Celebration!

A warm and wonderful depiction of an African-American family as they celebrate America's birthday, this picture book features lyrical text and glowing illustrations. Jane Resh Thomas has written numerous children's books, including Saying Good-Bye to Grandma. Raul Colon has illustrated My Mama Had a Dancing Heart and Always My Dad, which earned him a Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators.

Grade 1-4. The Fourth of July holiday is secondary to what this book truly celebrates: family, in all its glory. Readers can't help but catch the infectious joy and excitement as 22 siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, etc., arrive at Maggie's house for a picnic. There is food galore, a new pool to play in, and sparklers. Everyone is named, everyone plays a role, even Shadow the dog who wants to climb in Granny's lap. Details bring the African-American family to life; the adults include lawyers, a nurse, and a teacher, and the kids range from taciturn 13-year-old Maurice, on a "short leash" for having been caught stealing candy, to little Willie, with his diapers down around his knees. Nothing extraordinary takes place, but with each fresh arrival it becomes clear that nothing momentous needs to happen because the whole book is about an event in itself. The soft-edged, mixed-media illustrations help draw readers into the energy of this family's interactions. Gleaming faces glow against a richly hued, textured background. The unmistakable pride and pleasure of this all-American family shines bright.?Martha Topol, Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City, MI
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

One African-American family's Fourth of July picnic takes a food-laden, loving approach that feels more manufactured than genuine. Maggie heralds the arrival of her relatives, all bearing food and games for the celebration. The book is dominated by descriptions of the dazzling array of foods, imposing an adult's-eye view on the gathering; adults sitting around and kids splashing in the pool are the extent of story. The characterizations are limited: One aunt, in her nurse's uniform and followed by her six children, is a ``broody old hen''; a couple (who have both finished law school) are defined by their insistence on bottled water, while their moody son is on a ``short leash'' for pilfering ``some candy at the drugstore''-- the only character with definition, albeit a caricatured one. Col¢n's cross-hatchings create a pleasing portrait of a middle-class family's backyard party, but he neglects children's fondness for details that match the text: Granny drives her car, but gets out on the passenger side; a ``bowl'' of raw vegetables appears as a pot with a lid; a ``bachelor brother'' arrives with sparklers, but is shown holding VHS tapes; Pop is seen cooking hot dogs six pages before Mom says, ``Let's put the hot dogs on the fire and give [her brother] some food before he drinks any beer.'' Lacking the humorous tumult of Cynthia Rylant and Stephen Gammell's The Relatives Came (1985), the effect is fairly wholesome, but without benefit of strong emotion or a storyteller's voice, there are no fireworks. (Picture book. 5-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Ages 5^-8. It's the Fourth of July, and they are celebrating over at Maggie's house. First comes Granny with her chocolate cake, then Uncle Jake and Aunt Alberta drive up with their carload of kids. Other relatives arrive with food and ready for fun. Maggie and her girl cousins jump rope. But cousin Maurice is feeling bad because he was caught taking candy from the drugstore. On one level nothing much happens here: the family comes to celebrate the Fourth, and everyone (even Maurice) has a good time. But the events that do occur, simple though they may be, capture the way Americans spend their holidays. Colon's illustrations, executed in watercolor wash and pencil on etched papers, glow with a warmth that shows what makes holidays special. Maggie's family is African American, but children of every race will see their own families reflected here. Ilene Cooper