| Title | : | A Poem for Peter |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0425287688 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780425287682 |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 52 |
| Publication | : | First published November 1, 2016 |
| Awards | : | NAACP Image Award Children (2017) |
The story of The Snowy Day begins more than one hundred years ago, when Ezra Jack Keats was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. The family were struggling Polish immigrants, and despite Keats’s obvious talent, his father worried that Ezra’s dream of being an artist was an unrealistic one. But Ezra was determined. By high school he was winning prizes and scholarships. Later, jobs followed with the WPA and Marvel comics. But it was many years before Keats’s greatest dream was realized and he had the opportunity to write and illustrate his own book.
For more than two decades, Ezra had kept pinned to his wall a series of photographs of an adorable African American child. In Keats’s hands, the boy morphed into Peter, a boy in a red snowsuit, out enjoying the pristine snow; the book became The Snowy Day, winner of the Caldecott Medal, the first mainstream book to feature an African American child. It was also the first of many books featuring Peter and the children of his — and Keats’s — neighborhood.
Andrea David Pinkney’s lyrical narrative tells the inspiring story of a boy who pursued a dream, and who, in turn, inspired generations of other dreamers.
A Poem for Peter Reviews
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The Snowy Day is a 4 star book for me, though not particularly memorable from my childhood, even though it was introduced to my 4th grade class by one of our school librarians when it was a brand new book. As an adult I think I more fully appreciate it. I was very eager to read this book, a book about its creator.
I’m so delighted that this will be the last book I finish in 2016. It’s so apropos for what’s going on in current events. I guess that’s always been true, but I found it especially touching right now.
Stellar job! I found everything about this book impressive and spectacular: the biographical information, the art, the poem (just bits at times didn’t work that well for me, but overall it was excellent,) the materials included at the end, everything! I learned a lot and had my memory refreshed for some things. It does great justice to Ezra’s story and to Peter’s story too.
I was deeply emotionally moved by the artist’s story and by what he did with his career and his life. We desperately needed the Snowy Day book in 1962. Today we need books like this. Even though this is a children’s picture book (best suited to middle grade readers) I highly recommend it to every reader. -
I was utterly fascinated by this story. I learned things I never knew about Keats, including the changing of his name. I felt that it was a little too advanced for younger elementary children and more for 3rd-5th grade, only because there are a lot of facts in the first half of the book. I just loved it. Just a beautiful, beautiful book!
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Got this from the library and read it because my 13 year old son was “reminiscing” about his favorite book as a kid - The Snowy Day and asked me to get it from the library so we can read so I did and while searching it l, saw this one plus my sister told me about it - so got it and absolutely loved it
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A perfect tribute—filled with heart, poetry, sophistication, and imagination, just like Ezra Jack Keats's THE SNOWY DAY. A story of how the artist and his character, Peter, came to be.
"An artist was a strange, impractical thing to be."
"Brown-sugar boy in a blanket of white. Bright as the day you came onto the page. From the hand of a man whose life and times, and hardships, and heritage, and heroes, and heart, and soul led him to you." -
My parents were going through a divorce when Ezra Jack Keats became my friend. My dad took me to the public library one day and my four year old hands pulled a book from the shelf entitled, "A Letter to Amy." I had been learning how to write my name so I knew what those letters spelled, A-M-Y. My name was on the front of a book! That means everything to a young child! As I opened the cover, the smell of Keats' book enveloped me...the glossy pages illustrated with torn newspapers and bright colors. Even with as little "book experience" as I had, I knew this book was something special. And then I learned there were more! Each smelling just as wonderful, each with a new person for me to get to know. Keats' books always stood out to me....so different than other children's books. They brought comfort to me in a time of uncertainty in my life. Ezra never knew he did that for me. He never knew he was my friend.
When I saw that Andrea Davis Pinkney had written a book about Ezra's life and what brought to life The Snowy Day, I was so, so excited! It is an absolutely perfect companion to the books that have touched the hearts of children for many, many years. So very well done. It feels like a hug from Ezra himself! -
I love this free verse telling of how Ezra Jack Keats came to write A Snowy Day. I didn't know he was Jewish or that his last name was actually Katz. I remember when I first read the book I assumed the author had to be black because Peter was black, and how surprised I was when I saw a picture of Keats and realized he was white. This is what makes the story all the more interesting, especially given that The Snowy Day was written back in 1962, when you rarely saw black children in children's books. I love how Pinkney refers to Peter as "brown-sugar boy." Fancher and Johnson's artwork captures the spirit of Keats' collage art. A section at the end describes Keats' legacy to children's literature, not the least of which is opening the door for other depictions of minorities in children's books when A Snowy Day won the Caldecott Medal, the most prestigious award in children's literature, in 1963. I had no idea that the book was such a trailblazer. This book should be read by all librarians and anyone interested in children's literature. Outstanding!
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A remarkable telling of the life of children's author Ezra Jack Keats, his life growing up in Brooklyn, NY to polish immigrants and how his story "The Snowy Day" came to life. I truly captivating and beautifully illustrated biography for children.
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Just a whoosh of goosebumps and emotions when I opened this book.
I remember reading The Snowy Day. When I was small, I loved Peter. I loved that Peter lived in an apartment building, like I did. Picture books always had houses, with windows two up and two down, daisies out front, and a dog in the back yard. No one I knew lived like that. I didn’t learn to identify any flowers until I was an adult, and we weren’t allowed to have pets. Keats showed my world, and I was grateful. It was not until I was an adult that I learned how unusual and important it was that Keats’ main character was an African-American child. (I certainly didn’t know that Keats was Jewish and that his family were Polish immigrants.)
Told as a poem-letter to Peter, this book is beautiful and informative. It tells a story about having talent and a dream, of wanting your work to feed souls as well as your belly, and about how kids who have teachers and parents who see their spark and kindle it have a chance to become what they dream of being.
I was in tears by the end of this short book. Given the rhetoric of our recent election, children need to see all kinds of kids on the page, even if (maybe especially if) they do not see one another in their neighborhoods.
Part of me wanted to keep this book for myself; I knew it needed to go into the circulating collection of our public library. (Thank you, YSBR.)
The audience for this book is slightly older than the usual picture book crowd. It could be used in elementary school story times with Keats’ other works, especially those discussed in the poem, as part of an author study.
For upper elementary students, the book provides an introduction to some major historical names and events of the past century: Great Depression, Art Students’ League, WPA, racism, and anti-Semitism – Concepts they can investigate further.
I would also recommend this for people new to collection development, and for anyone who wants to be bolstered up in their conviction that it is important for our collections to be reflective of the wider populace. -
A stunning biography of the author/illustrator Ezra Jack Keats written in verse. This book has a special place in my heart since he wrote The Snowy Day in 1962 and won a Caldecott for it in 1963. I remember reading this story in elementary school. The Snowy Day was the first book of its kind to feature a protagonist of color. The history behind Keats idea to fashion Peter as a brown character is absolutely fascinating. While this is a biography of Keats life there is so much historical fact in this book that is so interesting for the reader. This will be a great picture book to study how an author incorporates historical fact. Because of all the historical facts included in this story students may get ideas for future research. I can't wait to use this coupled with One Snowy Day.
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Wow. This one is going to win some awards. The copy I read is from the library, but I will definitely be buying a copy for my classroom library. I'd love to have my students write their own collage verse/bio-poem/tapestry narrative. They can learn lots from this masterpiece! Not only did I enjoy the craftsmanship of the poetry and art, but I loved learning about Ezra Jack Keats!
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A thoughtful picture book biography celebrating the art and life of Ezra Jack Keats. Pinkney's poetic storytelling uses Peter, the iconic character from The Snowy Day, to demonstrate how Keats balanced his creative inspiration with his commitment to social justice. An inspiring story about an important children's author.
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A beautiful book and a fascinating story. Wow.
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A beautiful, affectionate, insightful celebration of and tribute to Ezra Jack Keats and the beloved character he created.
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Featured in a grandma reads session.
My group enjoyed the book The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats, which was "the very first full-color picture book to feature a small black hero" (from Horn Book magazine). A Poem for Peter has the back story of how the author Ezra Jack Keats came up in the world, decided on art as a career and how he came to make that decision to "integrate" children's books, and how he found Peter - the inspiration of that book, and who continued to inspire him for the rest of his life.
It's not quite a picture book, in the short-and-done sense, but it very interesting, and was to my kiddos, especially since they were familiar with The Snowy Day. -
Has all the trappings of propaganda. I felt that Keats was used (without his consent) to advance Pinkney's agenda. Not a fan of the "poetic" text, but the book is visually attractive - albeit in a derivative copycat way that I guess is intended as homage. When it comes down to it, this is not truly a picture biography of Keats, but instead is largely about just one single character that he created.
The author bio says that Pinkney grew up in the 1960s, "at a time when I didn't see others like me in children's books" - which seems extremely small-minded and short-sighted. Is skin color really the only defining element of a person? Weren't there children (or even adults or animals or any kind of character) who felt or acted or talked like her? Seems like there wasn't a lot of empathy. Maybe she was looking for the wrong thing in all those books - what about the "content of their character"?
For contrast, let's ponder Maya Angelou's comment: "When I was young, I thought that Shakespeare must have been a black girl. How else could he know exactly how I felt?" Hmmmm.
And is it truly accurate to say about varied ethnic backgrounds that "none of these appeared in children's books that were being published at that time"? None? How about
My Dog Rinty (1946) (or Ets's later
Gilberto and the Wind from 1963) or the many books of
Leo Politi or
Sad-Faced Boy by Arna Bontemps from 1939? I understand the point that is being made, but let's not be dishonest. None? -
The son of Polish immigrants, Ezra Jack Keats grew up in poverty in Brooklyn. Early in his life, Ezra followed his dream of being an artist. As an 8 year old, he earned money painting store signs. His father worried about this dream, but also helped by bringing home partially used paint from the artists at the cafe he worked at. Ezra was encouraged at school by teachers and at the library by librarians. Just as Ezra was about to leave for art school, his father died. He thought his artist dream was gone, but then during the Great Depression the New Deal emerged with The Art School League. It was then that he discovered what would be the beginning of The Snowy Day, but World War II would intervene before that dream could come true.
Pinkney’s poem sings on the page, telling the story of how an image can create real magic, just like the snow that inspired it too. She writes with real passion about poverty, the transformation that snow brings to poor neighborhoods, the delight of creation, the wonder of art and the long path it takes to bring a story to life sometimes. Pinkney’s words are magic, dashing and reacting along with the reader, swirling like snowflakes against your cheeks.
The illustrations by Fancher and Johnson are wonderful. Done in collage and paint, they capture Brooklyn as a clear setting and the hardship of Keats life enlivened by art. They then go on to inspire new thoughts of snowflakes and snow as they pay homage to The Snowy Day.
Perfect for fans of The Snowy Day, this picture book speaks to the power of art in one’s life and the way that one man’s dreams have inspired generations to dream too. Appropriate for ages 5-8. -
I grew up with "Snowy Day" and "Whistle for Willy." This was a beautiful biographical tribute to the author and illustrator of those works. As a somewhat mixed-race (Asian) child whose first few years of elementary school were spent as a "white" minority among many African-American and Hispanic children, it never dawned on me that there were not a lot of children's books that portrayed other races. Indeed, since these books were in my home from my earliest memories, I thought there were plenty of others like it. Maybe things were already beginning to change when I was a child and there were more around--at least in the libraries I patronized. Or maybe I had a "narrowed" interest (I did jump into reading classic lit by 5th grade). But I read books like this and learn there were so many others who needed works like Keats'. And I'm grateful those works were created, and love to see how it opened worlds and emotions for those who needed them so much. And I liked learning more about Ezra Jack Keats and other books he has written. The poetry aspect of telling the story? I suppose it is good. I am a TERRIBLE judge of poetry! (How am I the Poetry Committee Chair this year?!?)
Championing this one for the 2017 Poetry long list nominees. -
I'll never forget the day a co-worker of mine discovered that Ezra Jack Keats was not, in fact, a wise old black woman.
My friend was around my age, that is to say a child of the '80s, and as a small child she had loved "A Snowy Day" and the other books by Keats. She didn't often find books about kids who looked like her, she told me, and in her head this lovely wise woman named Ezra understood her perfectly.
Realizing that Ezra Jack Keats was a white man was jarring, to be sure, but didn't diminish her love of those books. And now this wonderful picture book biographical poem puts the man together with the characters he created in a wonderful celebration of gratitude.
I am LOVING this trend of picture book biographies that allow for the style of both their creators and their subjects to shine, that aren't just a straightforward telling of the tale, and this one is stellar. Andrea Davis Pinkney and Ezra Jack Keats together in a children's book? Yes, please. Genius does love company.
Featured on the No Extra Words podcast episode 111. -
What a wonderful book for a Keats fan. He has long been my favorite illustrator. Space and money considerations prevent me from buying many picture books, but we have had a copy of Keat's Neighborhood: An Ezra Jack Keats Treasury as well as several of his other picture books since my daughter was a baby (his version of Over in the Meadow is a special favorite).
I love how Peter popping in and out of the pages of this "bio-poem," as Pinckney describes it, enhances the narrative and makes us recall the wonder of Keats's greatest creation. I also liked how the story followed Keats from birth through adulthood, highlighting his youthful fascination with art, his work with the WPA, his military service, and his eventual decision to illustrate his own children's books. There is also a neat little coda with a story that talks about his relationship with his editor, and how they came to decide on the cover art for A Snowy Day. Like Keats's own books, this is a perfect gem. -
There are those books you remember how you felt as you were reading them for the first time. You recall with clarity what popped into your mind when you finished and closed the cover. You immediately open it and read the book again. When you read it a third time you read it aloud, hearing the music the words make; their rhythm and flow washing around you like soft, warm air. These books fill you with gratitude for being able to read this kind of beauty.
They reach out to you. They teach you. A Poem For Peter: The Story of Ezra Jack Keats and the Creation of THE SNOWY DAY (Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, November 1, 2016) written by Andrea Davis Pinkney with illustrations by Lou Fancher and Steve Johnson is such a book. Every aspect of this title is remarkable.
My full recommendation:
http://librariansquest.blogspot.com/2... -
I have held a special place for Ezra Jack Keats and his cast of vibrant characters since doing some research on him for an author presentation to 3rd grade students. His spare text and lush, vibrant illustrations bring me joy, and his insistence of including (and featuring) children of color in a landscape true to many urban children's experiences captured my admiration.
This biographical tribute by Andrea Davis Pinkney, Lou Fancher, & Steve Johnson captures the feeling of Keats' books and gave so much more meaning to his life story than I had researched myself. The poetry is clever and moving, and the illustrations are so reminiscent of Keats'. A beautiful book that captures the life of a beautiful author so well. Highly recommended. -
A beautiful tribute to an author I was familiar with, but didn't know anything about. I loved this book so much I had to share it with my hubby who was a captive audience while home on his lunch break. He was very patient, as I found this story of Ezra Jack Keats so very moving that my voice would break and tears would fall, and I would have to pause before going on again. This book deserves a place in my personal library.
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A beautiful homage to Ezra Jack Keats, and his ground breaking book, The Snowy Day. The character Peter, born from an old article Keats had saved, featuring an African American boy, sprang to life, and placed on the book's cover, changed the world of publishing. Keats grew up in near poverty, and his story is fascinating. The lyrical text sings, and this book a loving tribute to a masterful artist.
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Biographical literary criticism. The story behind the story is fully engaging. A beautiful and timely presentation of how one of the best children's came to be. A heartfelt 5 stars.
Recommended for all librarians, booksellers and children's literature specialists. Recommended as a text study for rigorous curriculum. Would make a wonderful gift book.
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Lovers of classic children's literature will fall in love with Andrea Davis Pinkney's A POEM FOR PETER, which pays tribute to Ezra Jack Keats's SNOWY DAY. The writing is simply stunning, though this book feels like it's more for adults and scholars of children's literature than the children themselves. Regardless it is an absolutely gorgeous piece of art.
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Wonderful introduction to the life and work of Ezra Jack Keats and the story behind his Caldecott-winning classic, The Snowy Day.
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This book tells about how Ezra Jack Keats came up with his main character, Peter, and the significance of Peter in the time that the books were written.
It is more of a biography in poem form than anything, and would pretty much only interest those who knew a little about the author and his works. I found it very interesting, though. -
What a wonderful tribute to Ezra Jack Keats and his gentle yet profound contributions to children's literature. I wanted to see the photo mentioned that inspired Keats to create the character of Peter and was delighted when I found it here:
https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2012... -
I enjoyed this poem for Mr. Keats & Peter!!
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Unique illustrations with lovely lyrical text.
It's a must-have read aloud about art, racism, and what it means to pave the way for others in an inflexible publishing industry.
