A rich and much-needed portrait of a brilliant activist.
A life of courageous activism unfurls in Quezada Padron and Salinas’ biography of an unsung Latina labor organizer.
Like other children of migrant workers, young Jessica Govea Thorbourne toiled in the fields under the hot California sun alongside her family, enduring horrific conditions and subsisting on paltry wages. Cesar Chavez’s arrival in her town spurred her parents into joining la causa, and as they organized in their community, the budding activist learned to hone her own leadership skills. Weaving in the Delano grape strike of the late 1960s, led by Chavez and fellow labor leader Dolores Huerta, Quezada Padron ingeniously ties Jessica’s developing social consciousness to the emergent U.S. farm labor movement, underscoring a pivotal moment in the fight for labor rights. This focus, however, reduces the contributions of Filipino labor leaders and farm workers to a passing reference. As the grape strike led to an increasingly effective, widespread boycott, Jessica stepped into a prominent role in the United Farm Workers Union, eventually spearheading boycott efforts in Canada. Salinas’ vivid depictions of Brown communities working to effect change enhance the narrative, and Quezada Padron helpfully supplements this truncated spotlight on Thorbourne with a brief addendum about the activist’s life, a quick exploration of crucial words like union and pesticides, a short call to readers interested in organizing, and a timeline of the UFW.
A rich and much-needed portrait of a brilliant activist. (Picture-book biography. 4-8)Pub Date: March 24, 2026
ISBN: 9781665946704
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: Nov. 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
A supplemental rather than introductory book on the great artist.
Frida Kahlo’s strong affection for and identification with animals form the lens through which readers view her life and work in this picture-book biography.
Each two-page spread introduces one or more of her pets, comparing her characteristics to theirs and adding biographical details. Confusingly for young readers, the beginning pages reference pets she owned as an adult, yet the illustrations and events referred to come from earlier in her life. Bonito the parrot perches in a tree overlooking young Frida and her family in her childhood home and pops up again later, just before the first mention of Diego Rivera. Granizo, the fawn, another pet from her adult years, is pictured beside a young Frida and her father along with a description of “her life as a little girl.” The author’s note adds important details about Kahlo’s life and her significance as an artist, as well as recommending specific paintings that feature her beloved animals. Expressive acrylic paintings expertly evoke Kahlo’s style and color palette. While young animal lovers will identify with her attachment to her pets and may enjoy learning about the Aztec origins of her Xolo dogs and the meaning of turkeys in ancient Mexico, the book may be of most interest to those who already have an interest in Kahlo’s life.
A supplemental rather than introductory book on the great artist. (Picture book/biography. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-7358-4269-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: NorthSouth
Review Posted Online: June 18, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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