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    Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker
    Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker
    Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker
    Ebook97 pages27 minutes

    Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker

    By Patricia Hruby Powell and Christian Robinson

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    About this ebook

    Coretta Scott King Book Award, Illustrator, Honor
    Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award, Honor
    Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, Nonfiction Honor

    In exuberant verse and stirring pictures, Patricia Hruby Powell and Christian Robinson create an extraordinary portrait for young people of the passionate performer and civil rights advocate Josephine Baker, the woman who worked her way from the slums of St. Louis to the grandest stages in the world. Meticulously researched by both author and artist, Josephine's powerful story of struggle and triumph is an inspiration and a spectacle, just like the legend herself.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherChronicle Books Digital
    Release dateJan 14, 2014
    ISBN9781452129716
    Author

    Patricia Hruby Powell

    Patricia Hruby Powell's previous book, Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker, won a Sibert Honor for Nonfiction, a Coretta Scott King Honor, and five starred reviews. She lives in Illinois.

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    Reviews for Josephine

    4/5

    100 ratings4 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Josephine's life is presented for children in stage acts and in a lively prose. She was definitely a strong-willed person who didn't let naysayers get her down. I was unaware of her "rainbow tribe" of children...very interesting. Children will need some background on civil rights and racial attitudes of the past to fully appreciate Josephine's determination to keep her eye on the prize.
    • 4/5
      Wonderfully told, vibrantly illustrated story of Baker's life.
    • 5/5
      Loved it! I'd never heard of Josephine Baker before and I missed out! This book made me want to go learn more about her incredible life. Fantastic illustrations and the text evoked a feeling of restlessness and dancing that matched Josephine's life perfectly. An easy, entertaining read. Recommended for all ages!
    • 5/5
      Does it fit in 2021 PopSugar Reading Challenge Prompt #34: A book about a social justice issue ?
      I put it in "set in multiple countries" prompt.

      For a children's book, this captivated my heart. With few words, it sure hit me right in the heart. Had I read this in my childhood, I may forget its impact in my perspective about talent and race.
      Beautifully written. Very inspiring. Charismatic main character with a fierce fighting spirit.
      Will definitely recommend to (my future) kids.

    Book preview

    Josephine - Patricia Hruby Powell

    WAS.

    THE BEGINNING

    1906–1917

    Josephine—

    born poor,

    out of wedlock

    in honky-tonk town—

    rambunctious

    SAINT LOUIS, Missouri—

    home of barrelhouses,

    nickel shots of whisky,

    and gambling halls—

    home of

    RAGTIME MUSIC—

    raggedy black music—

    gotta-make-the-rent music—

    lift-my-soul music—

    GOLDEN-AGE music.

    Josephine’s mama scrubbed floors,

    but would’ve rather been

    DANCING—

    where you were free of

    how-to-pay-the-rent,

    where you could be right there

    in your body

    nowhere else, where you could

    let your body LAUGH.

    Or CRY.

    She dreamt of dancing

    alongside acrobats, magicians, animals,

    honky-tonk bands, you name it.

    Called it VAUDEVILLE,

    the most popular entertainment of the day.

    Josephine sat on Mama’s knee and sponged up that funky

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