Coretta Scott

So beautiful! Shange and Nelson team up to put together a really touching book that covers many difficult topics surrounding the civil rights movement. Love how the focus is turned to Coretta instead of Martin to give it a different perspective than we are used to hearing. I have to note though that there is no punctuation and reading this aloud would take so much practice!

Coretta Scott by Ntozake Shange and illustrated by Kadir Nelson is a short poetic biography of the late Coretta Scott, Martin (Michael) Luther King Jr’s wife. While being a poem of few words, the illustrations speak powerfully. Each page is filled with intense and vibrant colors blaring across each page. One of my favorite lines from this picture book is, “Coretta walked all of five miles to the nearest colored schools in the darkness with the dew dampening their feet…white school bus left a funnel of dust on their faces.” On these two particular pages, the illustrator, Kadir Nelson, did a spectacular job of showing just how unequal, powerless, and ultimately disadvantage these siblings must have felt as they watched the white show more children pass by on the bus. Overall, this book was an easy read and enjoyable, but it is not without flaw. My first complaint is that the poem was very short and often felt jerky, as some poems feel. Secondly, I would have liked to have just a slight bit more factual information. While I loved this poem, I felt as if I was longing for more information. show less

This lovely illustrated book tells the story of a young girl, grown to woman, who always carried the possibility and light of freedom.

Walking to school with her siblings, while the buses carrying white children passed by, Coretta knew in her heart that there had to be a better day coming.

Meeting Martin Luther King, Jr. solidified that feeling. And both put words and feelings into actions.

Lush illustrations and lovely text render this a book I'll purchase and read to my grandchildren.

This lovely picture book (with illustrations by Kadir Nelson) putatively honors Coretta Scott, but I felt it was more about her husband, Martin Luther King, Jr. (An afterword for adults is, however, focused more on Coretta.) The book doesn’t cover at all the period after King’s assassination, when Coretta took on a leadership role, founding the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta, becoming an anti-apartheid activist, campaigning against homophobia, and actively participating in the women’s movement. The fact that over 14,000 people attended her funeral in 2006, including U.S. Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Carter, and their wives, attests to the great importance show more of Mrs. King herself, and the esteem in which she was held.

Although the text of this book is lovely, and the pictures outstanding, I hope to see additional books for children that recognize this important woman for her own achievements separate from those of her husband. show less

I liked this book because it conveyed factual information through poetry and beautiful illustrations. I liked how the poem recounts some of the accomplishments of Coretta Scott using literary devices such as similes to produce vivid images in our mind. "Some southern mornings the moon sits like an orange sliver by the treetops." Furthermore, I liked how Kadir Nelson created illustrations that provoked a message of their own in the book. For example, on the page that talks about "more boycotts and sit-ins" Kadir Nelson paints a picture of four African Americans sitting at a counter. They seem to be in shadows in major contrast to the stark white background. The picture reminds us of the huge divide between blacks and whites during this show more time period. This poem is able to describe the trials and triumphs of African Americans during the Civil Rights movement through the lens of Coretta Scott's life. show less

Coretta Scott was Martin Luther King Jr.'s wife. this book speaks of her life in sort but beautiful peotry. it begins with coretta's childhood walking five miles to school all the way to the march on Washington with MLK. the author's note tells a more in depth outline of her life as a civil rights activist alongside her husband. she was fond of singing, and the book tells of her voice to work for her cause. the pictures are amazing. kadir nelson has a gift to bring the pages to life with vivid colors and details. the book would be great to talk about the civil rights movement or martin luther king jr. also, its illustrations might make a great example of art.

The illustrations in this book were very realistic. It gave life and put into prospective the problems that African Americans, even as children had to go through. The one page of the dust hitting Coretta and her siblings as a result of being left behind on the bus due to the color of their skin was disheartening and saddening. The use of bright colors and bold facial expressions showed how powerful and impactful this scene was. I loved how the book ended with a popular song lyric letting the reader linger on to the hope that was instilled in the people during this time period. This book was a quick glimpse into Correta's life and how she overcame the struggles of having to fight for freedom.