Publishers Weekly
★ 10/11/2021
In this heartfelt debut, Williams offers an impassioned account of the enslaved African people whose descendants became today’s African Americans. The narrative surveys the abundance of cultures, languages, and kingdoms that comprise Africa at the genesis of the Black chattel slavery in the summer of 1619, as well as the Black social and civic leaders who have shaped African American history and culture. Engel’s nature-centered, effervescent mixed media illustrations, rendered in acrylics, oils, printmaking, and collage on paper and wood, depict enslaved African peoples in vivid detail, including varied skin tones; elaborate clothing designs; and intricately plaited hairstyles. Weaving a connection between young Black readers and the historic figures and events that preceded them, the author-illustrator team highlights traits that they posit allowed Black people to survive historic oppression, among them strength, love, ingenuity, and grace. Engel further includes numbered spreads depicting notable Black inventors, such as Madam CJ Walker and George Washington Carver. A strikingly worthy introduction of 400 years of Black history to young readers, including the roots of American slavery, effectively conveying that slavery is far from the extent of Black history and influence. Ages 4–8. Author’s agency: Creative Artists Agency. Illustrator’s agency: Morgan Gaynin. (Sept.)
New York Times bestselling authors Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union Wade
"We are grateful to Schele and her dedication to making our beautiful history accessible to our children! Your Legacy is an educational and celebratory piece we’ve enjoyed sharing with our family. We are extremely excited for this story to be shared with other families as we continue to celebrate our rich history in this world."
The Horn Book Magazine
"An inspirational story that instills hope and encourages today’s African American children to consider what they will give to their own descendants."
Jacqueline Woodson
"A lovingly written, beautifully illustrated and stunningly timely book.
co-author of Good Night Stories for Reb Elena Favilli
"Your Legacy is a beautiful and powerful book that empowers children to reclaim and celebrate their ancestral history with pride. Schele Williams writes with a unique and important lens which will directly impact, inspire, and build confidence in Black youth."
Booklist
**STARRED REVIEW** "Bright, brilliant, page-filling illustrations perfectly capture the joyous tone. . . Not focused on recrimination or placing blame, this book is a celebration of perseverance and dignity that deserves a wide audience."
From the Publisher
"A lovingly written, beautifully illustrated and stunningly timely book.”—Jacqueline Woodson, National Book Award-winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming, MacArthur Fellow
"We are grateful to Schele and her dedication to making our beautiful history accessible to our children! Your Legacy is an educational and celebratory piece we’ve enjoyed sharing with our family. We are extremely excited for this story to be shared with other families as we continue to celebrate our rich history in this world."—Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union Wade, New York Times bestselling authors
"Your Legacy is a beautiful and powerful book that empowers children to reclaim and celebrate their ancestral history with pride. Schele Williams writes with a unique and important lens which will directly impact, inspire, and build confidence in Black youth."—Elena Favilli, co-author of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls
**STARRED REVIEW** "This thoughtful, sensitive, and beautiful volume, families can begin a difficult conversation in a nurturing way. This is a must for every Black child growing up in the Americas and will help other races and ages too. . . A truly powerful perspective shift."—Kirkus Reviews
**STARRED REVIEW** "Bright, brilliant, page-filling illustrations perfectly capture the joyous tone. . . Not focused on recrimination or placing blame, this book is a celebration of perseverance and dignity that deserves a wide audience." —Booklist
**STARRED REVIEW** "The African ancestors’ resilience is awe-inspiring, and this book does an outstanding job of telling their story and honoring them. Each page spread is a piece of artwork worthy of a museum. The blend of colors and media draws readers in to appreciate every detail." —School Library Journal
**STARRED REVIEW** "A strikingly worthy introduction of 400 years of Black history to young readers, including the roots of American slavery, effectively conveying that slavery is far from the extent of Black history and influence." —Publishers Weekly
"An inspirational story that instills hope and encourages today’s African American children to consider what they will give to their own descendants." —The Horn Book Magazine
School Library Journal
★ 10/01/2021
K-Gr 2—A celebration of Black excellence that highlights numerous notable figures throughout history and their accomplishments. Black history begins on the continent of Africa where their language and culture flourished. Williams covers, in picture book form, the arrival in 1619 of European slave traders who took Africans away from their homeland and stripped them of their families, their names—even their language. Thankfully, they didn't let not knowing the language of others who were enslaved deter them, and they came up with a brand-new language called Pidgin. The enslaved ancestors retained their music as a connection to Africa, an art form that would one day play an important role in their escape to freedom. People such as Robert Smalls and Harriet Tubman appear in the text; so do brilliant inventors like Benjamin Boyd and Henry Montgomery who were not allowed to take credit for their creations while others reaped the benefits. That didn't stop them and others like them from continuing to innovate. This picture book recounts different points in African American history and does so in a way that is understandable to a picture book audience without watering it down or lessening the impact. The African ancestors' resilience is awe-inspiring, and this book does an outstanding job of telling their story and honoring them. Each page spread is a piece of artwork worthy of a museum. The blend of colors and media draws readers in to appreciate every detail. VERDICT A celebration of African ancestry with enthralling artwork and a compelling and easy-to-understand story that belongs in every collection.—Myiesha Speight, formerly at Towson Univ., Baltimore
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2021-07-14
This reclamation of legacy begins with African origins before the trans-Atlantic slave trade and emphasizes the strength and resilience of enslaved people.
The first two spreads introduce Africa as the beginning of “your story”: a continent of diverse peoples and cultures and colors where people thrived for thousands of years. Then Europeans arrived on African shores, and “your ancestors” were forcibly taken away, afraid but determined to survive. They were separated and regrouped and forced into hard labor, but they chose to love one another, to use their intellects, to share music, to courageously defy the system. Examples of their determination, brilliance, strength, and ingenuity are given in the names of specific historical figures listed on spreads that show their acts or creations in a scene—people who seized their freedom, invented things, and contributed to the American way of life. Additional spreads show more recent leaders grouped around words such as intellect, dignity, and grace. Final spreads encourage readers to receive these qualities as their ancestors’ legacy and to continue that legacy by gifting equality to the next generation. Engel’s paintings fairly glow with love and pride. Caregivers of Black children have struggled to introduce America’s shameful history in a way that doesn’t put the shame on Black people; with this thoughtful, sensitive, and beautiful volume, families can begin a difficult conversation in a nurturing way. This is a must for every Black child growing up in the Americas and will help other races and ages too. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A truly powerful perspective shift. (author's note, illustrator's note) (Picture book. 3-adult)
