Denise Lewis Patrick (1)

I really liked this- while Melody also has a loving family and happy life like Maryellen, there's realistic historical strife, like facing discrimination in a department store or being shocked to her core by the bombing of a church in Birmingham. A grounded and necessary addition to the American Girl historical canon (though, as mentioned on twitter, I do think it's limiting to confine Black historical characters to civil war slavery and the civil rights movement- BIPOC have existed in all show more eras and it's not like they pop out of the ground for those two topics specifically?)

But yeah- as a non-black person of color who grew up in a predominantly white environment, I didn't learn about Lift Every Voice and Sing as the "Black national anthem" until the Beychella performance in 2018, so I'm happy to see its inclusion here. Advisory board, and an #ownvoices author were good decisions here, which really makes me question why Kirby Larson was picked for authoring the Nanea books (sure, she writes about WWII dogs but like... eeeeh). show less

YES, GOOD, AN #OWNVOICES AMERICAN GIRL. Moar plz.

It would make sense that after two decades in the business, AG experiments with doing co-leads on a historical line, and it's interesting to get the meet cute introductory beats in stereo from both girls' perspectives. Cecile definitely acts with more intent and purpose, and moves with confidence in the city she's born and raised in. Though New Orleans has a different history than the rest of the US, they still encounter ugly Americans at the show more candy shop who balk at the free Black society. For better or worse, I find it extremely refreshing to have a historical Black character from a wealthy background, rather than the typical Civil War era narratives (no shade to Addy, who was/is the OG for POC in the historical American Girl lines). More backgrounds for people of color, please!

Still not as into as these illustrations as some of the other series, and I found it a little... lazy, I suppose, to reuse a painting or two from Meet Marie-Grace for Meet Cecile. show less

Weird, I thought I marked this on Goodreads. Anyway, yellow fever has hit New Orleans pretty hard including within Cecile's own household. An age-appropriate way to discuss mortality of the past, with discussion points on immunity (many NOLA citizens have the assumption that only newcomers are susceptible, which has a partial truth in immunity-by-having-it-as-a-youth thing).

3.5/5 for me- I do really like this one so far out of the series, but maaaaan the illustrations are still not show more impressing me much. show less

44 pages
5-6th grade
Survey Book
This book is an interesting biography of Robinson’s amazing life. It tells his story from birth to death, focusing primarily on his time as a ball player. With constant asides and footnotes, Jackie Robinson packs as much pertinent information into forty-four pages as possible. His story is told thoroughly and delicately, making sure to explain the diseased racial climate of the mid-twentieth century. My only real criticism would be that the constant thumbnails show more and footnotes become distracting, and for a child who has trouble concentrating, they could be a hindrance.
Due to the almost “pamphlet-style” organization of this book, I would only use it as a free reading option for my students. It is well-written and informative book, but would be better serve a child who could spend time looking at the pictures and footnotes at his or her own pace. show less