Little Stevie Wonder - Hardcover

Troupe, Quincy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0618340602 ISBN 13: 9780618340606

Publisher: Clarion Books, 2005

Synopsis

Eleven-year-old Stevland Judkins Morris Hardaway hit the big time when he signed a Motown recording contract. At the age of thirteen, Little Stevie Wonder had millions of fans dancing to the number-one song in the nation.

Little Stevie Wonder is the true story of a boy who lost his sight shortly after birth, grew up in Detroit, Michigan, and became one of the twentieth century’s most creative and influential musicians—an instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, musical innovator, and cultural activist.

Here in Quincy Troupe’s joyful poem and Lisa Cohen’s vibrant art is an uplifting celebration of life, peace, and music.

About this title

About the Author:

Quincy Troupe is the author of fourteen books, including seven volumes of poetry. He coauthored Miles: The Autobiography, which won an American Book Award, and wrote Miles and Me: A Memoir of Miles Davis. Quincy lives in New York City with his wife, Margaret. This is his second book for children.

From Booklist:

Gr. 2-4. Singing sensation Wonder gets an upbeat treatment in this stylish picture book. Troupe uses one of Wonder's signature songs--"Isn't She Lovely"--as a link to his own free verse: "Isn't he lovely, / this small blind boy, thinking of his fingertips? / Snapping those fingers before unseeing eyes." Mostly, the text works well, capturing the intensity of Wonder's music and the excitement of its evocative words: "His hands caress his harmonica, / his fingertips and breath pulling sweet music--like magic--from that old blues instrument of wood and polished steel." But some repeated lines are hyperbolic (Stevie was "born to love everyone"), and the insertion of straight biographical information is awkward. The acrylic artwork, however, is as dynamic as Wonder's music. Bold, pure colors and big, yet simple shapes pop from the pages as the pictures track Wonder from boy "genius" to mustachioed adult with beaded cornrows. Wonder's trademark sunglasses sometimes emit rainbows, an effective way of putting his disability in the larger context of his life. An author's note tells more about Wonder's life, and a CD, not available with the galley, offers two songs. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About this edition

• Publisher: Clarion Books
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0618340602
• ISBN 13: 9780618340606
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Cohen Lisa