★ 10/24/2022
Bolden recounts the moving story of mail carrier Victor Hugo Green (1892–1960), originator of the Green Book—a guide used by Black travelers to navigate Jim Crow–era America, where “these travelers... could face hassles, humiliations, hardships. Even bodily harm.” As infrastructure creation and vehicle affordability led to an increase in car ownership, Green—“the problem-solving type”—was determined to help Black people travel across the hostile nation. Aware of the utility of word-of-mouth recommendations, “He grabbed goo-gobs of information. He pored over newspaper ads and articles” to create the volume, which grew from a small, New York City–centered pamphlet in 1936 to a book whose wide-ranging recommendations spanned to Canada and Mexico. Working images of paper ephemera into the pages, Velasquez melds portraiture and background illustration, producing a visually engaging account of history in the making. Back matter includes notes and selected sources. Ages 4–8. (Oct.)
"Bolden’s bold, strong, conversational prose sets the scene, representing courageous, talented Black people strategizing to keep their dignity in an unfair world. Velasquez beautifully brings to life settings, families, and communities. A richly layered, powerful introduction to an entrepreneur and the problems he solved." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“In descriptive text and an upbeat voice, Bolden recalls the Black mail carrier from Harlem who recognized that Black Americans were going places. Velasquez lends a fitting and beautiful scrapbook effect to the story. An effective way to address Jim Crow laws and segregation as well as resourcefulness and determination." — Booklist (starred review)
"Bolden has perfectly combined the painful story of Jim Crow and segregation with the strength and determination of Black Americans to live a full life. The illustrations pull readers along on this American experience known too well to some and a revelation for others. A highly recommended addition to any collection." — School Library Journal (starred review)
"Bolden recounts the moving story of mail carrier Victor Hugo Green. Working images of paper ephemera into the pages, Velasquez melds portraiture and background illustration, producing a visually engaging account of history in the making." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"With lively language that hovers between poetry and prose, Bolden’s biographical account carefully introduces the intersections of historical preconditions that led to the creation of Green Book and Green’s disposition and resilience. Velasquez’s smooth oil paint illustrations radiantly depict everyday Black folks on the go." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred review)
"Velasquez’s scrapbook-style, painterly vignettes capture period detail and nimbly complement Bolden’s conversational free-verse text." — Horn Book Magazine
★ 07/22/2022
Gr 3–6—Velasquez grabs readers right from the start with a book jacket saturated with color and details of a 1940s family ready to leave on a trip in their blue Packard, against the signature color of the Green Book. It's followed by an equally inviting title page. Bolden opens her story with an introduction to Victor Hugo Green, New Jersey letter carrier. He takes his job seriously, and he believes in tackling problems with solutions. It's the Great Depression and even though times are tough, people want to travel. Black Americans are traveling for business, vacation, family events, and special occasions, encouraged to purchase cars to avoid the hardships and dangers of Jim Crow laws and sundown towns. Green sees a need for better communication to help travelers stay safe, doing extensive research. His first effort is "The Negro Motorist Green Book," a pamphlet published in 1936, with information for safe travel in and around New York City. By 1940, the booklet is 40 pages long and includes major cities in every state. Bolden has perfectly combined the painful story of Jim Crow and segregation with the strength and determination of Black Americans to live a full life. The illustrations are combined with recreated newspaper articles, actual Green Book covers, and photographs. The effect is to pull readers along on this American experience known too well to some and a revelation for others. A time line, notes, selected sources, and specific resources are appended. VERDICT A highly recommended addition to any collection. Pair this book with Alexander Clavin's Ruth and the Green Book for a real powerhouse introduction to this important part of our shared history.—Elisabeth LeBris
★ 2022-07-13
Enter the world of Victor Hugo Green and his famous Green Book for Black travelers.
Green delivered mail in Leonia, New Jersey, even after moving to Harlem with his wife, Alma. During the Great Depression, new highways and turnpikes and newly inexpensive car models were driving more families to own cars. Black travelers had extra stress and danger to worry about when traveling through unfamiliar, often hostile terrain. Black-owned newspapers and word of mouth kept them informed on how to stay safe. Green “got busy problem-solving,” gathering information from people and publications into one guide, the Green Book, which started in 1936 as a pamphlet covering New York City and neighboring towns and grew steadily to cover the entire nation. The story extends beyond Green’s death in 1960 to end on the hopeful note of the civil rights legislation Green had hoped for, when, with the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, discrimination related to transportation services was outlawed. Bolden’s bold, strong, conversational prose sets the scene, representing courageous, talented Black people strategizing to keep their dignity in an unfair world. With his signature painterly art, Velasquez beautifully brings to life settings, families, and communities through varied compositions and scrapbook-style pages. Text and illustrations incorporate primary source documents—maps, advertisements, excerpts from newspapers—that add to the authentic feel. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A richly layered, powerful introduction to an entrepreneur and the problems he solved. (timeline, more information on Victor Hugo Green, notes, selected sources, websites) (Picture-book biography. 4-9)