I See the Rhythm of Gospel - Hardcover

Igus, Toyomi

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0310718198 ISBN 13: 9780310718192

Publisher: Zonderkidz, 2010

Synopsis

“We free now, baby,” mama whispers as we bounce and sway with the wagon’s twists and turns over roads of clay through the land that oppressed us to a new world, a brand new day. The dynamic author/illustrator team of Toyomi Igus and Michele Wood has come together again to produce I See the Rhythm of Gospel, a sequel to the Coretta Scott King Award-winning I See the Rhythm. Readers of all ages will be captivated by this informative and inspirational blend of poetry, art, and music that relates the history of gospel music as reflected through the journey of African Americans from their arrival as slaves in America to the election of our first black president, Barack Obama. The bonus CD included in the back of the book features these five gospel songs representing different eras in African-American gospel history: Gospel Quartets: “Wade in the Water”—Golden Gate Quartet Gospel Women: “I Will Move on Up a Little Higher”—Mahalia Jackson Gospel Soul (Motown and Funk): “Hallelujah Praise”—CeCe Winans Gospel Power: “Jesus Be a Fence Around Me”—Fred Hammond and Radical for Christ Holy Hip-Hop: “I Love You”—Cross Movement

About this title

About the Author

TOYOMI IGUS is the author and editor of several multicultural books for children, including the popular Two Mrs. Gibsons about her own biracial, bicultural heritage, and Going Back Home, for which she won the American Book Award. Formerly the publications editor for UCLA’s Center for African American Studies, Toyomi is currently a marketing communications consultant who lives and works in Los Angeles, California. Toyomi has been honored for her work in promoting literacy among children.

Minister MICHELE WOOD is known for her mastery of painting, color theory, and design aesthetics. Her books have been sold in multiple countries, and her numerous accolades include the American Book Award and the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award. In 2016, she was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for the book Chasing Freedom. Michele uses her Master of Divinity degree to incorporate theology into her picture books, creating powerful illustrations with Christian symbolism that captivate readers young and old. Visit her website at www.michelewood.com.

Review

Gospel music---its origins and its effects on the souls and stories of African Americans---gets a strong, loving treatment here. Wood and Igus, who collaborated on I See the Rhythm (1998), once again join forces, with Igus providing the stirring text and Wood the inventive folk art. After an introduction explains the elements of gospel, the book begins with the coming of slaves to America and follows the music as it moves through specific periods in history---slavery, Reconstruction, the Great Migration, the civil rights movement---and becomes meshed with other forms of music, including “holy hip-hop.” The prose poetry, appearing in varying colors and fonts, features strong, memorable phrases---“Gospel women turn city streets into sacred spaces”---and is matched by intricately detailed paintings executed in strong colors. Adding to the book’s usefulness is a terrific CD with five songs spanning the history of gospel music. A solid package for those already familiar with the strains of gospel or those getting into it for the first time. (Booklist)

Reprising the vibrancy of their Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award winner, I See the Rhythm (1998), Wood and Igus celebrate African-American gospel music along its historical transit from the Middle Passage to 21st-century “Holy Hip Hop.” Double spreads explore gospel’s evolution through slavery, the post-Reconstruction migrations north and west, gospel quartets on radio and vinyl and much more. There’s a whole lot going on, including the rhyming verse, a timeline of cultural and historical events and captions elucidating the accompanying paintings. The color-saturated art pulses with symbolic patterns and raw emotion. Display type alters with each page turn, and borders and spot art construed from facing paintings complete each teeming layout. Gospel’s symbiosis with Christian spirituality---and the artist’s own deep devotion---are key: One painting, both compelling and disturbing, depicts the crucified Christ nailed to a slave ship’s joists, flanked by men bound and contorted by chains. An accompanying CD contains five songs representing selected musical eras, with the Golden Gate Quartet and---spectacularly---Mahalia Jackson, the clear standouts. (foreword, quotations, suggested song list) Kirkus Reviews 12/2010 (Kirkus)

This comprehensive, energetic book (which includes a CD) addresses the gospel community’s passionate endeavor to engage ever-changing political and cultural influences while remaining true to its cultural roots. (Publisher’s Weekly, 1/2011)

About this edition

• Publisher: Zonderkidz
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0310718198
• ISBN 13: 9780310718192
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 40
• Illustrator: Wood Michele