Sassy guides lead readers through a witty yet complicated history of the national parks.
Get your park passports stamped!
Wisecracking Bigfoot (who in this book symbolizes the National Parks) and Eagle narrate this in-depth exploration of the “recreational areas, historic sites, monuments, landscapes, seashores, [and] ecosystems” that make up the parks system. The story begins in 1850 with Yosemite, then a state park and America’s first large nature park. When Eagle points out the land had been the home of the Ahwahnechee, Bigfoot explains that “early Anglo-Americans didn’t see it that way” and “arrogantly believed they had the authority to tell all Indigenous people where and how to live!” These attitudes unfortunately continued. The complicated politics and practical aspects of preservation versus conservation are anchored in time as different presidents approve new parks. Koch covers Lewis and Clark; John Muir; the Buffalo Soldiers, who experienced racism as they enforced rules at Yosemite; journalist Virginia McClurg, who took a stand against the looting of Mesa Verde; Marjory Stoneman Douglas, who advocated for the Everglades to be made into a national park; and women who worked in the parks as rangers, naturalists, and cultural demonstrators in the 1920s. Digitally created illustrations portray contemporary park visitors as diverse.
Sassy guides lead readers through a witty yet complicated history of the national parks. (preface, afterword, further research, timeline) (Nonfiction comic. 10-14)Pub Date: May 24, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-26587-6
Page Count: 128
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2022
A breezy, bustling bucketful of courageous acts and eye-popping feats.
Why should grown-ups get all the historical, scientific, athletic, cinematic, and artistic glory?
Choosing exemplars from both past and present, Mitchell includes but goes well beyond Alexander the Great, Anne Frank, and like usual suspects to introduce a host of lesser-known luminaries. These include Shapur II, who was formally crowned king of Persia before he was born, Indian dancer/professional architect Sheila Sri Prakash, transgender spokesperson Jazz Jennings, inventor Param Jaggi, and an international host of other teen or preteen activists and prodigies. The individual portraits range from one paragraph to several pages in length, and they are interspersed with group tributes to, for instance, the Nazi-resisting “Swingkinder,” the striking New York City newsboys, and the marchers of the Birmingham Children’s Crusade. Mitchell even offers would-be villains a role model in Elagabalus, “boy emperor of Rome,” though she notes that he, at least, came to an awful end: “Then, then! They dumped his remains in the Tiber River, to be nommed by fish for all eternity.” The entries are arranged in no evident order, and though the backmatter includes multiple booklists, a personality quiz, a glossary, and even a quick Braille primer (with Braille jokes to decode), there is no index. Still, for readers whose fires need lighting, there’s motivational kindling on nearly every page.
A breezy, bustling bucketful of courageous acts and eye-popping feats. (finished illustrations not seen) (Collective biography. 10-13)Pub Date: May 10, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-14-751813-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Puffin
Review Posted Online: Nov. 10, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2015
Deftly written and informative; a call for vigilance and equality.
An examination of the history of Chinese American experiences.
Blackburn opens with a note to readers about growing up feeling invisible as a multicultural, biracial Chinese American. She notes the tremendous diversity of Chinese American history and writes that this book is a starting point for learning more. The evenly paced narrative starts with the earliest recorded arrival of the Chinese in America in 1834. A teenage girl, whose real name is unknown, arrived in New York Harbor with the Carnes brothers, merchants who imported Chinese goods and put her on display “like an animal in a circus.” The author then examines shifting laws, U.S. and global political and economic climates, and changing societal attitudes. The book introduces the highlighted people—including Yee Ah Tye, Wong Kim Ark, Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, and Vincent Chen—in relation to lawsuits or other transformative events; they also stand as examples for explaining concepts such as racial hierarchy and the model minority myth. Maps, photos, and documents are interspersed throughout. Chapters close with questions that encourage readers to think critically about systems of oppression, actively engage with the material, and draw connections to their own lives. Although the book covers a wide span of history, from the Gold Rush to the rise in anti-Asian hate during the Covid-19 pandemic, it thoroughly explains the various events. Blackburn doesn’t shy away from describing terrible setbacks, but she balances them with examples of solidarity and progress.
Deftly written and informative; a call for vigilance and equality. (resources, bibliography, image credits) (Nonfiction. 10-14)Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780593567630
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
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