Martin Rising: Requiem For a King by Andrea Davis Pinkney

Martin Rising: Requiem For a King Reviews

• 
  jv poore

  Brilliantly beautiful with quiet confidence and subtle, almost silent, strength.
• 
  Julie G

  Valentine: February 14, 1968
  
  Martin once said:
  “We must meet the forces of hate
  with the power of Love.”
  
  Martin once said:
  “I have decided to stick with love.
  Hate is too great a burden to bear.”
  
  Martin once said:
  “Love is the key to the solution
  of the problems of the world.”
  
  Martin once said:
  “Love your enemies.”
  
  On this day
  of doily hearts,
  and gold-foil candy,
  and the Supremes' “Baby Love” wishes,
  folks in Memphis
  are down on their knees
  proposing to Equality:
  
  Be mine!
• 
  Laura Harrison

  This book is other worldly good. It is formatted like a picture book yet it is an uncustomary 128 pages. Mind blowingly stunning. I see new picture books on an almost daily basis. This is one of the spectacular ones that make me stop in tracks and say Wow! A true must-have, must-read for Everyone!
• 
  Donalyn

  Beautiful tribute. Don’t miss the author’s and illustrator’s notes and additional back matter with more information about Dr. King’s life and legacy.
• 
  Sara

  Thank you @kidlitexchange for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own. #partner
  
  I believe that some books come to us at the perfect moment. Martin Rising was one of those books for me. First, it felt serendipitous that February is Black History Month. Second, my third graders are writing their own poetry at the moment. This book was an excellent way of connecting those two bridges. Martin Rising is a book of poetry that documents the final days of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life. The book follows the sanitation workers’ strike in Memphis, Tennessee, where Martin is called in by ministers to come and lead a march for the workers. Andrea Davis Pinkney’s poetry is beautiful and lyrical while leading up to Martin’s “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” address. The next day he was assassinated while standing on the balcony of his hotel room.
  
  I appreciated that this book focused on the final days of MLK’s life, rather than his well known “I Have A Dream Speech”. Despite the tragic ending, Pinkney does an exceptional job of allowing the reader to mourn and feel hope for the future. And the illustrations by Brian Pinkney are absolutely stunning. The watercolor backgrounds added even more life and loveliness to each poem.
  
  While this is a middle-grade novel, I highly recommend this to children and adults, alike.
• 
  Mel

  An amazing poetic, hymn, narration of the life of Dr King. I learned so much, especially details about the sanitation strike and the days that preceded his assassination on April 4.
• 
  Blythe

  Stunning, both in its poetry and illustrations. At first, my 5yo and 6yo struggled to follow, and we had to stop a lot to discuss, but they quickly fell into the rhythm of the lines. We did skip part of the chapter when Dr. King is killed; it was a little deep and dark for them, but some day I know they’ll appreciate this book as much as I do. It’s one I would like to revisit.
• 
  Jordan Henrichs

  Went into this thinking it was something like a biography but found out rather quickly this text was going to focus almost solely on Martin's death and events leading up to his death, primarily, the Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike of 1968. The foreshadowing leading up to his death was eerie, especially Martin's pause during his speech the night before his assassination, as if he knew the end was coming.
  
  The approach is similar to Loving Vs. Virginia by Patricia Hubry Powell. Unlike that work though, this verse poetry is told from an omniscient narrator and interrupted often by Henny Penny ("the sky is falling") and I thought this was confusing. The poetry is often so metaphorical and descriptive that I had an extremely difficult time following the plot of Martin's last few days or taking away the author's meaning in certain scenes.
  
  The book as a whole is a beautiful work of art (text and illustrations). I'm not sure how much the children I teach would be able to get out of it, or learn about MLK. But it's obvious the Pinkneys approached this work with extreme thoughtfulness and passion.
• 
  Margaret

  It was April 4, 1968. As a sixteen-year-old junior in high school my thoughts were turning to the end of the school year and a summer job at the local florist shop at the other end of the street. In another state a Noble Peace Prize winner was thinking of music and words when standing on the balcony of a motel in Memphis, Tennessee. It was early evening. An hour later, this man, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was gone, killed by an assassin's bullet. My memory of the news in our home is one of stunned silence.
  
  Today, fifty years later, I watched the ABC News broadcast of the tragic events of that evening. This video broadcast is followed by the ABC News coverage of the Memphis March on April 8, 1968 honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (You cannot experience these historical broadcasts without being emotionally moved.) Martin Rising: Requiem For A King (Scholastic Press, January 2, 2018) written by Andrea Davis Pinkney with illustrations by Brian Pinkney is as extraordinary as the man being honored within these pages. Time stands still from the moment you begin reading.
  
  
  My full recommendation:
  http://librariansquest.blogspot.com/2...
• 
  Katherine Wren

  In a word, this book is POWERFUL.
  
  I can't wait to read it with my students on Marin Luther King Jr. Day this coming year.
  
  This book focuses on the Memphis Sanitation Worker's Strike and Martin's involvement with that movement in the last couple of months of his life. This poetic requiem ties in the childhood nursery rhyme of Henny Penny playing the role of fate, questioning if Martin foresaw his end and what happens to a movement when the "sky falls".
  
  Simply beautiful. The artwork and imagery of Coretta marching with her children on the day before Martin's funeral had me in tears. I'm sure I'll cry reading it to my students too, but it will be worth every tear.
  
  Be sure not to miss the author's and illustrator's notes at the back of the book, as well as a brief history of the Sanitation Worker's movement.
  
  This would be perfect for a unit on poetry, a literature circle study, or a classroom read aloud. There are SO many teaching tools in these poems and the possibilities are truly endless.
• 
  Brenda Kahn

  I can imagine the beauty of the finished book because the arc is absolutely gorgeous. Yellow is an appropriate dominant color - the color of light and of strength. But blues also dominate and then there are those splashes of red. While one bathes in the gorgeous illustrations, the poetry requires a bit of attention. Ms Davis grabs it in the first poem, Henny Penny Prelude. What? Henny Penny? That was not expected! I do hope that I have the opportunity to hear the poet read these poems. Coming in January. Excellent addition to sources on the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr.
• 
  Caitlin Snyder

  Wow, that is some POETRY. It doesn't have a reading level yet on ARBookFind, but I hope it's pretty high. There's some language devices in there that aren't your typical non-fiction poetry book fare.
  
  I gave it four stars for now because I need to revisit the art and sit down and write a more thorough review later after giving it more time. There's that question of being a book with pictures vs. a picture book, but I think from my first readthrough, it might tell a story pretty well.
• 
  Shauna Yusko

  WOW! First 5 ⭐️ book of 2018 already! This is a MUST for all middle/high school classrooms and libraries. So many books to pair with this. Excellent resource for studying poetry, US history, Martin Luther King Jr, or looking to extend holiday celebration activities. The writing! The artwork! Simply incredible!
• 
  Maggie

  A beautiful book in both words and illustrations!
• 
  Megan

  This book of poetry explores Martin Luther King Jr's final days. It's a beautiful book. I love the illustrations so much.
• 
  Sarah

  Truly epic. The words, the art, the sentiments, phenomenal. A spirited tribute and treasure.
• 
  Amanda

  Some of the best verse I have seen in Children’s Literature. Invaluable back matter. Def going to share this book in 3420.
• 
  Liz B

  This occupies an odd place--it's clearly a picture book, but so. long. Some of the poems are multiple pages. I think it is a work of art and a powerful exception to what picture books often are--and I also think it's something that might be better in performance, with poems interspersed with narration about the events leading up to King's assassination. (This suggestion for performance is included in the book.)
  
  I liked it/ didn't love it, but actually I can see potential for using it in my own middle school classroom, which might make me love it.
• 
  Heather Moore

  This book is absolutely beautiful. I recommend listening to Andrea Davis Pinkney’s audio recording while reading along with the hard copy. Her words and her voice plus Brian Pinkney’s illustrations are a perfect match.
• 
  Laura La Rosa

  This anthology of poems by Andrea Davis Pinkney is moving collection of reflections on the last year of Dr. King's life. Winner of the 2019 Lee Bennett Hopkins Award, the book is a stirring series of what the author describes as "docu-poems" which imagine and recreate some of the feelings of those who followed Dr. King in his last year.
  
  The poems in the collection offer powerful imagery and well researched historical references. This book would work well in a middle school classroom. The author even suggests that the book could be used as a play with her notes from "Now is the Time" serving as the narration in between the poems. This book is definitely higher level and more complex poetry and would be hard for younger readers to read independently.
• 
  Staci

  I read this with my kids (9, 7, 5) for our poetry book for the quarter. While some of the imagery went over their heads, we were all touched by the beauty, truth, heartache, and hope in the poems.
• 
  Clare Lund

  Wow. A stunning book of poetry detailing the events in early 1968 leading up to MLK’s assassination. Gorgeous illustrations match the shifting moods on each page. A beautiful tribute with a wealth of information, photographs, and further sources at the back of the book. Ages 10 and up.
• 
  Barbara

  While much has been written about the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and his involvement in the civil rights movement, much less has been written about the Memphis garbage workers' strike that brought him to the city where he died. And absolutely nothing comes as close to capturing that feeling of being right alongside the great man quite as effectively as these docu-poems that seem almost to have been written in the midst of the moments they are describing. Complemented by stunning abstract impressionistic illustrations, created in watercolor, gouache, and India ink, that evoke a sense of the mood and the feelings of those who were either with King or saw him as a leader, the book is divided into three sections: Daylight, Darkness, and Dawn, and leaves readers with the hope that the dream MLK foresaw can still live on and still be reached. But the King that Pinkney portrays here is not just the leader and the orator, but the father and the husband, and the tired man looking forward to a good home-cooked meal while on the road. For those who don't understand why he was in Memphis, and why his loss was so great, this book offers a personal, emotional response and some answers. It is also impossible to miss the great impact of faith and churches in this civil rights journey as well as the author's acknowledgement of the importance of the weather and the changing of the seasons. Reflections from the author and from the artist as well as archival photos in the Now Is the Time section as well as source listings help readers visualize this time period. The poor state of Tennessee is in for a pounding in this account of King's death. The only thing I might question would be the author's use of the phrase "Deep South," which brings to mind Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi, but not typically Tennessee, but perhaps I misunderstood her use of the phrase. I noted that some reviewers were concerned that their students couldn't use this book to write research papers on King or the civil rights movement. Perhaps so, but maybe what is more important is that this book touches their hearts and makes them wonder about that dream of his and whether it died with him or lives on. Most importantly of all, I think, is that this book moves readers, perhaps inspiring them to take up their own social justice-related causes.
• 
  Jo-ann Walsh

  
  @kidlitexchnage #partner
  Thank you @kidlitexchange for the review copy of Martin Rising: Requiem For a King in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
  This is a beautiful book by Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney. It is written in all poem form with gorgeous illustrations that accompany the text. The focus of the book is on the few months that led up to Martin’s passing and a short time after. In 1968 in Memphis Tennessee, black sanitation workers were not getting equal pay or fair treatment. They were forced to take lower pay, broken trucks, no sick time, and forced to pick up rotten stinky trash. They finally joined together to strike and protest. Martin joined their plight and helped lead them in marching. It was the “I AM A MAN” movement. Like many other situations, there would be looting, riots, arrests, and unfair treatment of blacks. Even though Martin was sick, he agreed to go to Memphis on April 3, 1968. The movement needed Martin’s words and wisdom. He delivered his amazing “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech.
  “And I’ve looked over, and I’ve seen the promised land.”
  “I may not get there with you.”
  “But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!”
  On April 4,1968 Martin was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel. That day, and the days that followed, were days of mourning for so many people. On April 8, Coretta Scott King led the march of the sanitation workers in Marin’s place, continuing to live out his dream. The march was also a tribute to Martin. He left a legacy for all of us to live in peace, but to fight for what was right and just.
  “Martin’s memory
  shines as bright
  as daffodils,
  tulips,
  orchids,
  blooming in so many hearts.”
  
  This book is a wonderful reminder of Dr. King’s legacy, but also reminds us of the struggles that people had to go through in this country. It is a reminder that “with love, we all shall rise.” The poetic verses add an element of creativity and feeling to the events that take place. I recommend this book for upper elementary and middle school classrooms and libraries. A beautiful and inspirational book!
  
  
  
• 
  Jason Rossi

  Children's Poetry
  This brightly colored book shares the inspirational life that Martin Luther King, Jr. so shortly lived. The Pinkney husband and wife team have received the highest honors and awards for all the work they have contributed to children’s literature. They do an exceptional job shining a light on the work that King did during his life as a minister and civil rights activist. With 39 insightful and touching poems, the Pinkneys paint a vivid picture of the days leading up to King’s assassination. The poems are like a time line, many of the poem have dates included with their titles. The watercolor painting throughout the book evoke emotions and help set the mood. The mood changes throughout the book, and the painting shades and tones fit together seamlessly with the words on the page. The poetry is meaningful and at times heartbreaking, and leaves some of the details to the readers imagination which can be confusing to younger readers that aren’t familiar with the complexities of King’s life. Some of the poetry is esoteric, filled symbolism and metaphor. This story is extremely original and a breath of fresh air, so much of what is written about King can be extremely serious and difficult to digest. This book does a great job to show the bright, brilliant, beautiful side of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s journey. Thick pages with fully saturated colorful drawings, a beautifully crafted book, large with a strong hardcover – does King’s story justice. This is a magnificent addition to the vast collection of literature on Martin Luther King, Jr. Readers are taken back in time and are treated to a visual and emotional rollercoaster, a life worth this incredible piece of artwork. I recommend this book for grades 3 – 8, the book is packed with poetry and there is a good amount of reading. The vocabulary and writing style can be sophisticated at times. This is an important collection of poetry that should be shared in all relevant history classes.
  
• 
  Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book*

  Cross-posted from Kiss the Book reviewer's personal Goodreads account
  
  Martin Rising: Requiem for a King by Andrea and Brian Pinkney, 121 pages. Scholastic Press, 2018. $15.
  
  Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (mild description of riots and MLK's assassination)
  
  EL, MS, HS, ADULT- ESSENTIAL
  
  This beautiful book of poems details the last months and days of Martin Luther King Jr’s life. It is divided into three sections called “Daylight,” “Darkness,” and “Dawn.” The first few poems are about this great leader’s birth, family, and potential, including a metaphorical bird named Henny Penny which is explained in the author’s reflections at the end. The poems in “Darkness” highlight Martin’s struggles with fear and the burden of leadership. The poems at the end of this section depict his last days and moments, then the mourning after the world’s great loss. “Dawn” features Coretta and other great leaders of the movement continuing on in Martin’s spirit.
  
  The poetry and images in this book were breathtaking. Use of alliteration, repetition, and pieces of King’s speeches make these poems come to life beautifully. I learned a lot about Martin’s last days and seeing more of his humanity made me respect this great man so much more and once again mourn his loss. This book is a perfect addition to any middle school or high school classroom and library. Some poems could be read aloud to elementary students. It would work best as curriculum, but many older teens may choose to read it own their own as well. It is very well researched. It connects the weather and words from his speeches with his impending death in such a way as to see him as a true visionary who bravely saw his own death approaching and chose to march on.
  
  Reviewer: Stacee S., Reading Teacher
• 
  Stephanie Bange

  Andrea Davis Pinkney and Brian Pinkney have given us a number of picture books about important events that occurred during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's. They may have delivered their magnum opus with this requiem, covering the final months of Dr. Martin Luther King's life -- which occurred exactly 50 years ago this spring, making it incredibly timely.
  
  A.Pinkney employs numerous literary devices in her free verse poems: foreboding, simile, metaphor, alliteration, and hindsight, among others. Divided into three parts (Daylight, Darkness, and Dawn), she weaves in poetic "signs" of unrest in nature that parallel King's life at the time (forsythia being blown by the wind, literary image of March coming in "like a lion" and going out "like a lamb", a tornado watch issued when King is supposed to speak, his plane being grounded by snow when he is supposed to fly. She includes a poem about assassin James Earl Ray and one about the possibility of King's assassination being part of a conspiracy. B. Pinkney's watercolor, gouache, and india ink illustrations are big and bold, with many filled with sweeping movement and details picked out from text (such as the description of Memphis during the garbage men's strike, p. 34-35). The two forms meld together beautifully with great power. Backmatter includes both an author and illustrator reflection, an essay "Now Is the Time" overview of this time in King's life, a timeline, and source list of materials consulted.
  
  A must for all libraries. For grades 3-8+.
  
• 
  Ben Truong

  Today marks the fiftieth anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. (4 April), an American Baptist minister who was best known for being an activist – not just any activist, but one of the spokesperson and leader in the civil rights movement, and one of my many heroes. On this day, I thought it would be apropos to remember him by reading about him.
  
  Martin Rising: Requiem For a King is a children picture book of poetry written by Andrea Davis Pinkney and illustrated by Brian Pinkney and conveys the final months of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life and his assassination through poetry and art.
  
  The text is beautiful written prose – the poetry is lyrical and pays homage to and almost a love letter or rather song to Martin Luther King, Jr. The illustrations are equally as beautiful and lyrical – if that is even possible. Truly, the illustrations are like a song or music personified and then depicted perfectly. In short, it is a well-crafted book.
  
  The premise of the book depicts the last months of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life through poetry, prose, metaphor, spirituality that transcends many layers of meaning. The stunning poetic requiem and artwork brings a fresh perspective to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life and death.
  
  All in all, Martin Rising: Requiem For a King is a wonderful poetic children's book about Martin Luther King Jr.'s life of peace loving activism and his dreams about equality for everyone and even in his death, he continues to transform and inspire all who share his dream.