All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom by Angela Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A very nice example of complementary text and illustrations. While the two modes crossed over into 1-1 correspondence part of the time, the story being told by [a:E.B. Lewis|104923|E.B. Lewis|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1273604805p2/104923.jpg] on the whole adds clear narrative elements and character to the story presented in words. Johnson's poetic language could absolutely stand on its own, as could Lewis' storyboard. With the visual and verbal stories put together, it made for a beautiful experience.
Lewis' watercolors are spare and articulate. I noticed his use of the blank white of his paper for contrast (a black cheek bathed in sunlight, a field of brown faces against a field of cotton).
Also, I loved that Johnson zoomed in on this vital moment in history, a day, a single event when things changed--through the eyes of one unnamed girl who showed us what the experience was like. A perfect slice of history, with no need to drag out the whole timeline. The timeline is always there, but with kids we don't get a lot of chances to make history feel real, feel human.
There's a good amount of context in the back matter. I would have liked to see a more thorough list of research sources, rather than a glossary.
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