Review: Nappy Hair

Nappy Hair by Carolivia Herron

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This book was a fun experience! (I'll have to compare to the other three picturebooks on this theme.) The voice of the grandpa reminded me so much of my own grandpa, who also loved to push a joke. I thought the call/response storytelling was so fresh and unique, and the way fonts were used to represent different voices responding was perfect. I loved how some of the voices were protecting the little girl, and how the grandpa responded by repairing and nurturing her. I found myself worrying whether her feelings would be hurt, and then the conversation would shift to something that built her up. Since she tells us the text comes from an audio recording, I wonder how true the text is to that recording. I also wonder if she appreciated this kind of attention at the time, or if she did find it embarrassing. I would read another book by Herron in this style in a heartbeat!

The story of the neighborhood mob that drummed a white teacher out of a Brooklyn school (because she helped the kids learn to enjoy reading through this book) is heartbreaking. You can find it on page 58 of Foerstel's book on bannings in the US.



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