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Happy to Be Nappy
by bell hooks, Illustrated by Chris Raschka

Publication Date: Jan 03, 2017
List Price: $7.99
Format: Board Book, 32 pages
Classification: Fiction
Target Age Group: Board Book
ISBN13: 9781484788417
Imprint: Jump At The Sun
Publisher: Jump At The Sun
Parent Company: Jump At The Sun

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Book Description:
This joyous ode to hair may well restart conversations that began last year with the controversy over Carolivia Herron’s Nappy Hair. Bubbling over with affection, and injecting a strong self-esteem boost for girls, hooks’s ebullient, poetic text celebrates the innate beauty and freedom of hair that’s

soft like cotton,
flower petal billowy soft, full of frizz and fuzz.

Waxing poetic about “short tight naps” or “plaited strands all,“ hooks conjures all the lovely varieties of hairstyles that “let girls go running free.” She sings the praises of “girlpie hair,” subtly reinforcing her theme with a chorus of descriptive words like “halo” and “crown.”

She also evokes the intimate warmth of mother-daughter time&hellip “sitting still for hands to brush or braid and make the day start hopefully.” A powerful, uplifting and, above all, buoyantly fun read-aloud, the text receives a superb visual interpretation by Raschka. A master of minimalism, he works here in nuanced, impressionistic watercolors and suggests his subjects with a quick stroke of the brush here, a graceful sweep of line there. Bolstering the theme of individuality, he provides softly shaded washes of varying hue that set off the dazzling array of hairstyles like an aura and create a rhythmic flow of color across the pages. Broad swoops conjure curls and braids, quick stripes of colors make barrettes, and tiny dots create beads.

Though clearly of particular interest to African-American girls, the infectious energy and spirit of this volume will appeal to all readers. —Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Happy to be nappy!
Happy with hair all short and strong.
Happy with locks that twist and curl.
Just all girl happy!
Happy to be nappy hair!

Legendary author bell hooks and Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka present a lyrical celebration, brimming with enthusiasm for girls and their hair. Nominated for an NAACP Image Award, this stunning picturebook is now available again in board book form.



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