“Imagery is presented in marvelous metaphors… Minter’s acrylic-wash prints soar… A warm, loving, necessary reminder of the power in families coming together.” —Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW

“Minter’s illustrations, rendered in an acrylic wash, work in beautiful harmony with Lyons’s joyful portrait of a deeply loving multigenerational family. Carefully layered images, patterns, and textures reinforce the narrative links between family history, American history, ancestral land and nature, and the bonds of family… Readers will enjoy this moving celebration of familial love, history, and tradition. Highly ­recommended.” —School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW

“A lushly illustrated tribute to family history… Lyons’s image-rich prose and Minter’s powerful acrylics…convey a sense of historical struggle alongside cherished tradition while capturing the experience of performance jitters.” —Publishers Weekly

“Lyrical…a heartfelt story of family love, shared history, and connection to a place that binds everyone together.” —Booklist

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“Lyons’s text stands on its own so well that it begs to be read aloud — particularly by someone with the cadence of African American speech on her tongue. But when paired with Minter’s exquisite watercolor illustrations, new dimensions of the story unfold, offering visual affirmations of who this Black family is to one another and to their land.” —Michelle H. Martin, Calling Caldecott

“Geez, this is a gorgeous book. You just want to take out the pages and frame each and every one…. A true book of family should make you wish you, like the characters, never had to leave. Of course, by having this book in hand, you never have to…. Family rendered in its most beautiful light. A treasure in hand indeed.”— Betsy Bird, A Fuse #8 Production

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Randolph Caldecott Medal (Honor Book) —ALSC, 2020

North Carolina Author Awards (AAUW Award for Juvenile Literature) —North Carolina Literary & Historical Association, 2019

Capitol Choices Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens —Capitol Choices, 2020

Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People ―NCSS/CBC, 2020

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Notable Children’s Books―ALSC, 2020

Best Children’s Books of the Year ―Bank Street College of Education, 2020

CCBC Choices (Picture Books for School-Age Children) ―Cooperative Children’s Book Center, 2020

Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Book ―Chicago Public Library, 2019

Best Book of 2019 ―Kirkus Reviews, 2019

Best Book of 2019 ―School Library Journal, 2019

Lupine Award  (Picture Book) ―Maine State Library Association, 2019

Georgia Children’s Picture Book Award (Finalist)―University of Georgia, 2021

Arkansas Diamond Primary Book Awards (Nominee)― Arkansas Department of Education, 2021-2022

North Carolina Children’s Book Award (Nominee, Picture books) ―North Carolina Reading Association, 2021

Star of the North Picture Book Award (Nominee) ―Minnesota Youth Reading Awards, 2020-2021

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Kelly Starling Lyons is the author numerous books for young readers including One More Dino on the Floor, Hope’s Gift, Ellen’s Broom, and the Jada Jones series. You can visit her website here.

Daniel Minter is a painter and illustrator, whose work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally. He is the illustrator of eleven books for children, including Step Right Up: How Doc and Jim Key Taught the World about Kindness and Ellen’s Broom, for which he received a Coretta Scott King Illustration Honor Award. You can visit his website here.