Can I Touch Your Hair?
Description
Two poets, one white and one black, explore race and childhood in this must-have collection tailored to provoke thought and conversation.
How can Irene and Charles work together on their fifth grade poetry project? They don't know each other . . . and they're not sure they want to.
Irene Latham, who is white, and Charles Waters, who is Black, use this fictional setup to delve into different experiences of race in a relatable way, exploring such topics as hair, hobbies, and family dinners. Accompanied by artwork from acclaimed illustrators Sean Qualls and Selina Alko (of The Case for Loving: The Fight for Interracial Marriage), this remarkable collaboration invites readers of all ages to join the dialogue by putting their own words to their experiences.
Product Details
| Publisher | Carolrhoda Books (R) |
| Publish Date | January 01, 2018 |
| Pages | 40 |
| Language | English |
| Type |  Hardback |
| EAN/UPC | 9781512404425 |
| Dimensions | 10.1 X 7.2 X 0.6 inches | 0.7 pounds |
About the Author
Reviews
"[A]n unusually candid book for pre-YA kids about race and difference, allowing for the possibility of the mistakes (the word is right in the subtitle) but also a hopeful outcome as Irene and Charles find enrichment in their friendship."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
-- (4/18/2018 12:00:00 AM)"[D]elicately demonstrate[s] the complexity of identity and the power of communication to build friendships."--starred, Publishers Weekly
-- (11/13/2017 12:00:00 AM)"A fresh and heartwarming take on bridging the racial divide."--Carole Boston Weatherford, author of Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement
-- (6/9/2017 12:00:00 AM)"A fresh approach to exploring interracial communication. . . . A brave and touching portrayal worthy of sharing in classrooms across America."--starred, Kirkus Reviews
-- (9/21/2017 12:00:00 AM)"It took four people to bring us Can I Touch Your Hair? and countless others to bring it to our library and bookstore shelves. It takes only one person to buy it and show it to a kid. And it takes only one to use it as the conversation starter we've needed for so long."--A Fuse #8 Production
-- (2/21/2018 12:00:00 AM)"Qualls and Alko's layering of print newspaper clippings over paint begs readers to take a closer look. . . . [A]n excellent read-aloud or a launch pad for collaborative classroom writing."--The Horn Book Magazine
-- (12/4/2017 12:00:00 AM)"Young readers searching for means to have difficult, emotional, and engaged discussions about race will find an enlightening resource in Irene and Charles' explorations."--Booklist
-- (10/17/2017 12:00:00 AM)"In tantalizing free verse poems, Irene Latham and Charles Waters reimagine themselves as fifth-grade strangers, then classmates, and finally friends. Can I Touch Your Hair? is a compelling portrait of two youngsters dancing delicately through a racial minefield."--J. Patrick Lewis, former US Children's Poet Laureate
-- (6/7/2017 12:00:00 AM)"These poems explore diversity with refreshing honesty and complexity--and truly capture the personalities and voices of these two rising stars of poetry."--Janet Wong, author and co-creator of The Poetry Friday Anthology series
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