Starred review from July 17, 2017
A mother dreams about the future as she cuddles her newborn son, Omari. The next few years will be defined by an intense physical connection—“I kiss your scrapes and scratches/ and wipe your occasional tears,” writes Weatherford (Freedom in Congo Square)—and then she will need to let go. But because Omari is black, his mother’s prayers take on a striking and sobering specificity: she asks for his safety in neighborhoods “beyond our own” and “as you cast a longer shadow,/ that you will be viewed as a vessel to be steered/ rather than a figure to be feared.” Pinkney (On the Ball) uses sweeping, expressive ink lines and radiant washes of color to create both an impressionistic mood and poignant immediacy. For all its beauty and lyricism, Weatherford’s book doesn’t equivocate. Because for children like Omari, the stakes are as high as their mothers’ love is deep. “I add my prayers to the chorus,” she writes. “Black lives matter. Your life matters.” Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Rubin Pfeffer, Rubin Pfeffer Content. Illustrator’s agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House.

Starred review from June 15, 2017
A new mother describes her dreams for her son, her hopes for his future, and her prayers for his safety.The book opens with the mother, a black woman, cradling her newborn and looking ahead to his future. She imagines holding his hand as he learns to walk, reading to him, and teaching him the golden rule. But as her son grows, she knows he will move away from her protection and face the dangers of the wider world, and so her words shift to prayers for her son's future. She asks God to hold her son in his hands, a metaphor reflected in the cover illustration with huge, protective hands above and below the figure of a solemn little black boy. The moving, poetic text captures the mother's fears for her son while framing her thoughts in a hopeful way, countering worries with positive outcomes. As the prayers move to a conclusion, she prays that her son will avoid perils and grow up to raise his own sons and grandsons. She adds to her prayer the profound words: "Black lives matter. Your life matters." Her heartfelt words will appeal to adults even as they offer both love and reassurance for children and a way to explore some difficult social issues. Pinkney's striking, loose illustrations in watercolor and gouache use a palette of pastel greens and blues, with swirling strokes of ink indicating movement or change. Insightful, poignant, groundbreaking--and a reminder that the lives of all children are also in our hands. (Picture book/religion. 5-adult)

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Starred review from July 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 3-From award-winning Weatherford (Voice of Freedom; Moses), this poem from a black mother to her firstborn son will resonate as a prayer for all black boys. A mother holds her child's hand while expressing her hopes for his safety, his confidence, and a world that will see him as a "vessel to be steered rather than a figure to be feared." The narrative moves through the child's life and the struggle most parents go through when they realize that they can no longer hold their children close and protect them, but acknowledges that extra worry that parents of black boys face as the mother asks God to hold her son in his hands. The book ends with the mother adding her prayer to the chorus: "Black lives matter. Your life matters." The text is given the space to shine opposite Pinkney's art, with font size changes for impact. The illustrations, loose and fluid pastel watercolors with India ink outlines, offer a sense of warmth and comfort with swirls around the images projecting the mother's love. Hands are integral to each picture, with larger hands at times representing God embracing the young boy. A final image shows God's hands enveloping a world where everyone holds hands as the mother ends, "Hold my son in your hands." VERDICT An exceptional gift to black families, and with its important underlying messages of our times, this title should be added to most library collections. Best shared one-on-one with a loved one.-Danielle Jones, Multnomah County Library, OR

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from August 1, 2017
Grades 1-3 *Starred Review* Addressing her son, an African American mother reflects on cradling him in her arms in infancy and holding his hand as he learns to walk and later crosses the street to enter kindergarten. She comforts him, tucks him in at night, and passes along her wisdom. But as he grows older, knowing that she can't always protect him, she explains that she will pray for his safety, trusting God to watch over him as he enters adolescence. The powerfully written text, which occasionally echoes the words of Martin Luther King Jr., ends with the lines Black / lives / matter. / Your / life / matters. / I pray to God each day: / Hold my son in Your hands. Expressing a personal response to difficult issues, this heartfelt monologue is delivered by a character dealing with her fears through her beliefs, while offering her son a comforting message of strength in troubling times. For the luminous artwork, Pinkney uses watercolor, gouache, and india ink in strong, curving strokes to create characters and settings, while lighter lines and swirls of gentle colors bring a sense of warmth and music to the scenes. This picture book will move many readers, including adults, with its lyrical yet powerful words and art.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2018
Amidst soft, swirling swoops of gentle lines and colors, a mother shares her hopes and dreams for her newborn boy. As the mother realizes that her son will eventually outgrow her protection, the book becomes an explicit call for the recognition of the worth of African American boys: "Black lives matter. Your life matters." The interplay between the commercial design of the book and its political point is intriguingly subversive.

(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

September 1, 2017
It looks like a baby-shower book, and it is a baby-shower book--but with a difference. On pastel backgrounds amidst the soft, swirling swoops of Pinkney's gentle lines and colors, Weatherford shares a mother's thoughts for a new baby boy: "I cradle you as you drift to sleep. While napping, you crack a smile. I have big, bright dreams for you." The book continues in a familiar pattern as the narrator sees the little boy, Omari, through first steps and first day of kindergarten, "scrapes and scratches," and bedtime stories. Pinkney maintains a pastoral mood even as the mother realizes that her growing son will eventually outgrow her protection, and she asks God to be where she cannot: "I will pray that you are safe in neighborhoods beyond our own and that you feel confident when you face new challenges." At this point, the book becomes an explicit call for the protection and recognition of the worth of African American boys: "Black lives matter. Your life matters." The didacticism is inherent to the form and theme of the text; the interplay between the commercial design of the book and its political point is intriguingly subversive. While the book does not speak as much to young children as it does to their caregivers, the pictures of a young black boy growing to adolescence and adulthood and the power of the mother's prayer ("I will pray that you can always hold your head up, and that you grow old and raise sons and grandsons who will be exalted for the suns that they are") make it one that may well transcend early readings to become a book to return to as a child becomes a man. roger sutton

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)