Gary Golio

Author Gary Golio and illustrator Ed Young, who previously collaborated on Bird & Diz, a picture-book about be-bop founders Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, join forces once again in this biography of famed actor and film director Charlie Chaplin. Born and raised in London, Chaplin was the son of two entertainers, and he knew poverty and hardship from a young age, even spending some time in the poorhouse, when his mother became ill. He soon learned that joy and sadness, and laughter and show more tears, often went together, something that stood him in good stead when he became a performer himself...

Although I know the name Charlie Chaplin - who doesn't?!? - and am familiar with his career as a silent film actor and director, I've never actually watched any of his films, and don't really have a strong idea in my mind of his performance style. Given that this is so, I picked up Smile: How Young Charlie Chaplin Taught the World to Laugh (and Cry) with no particular opinion about its subject. Having now finished it, I think I'd like to track down some of Chaplin's work. Golio's text is poetic and immensely evocative, while Young's collage artwork is beautiful, and immensely striking. That cover alone was enough to draw me in, while the interior contents proved both informative and moving. Recommended to anyone in the market for excellent picture-book biographies, or for children's books about actors in general and Chaplin in particular. show less

I know, I know. I said I wouldn't...but here I am again, reviewing a picturebook biography. These things are so addictive! So many of them have amazing writing, gorgeous art...and absolutely no use in my library.

This one is, of course, about Jimi Hendrix. In rich, varied language, Golio tells the story of young Jimi's obsession with sounds and his interest in a wide variety of music - all of which he later incorporated into his own musical style. Golio talks about Jimi's imagination and how show more he tried to express himself through art and music. We see Jimi's first band, his first encounter with an electric guitar, and finally how he fulfilled his dream of playing the sounds and sights he saw and heard around him and in his imagination.

Javaka Steptoe's illustrations are painted in layers on plywood, giving a unique texture and feel to the backgrounds and characters she painted to accompany the story. The book finishes with two pages of detailed biography of Jimi Hendrix's adult life, an author's note addressing Hendrix's drug addictions, websites and books on dealing with alcohol and drug addictions, and an illustrator's note describing her techniques and inspiration. There's an additional page of resources about Jimi Hendrix's life; books, discography, and websites.

This is a lovely, detailed, beautifully written and illustrated book. And nobody is going to read it at my library. There's not much interest in older music here among teens; certainly none of our teens will pick up a book that looks like a picturebook. Elementary students only want biographies that are 100 pages - the length required for school projects. I don't see any parents reading this aloud to their children, because of the lengthy text and the author's note and discussions about drug and alcohol addiction at the end of the story seem aimed at an older audience anyways.

Source: Review copy provided by Clarion books, through Raab Associates. Release date: October 4th.

Verdict: I'm still not adding picturebook biographies, especially of musicians, to my library. There's just no audience. I do think this book might find an audience in a larger, more urban library. It might also be a good resource in a school library perhaps. I'd hate to not see it loved somewhere, because it's a great book - just not right for our library. I feel like that about a lot of picturebook biographies. What on earth is one supposed to do with this troublesome genre? show less

Lynching: a strange and difficult but important topic for a song—and for this picture book.

Golio crafts an honest biography of African-American jazz singer Billie Holiday, whose light skin, penchant for improvisation, and commitment to social justice often made her the center of heated controversy. As Holiday once said: “Somebody once said we never know what is enough until we know what’s more than enough.” As “one of the first black singers to work in an all-white band,” Billie show more excelled until her handlers asked her never to talk with customers or walk alone, to use service elevators, and to stay upstairs until performance time—all to convince white patrons that the venues where she sang remained racially segregated. When Jewish songwriter Abel Meeropol wrote “Strange Fruit,” about the lynching of blacks, for Billie to perform, Meeropol’s rendition of it failed to move her. Once she made it her own, however, she stunned audiences with her performance. This picture book emphasizes that the arts not only entertain, but can also be powerful change agents. Riley-Webb’s moving, richly textured illustrations, rendered in acrylics with tissue collages on canvas paper, reflect the constant motion of jazz and the striking excitement of improvisation. The informative backmatter expands upon Holiday’s biographical details and offers narrative explanations of source quotes.

A must-read, must-discuss that will speak to children and linger with adults. (Picture book/biography. 8-12)

-Kirkus Review show less

Absolutely gorgeous collage and ink illustrations (some of Young's best work, in my opinion) tell the story of Charlie Chaplin's childhood in London. He and his mother and brother lived hand to mouth, were in a workhouse at one point, until they could find work. Charlie always had an affinity for performing, and already at 9 years old he was on stage! As a young man, he traveled to America with a production and was discovered by Mack Sennett, of Keystone Cops fame, which led to his career as show more screenwriter, director, producer, actor, composer, and so forth. I loved the writing of this book, very nice. "Charlie began to understand/ how funny and sad went hand in hand." and later, "Laughter and tears were brothers too." I also liked that the author included sources for all of the quotations used in the book. show less