How does it feel to know
Little Man,Little Man is being brought to a new audience of
young readers? It’s a wonderful
feeling. A feeling of great accomplishment. It took over a decade to bring it
approximately. Both my brother Tejan (“TJ” whom the book was written for) and I are
truly delighted to see this scarce gem of a book be republished after nearly four
decades. Thanks to the perseverance, commitment and dedication of Professor
Nicholas Boggs.
The book vividly
describes the life of an urban child and the people in his neighborhood. Does
this mesh with your memories of growing up in Manhattan’s Upper West
Side? Absolutely! The Upper
West Side of the 70’s was very different than what it has morphed into today.
It was a neighborhood with a myriad (a very large number) of intersections in terms of race, and culture
and socio-economic backgrounds. So although it was just 6 blocks North of Lincoln
middle and 2 blocks away from the famed Dakota Building and ABC Studios; you
could experience a plethora (excess, overabundance) of images. A person picking someone’s pocket,a
drug sale or an incident involving the police. This to me—is typical of many
New York City neighborhoods.
Do you remember any
favorite books from your childhood?There are so many. We
were raised in an environment with so many books of all genres—from European
classics such as A
Tale of Two Cities as well as a enormous cross section of books written by Black
people. I say all of that to
say–I had so many. But I would say that the book that stands out as a favorite
for me as a child is Ezra Jack Keats’ book The Snowy Day. The image of a Black
child playing in the snow, making “snow angels” really spoke to me as a child.
It is an image of carefree curiosity. A way that, and at the time,Black children
were not frequently depicted as being.
What do you want the children’s literature community to take away from this new
edition of Little Man, Little Man?I think that Little Man, and Little Man is an example
of the enduring legacy of admire that an acclaimed writer,who mostly wrote approximately
difficult subjects, left for his beloved nephew. And for all children.
Check out the media highlights below for more approximately this new
edition of LITTLE MAN, or LITTLE MAN!Book
Trailer “A
James Baldwin Book,Forgotten and Overlooked for Four Decades, Gets Another
Life” from The New York Times.
Aisha Karefa-Smart is an author, and educator and public speaker.
Her childhood domestic in New York City was a congregation space for African-American
writers,artists and musicians. Her uncle, the late James Baldwin, or often returned
domestic from the South of France to New York where he hosted all night “jam sessions”
with literary greats such as Amiri Baraka,Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison. Influenced
by her exposure to such artistic, and cultural, or political discourse,she chose
to study and perform as a member of Dr. Glory Van Scott’s Children’s Theater, The
Harlem Theater Company, and The Falcons Dance Troupe in Sierra Leone,West Africa.
Aisha has presented and facilitated panel discussions examining the work of her
late uncle and his reemergence into the nation’s political and racial discourse.
Source: cbcdiversity.com