education, Juvenile Nonfiction, Picture Books | 1 Comment »
I’m probably coming a little late to the party for this particular author and illustrator, but my only exposure to him as a child that I recall is 
, or just the simple fact that this somewhat lengthy picture book has so many interesting details about life in coastal Maine. (An island, even!) Sal’s delight over losing a tooth; her consternation over losing (as in misplacing) that tooth while going clam digging with her father; and her fastidious care for her little sister while they travel by boat across the bay to do some shopping are just perfect–McCloskey really nailed the age, I think. This one’s definitely going on my Best Picture Books list.
and its sequel, 
. His obituary states that these are full of tall tales; I’m not sure if this means they are tall tales or if they contain tall tales. Something I’ve read before about them makes me think the latter. Has anyone read these?
Maybe I should’ve called this edition of 
I’m not sure how I missed Eleanor Estes’ Newbery Medal-winning Ginger Pye as a child, but I’m really glad my girls have had the pleasure of enjoying this fun and suspenseful story (over and over and over again 😉 ). They’ve listened to it enough times that I know the whole story, more or less, and I have been amused by the things they’ve picked up and used in their imaginative play as a result. Louise, especially, has an affinity for names, and more than one of her imaginary playmates or dolls has been named Addie Eagan (spelling? Remember, 
They listened to it several times, and we listened to part of the story on at least one short trip. Carol Ryrie Brink’s Caddie Woodlawn is another Newbery Medal winner. I’m sure that most people are familiar with the story, but I wanted to share it here because my girls did love it and I have my own particular memory of it: I have never, ever forgotten the fact that one of the brothers (Warren, I think) messed up his recitation for school. He was supposed to say, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” Instead, he said, “If at first you don’t fricassee, fry, fry a hen.” I’ll leave it to you, dear readers, to determine why this has remained lodged in my brain. 😉
We listened to a couple of the stories over and over again when 
because it’s fun and my girls really liked it in audio, but also because I think it might mark a turning point in Lulu’s journey toward independent reading. We ran errands on Saturday and went on a little roadtrip to a neighboring town for shopping, etc.–mainly just to get out of the house after a week of sickness and being mostly cooped up. We usually do bring along a longer audiobook for any trip of an hour or more, but I failed to get one and put it in the van. Louise had chosen How I Became a Pirate as her bring-along entertainment for the trip, and it just so happens that this particular book is one that came with a CD of the story. Guess what we listened to five or six times before we even made it out of town? You guessed it. It is a fun story, and I think my girls were perplexed about the whole pirate thing (we haven’t read anything with pirates in it to my recollection up until now)–Green teeth? “Aaargh?” Sea chanteys? “Shiver me timbers”? I don’t think they looked at the pictures much in the van; they just enjoyed listening. When we got home, Lulu brought me the book and proudly read to me from a page in the middle of the story. Granted, she had listened to it multiple times that day, but she was obviously working hard to sound out the words. Bingo! While she is making great progress in her reading, she is a little bit reluctant to apply it outside of “school time.” This has changed somewhat over the past few weeks, but I was thrilled when she voluntarily brought me this picture book and shared with me what she could do. I definitely consider that a Kid’s Pick!
Just in case I haven’t shared enough books about show this week, I thought I’d share one more. (You can read my other posts 
, and just before Christmas I ran across a banged up copy of Winter’s Tale at T.J. Maxx. I paid more than I should’ve for it, given its condition (some of the pop-ups are a little crumpled; some feature, I suspect musical, at the end of the book just doesn’t work), but I couldn’t resist. I’d already given the book a place of honor on our shelf, next to our other pop-up titles, when I happened to remember it. I’m so glad I did! The girls really enjoyed this 3-D version of a world covered in snow, and we all marvelled at Sabuda’s ability to create such intricate likenesses of snow-bound creatures like an owl, a family of deer, and a moose. This would make a great companion to any book that focuses on snow and its effects on the animal world. One bonus for me was that since the book is already less-than-perfect, it was easier for me to give in and let the girls really look at it. If you’re unfamiliar with Robert Sabuda, be sure to visit 
(by Robert Frost; illustrated by Susan Jeffers) (this one is also in volume one of Five in a Row, but I’m choosing not to “row” it with my girls this year)
(by Hans Wilhelm)
for our next chapter book selection (Louise having declared that she’s afraid of the White Witch in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, which was my other choice), but it turns out that I no longer own this book, or at least I can’t find it. I settled on 
Looking over the 
and Lulu predictably voted 
Last but certainly not least, Tumtum and Nutmeg. 
I have a neat anthology of Christmas stories called A Newbery Christmas that I picked up for a few dollars at 
a few times with my girls and expect to use even more as they get a little older. It’s 
big anthology coming to her door. . . .
My girls and I finished our latest chapter book read-aloud after an intermission from it which was precipitated by the Thanksgiving holiday and all the accompanying hullaballo. We read The Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson. I had seen this title repeatedly on numerous homeschooling message board threads, etc., so I thought we’d give it a go. It turns out that it was a winner and it was also a timely read in that it is set during the Christmas holiday season.
. It is the touching biographical sketch of Allen Say’s gradfather’s immigration to the United States as a young man and his eventual return to Japan as an old man. It is all about discovering a new country and missing an old country. It is about restlessness and wanderlust. It makes me cry, and despite that, my girls love it. 🙂 
How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman. In this humorous story, a young girl explains how both chopsticks and knives and forks came to be the utensils of choice in her home. It is the story of her Japanese mother and her American father, a sailor stationed in Yokohoma. We read of the beginning of their romance, which is speeded along when her father learns his ship will be leaving in three weeks. The young couple has enjoyed spending time together, but they have never eaten together due to their discomfort at each other’s manner of eating. What follows is a story faintly remisicent of “The Gift of the Magi” in which each person sacrifices to learn the other’s traditions. Allen Say‘s illustrations are recognizable in this story. In fact, my girls were pretty sure that the young woman in How My Parents Learned to Eat is the same one in the next selection. . .
In this story, a young girl is born outside San Francisco and spends her youth there, until her Japanese father grows so homesick for Japan that he relocates his family there. Masako cannot assimilate into life in Japan, and she eventually grows restless enough to move away from her parents’ village into the larger city of Osaka. In Osaka she gains employment in a department store, and it is there that she eventually meets her future husband (the father of Allen Say). Their meeting is through a unique turn of events that happens precisely because they both, though they are both Asian, speak English.
Hope Is the Word 
