They Call Me Teach: Lessons in Freedom

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4.9/5.0
21,000+ Reviews
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Product Details
Price
$18.99  $17.66
Publisher
Candlewick Press (MA)
Publish Date
Pages
40
Dimensions
10.9 X 9.4 X 0.5 inches | 1.0 pounds
Language
English
Type
Hardcover
EAN/UPC
9780763681555

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About the Author
Lesa Cline-Ransome is the author of many books for children, including the novel Finding Langston, which was a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book and winner of a Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, and the picture book Before She Was Harriet, illustrated by James E. Ransome, which was a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book, a Christopher Award winner, and a Jane Addams Honor Book. Lesa Cline-Ransome lives with her husband, illustrator James E. Ransome, in the Hudson Valley region of New York.

James E. Ransome, the 2023 winner of the Children's Literature Legacy Award, is the illustrator of numerous books for children, including Granddaddy's Turn and Northbound, both by Michael S. Bandy and Eric Stein, as well as The Creation, written by James Weldon Johnson, for which he won the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award. James E. Ransome lives with his wife, Lesa Cline-Ransome, in the Hudson Valley region of New York.
Reviews
The first-person text and detailed watercolor illustrations illuminate an important facet of American history: enslaved people's fierce thirst for literacy.
--The Washington Post

Cline-Ransome's terse, staccato verse reflects the urgency of Teach's situation. . . . Ransome's stunningly expressive watercolors provide additional clarity, heightening the emotions. This beautifully crafted story honors the enslaved people who acquired literacy skills and found ways to aid those who were denied that opportunity. It also emphasizes that enslaved people understood and valued education, seeing it as a way to actively resist slavery. A profoundly moving tribute to the resilience and resourcefulness of many who lived in bondage.
--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

A poetic picture book.
--The Horn Book

The artist's beautiful watercolor paintings capture the inherent drama and the even tone of the text. His skillful use of color, lighting, and silhouettes, as well as the sensitive character depictions, make this a memorable book.
--Booklist (Starred Review)

[A] moving book that provides young readers with another perspective about the power of literacy and the important role it played in resistance to enslavement and discrimination.
--The Bulletin