None of the 8 subjects were previously known to me and all of the stories of their lives including slavery, physical assault and abuse, danger, casual institutionalized racism and sexism left me saddened. These are stories of children, men, and women who succeeded -despite- the most daunting odds imaginable. Their lives were varied as were their talents: music, patriotism, bravery, aptitude, gender role defying, and surviving merciless exploitation.
The art, by Joel Christian Gill is clean and crisp, appealing, but unapologetic in its representation of the blatant racism and exploitation of the time (19th-20th century USA - with some of the subjects also spending time in Europe). There is no direct depiction of graphic violence in the book and it would be appropriate (perhaps contextualized by an adult/teacher) for younger readers. There were several scenes in the books which gave me chills and most of it was difficult to read emotionally. I appreciated the author's substitution of a graphic stylized "golliwog" in place of a written hurtful racial slur in the dialogue. The semiotic symbolism was just as effective (maybe more so) than writing the 'n-word' would have been.
Especially now, when the dialogue is fraught in the USA and we're being faced with deeper and more painful divisiveness in our political, social, and racial discourse, I think this is an -important- book and deserves a wider audience. This would make a superlative classroom, school, or public library book, as well as a good selection for a group read. The art alone would make it a good choice for the home library for fans of graphic novels, social/racial history, or biography.
Four stars. Well worth a read.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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