Young poetry fans will be delighted with this inspiring anthem to progress by inaugural Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman, with uplifting illustrations by Loren Long (the Otisseries).
"I can hear change humming/ In its loudest, proudest song./ I don't fear change coming, and so I sing along," proclaims the narrator, a child with deep brown skin and natural hair strumming an acoustic guitar. The child embarks on a transformative journey across a community, recruiting other kids with musical instruments and saying, "I don't make a taller fence,/ But fight to build a better bridge." The band of children form a rollicking, soulful procession culminating at a defunct local market, which they revitalize. Finally, they gather in triumph with other community members around a three-story-high mural that immortalizes their band, emblazoned with the words "We are the change." Give this dynamic, galvanizing chorus to young activists for a dose of affirmation. --Jaclyn Fulwood, youth experience manager, Dayton Metro Library