Vanessa Brantley-Newton

Becoming Vanessa is a really cute story about a little girl's first day at school. Like many kids, she struggles to figure out what her at school identity is and should be. She also struggles with writing, leading to unexpected dislike regarding her name. I love the art and the progression as Vanessa settles in and figures out more about school and who she is.

I really wanted to love this book, but struggled to get beyond the feeling of being presented with a superficial requirement list of what ought make a woman.

You can love without lipstick, shine without glitter or gold, and feel proud and confident without accessories or tchotchkes. Underneath all this, there is a sweet and endearing story, but I strongly resistant to further normalize it's what a woman wears or how she looks that makes her a woman.

Anyiaka admires her beautiful, smart family, but feels different than her mother, sister, and grandmother because of her darker skin tone: "How can I fit in with a family like this? They are good at everything. They have glamourous hair and golden brown skin. I stick out like a sore thumb." Anyiaka paints over the smallest, darkest nesting doll in her grandmother's set, but her grandmother tells her, "All of us different, but I am in you and you are in me....Our family has been workin' to show more make oonuh for years and years." Anyiaka understands, and the four women in the family share an embrace.

Corel and Photoshop illustrations showcase fabric patterns, prints, and textures, as well as art supplies and family photographs. There is an end note about the Gullah Geechee People.

See also: Sulwe by Lupita Nyong'o show less

Excited that her Grandma Mimi is coming over, the little-girl narrator of this warmhearted picture-book celebration of the grandparent-grandchild bond relates all of the many wonderful things she finds in her visitor's purse. From the lipstick her grandmother wears to the change purse her grandfather brought back as a present from Japan, the many objects revealed tell us a little bit about Mimi, and how she presents herself to the world. Naturally, the little girl wants to be just like her show more grandma...

The third picture-book both written and illustrated by prolific African-American picture-book artist Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Grandma's Purse addresses a number of themes, from the ways in which young children imitate their elders to the close and loving bond between generations of the same family. The story itself is sweet, and the artwork, created using gouache and charcoal pencil, is colorful and amusing. Recommended to anyone looking for picture-books about grandmothers, especially if they're looking for stories featuring African-American families. show less