"Oh beautiful black, uh-huh, uh-huh
Black is beautiful, UH-HUH!!!!"
Sorry, I couldn't help but tap my toes a
little before I start my review. That's how Ashley Bryan's adaptation
of the story of Blackbird makes me feel. A retelling of a traditional
pour quoi tale from the people of Zambia, Beautiful Blackbird
tells how Blackbird, the most beautiful of all the birds because he
is the only one with black feathers, shares the beauty of blackness
with the others by making a special blackening brew and painting
black ornamentation on the other birds - spots, stripes, and
beautiful patterns - so that all can share in the beauty of black.
It's a story that left my heart singing.
The text in this traditional tale practically begs to be read aloud. In fact, I ended up reading it out loud to my human, just so I could hear the rhythm of the words and sing the songs the birds all dance along to. Bryan includes multiple internal rhymes, but he balances it with prose lines just often enough that it feels like natural language rather than the somewhat formulaic syllables of poetry. Kirkus Reviews raves that “[t]his telling, by the master storyteller, just aches to be read aloud; the lively rhythms keep the simple folktale rollicking along” (Kirkus Reviews 2010). Bryan's rhyme scheme, along with his measured use of repetition, makes it clear that this storyteller knows how to hold the attention of an audience.
While the
language of the story is beautiful, the illustrations have a vibrancy
and a liveliness all their own that truly bring the tale to life.
Bryan uses cut paper (using his mother's sewing scissors, to which he
pays homage in the illustration on the inside front cover) in bright
colors to portray all the birds of the kingdom. However, with nothing
but vivid colors across the page, there is no darkness to contrast
with the birds' bright plumage, and so the rainbow of colorful birds
look rather dull. When Blackbird adds a bit of blackness to each
bird's feathers, the birds' vibrant colors really pop. It is a master
use of color and demonstrates how important black is in an
illustration – and in life, too. Bryan also makes a point of
explaining that black is not created from the absence of color, but
rather is comprised of all the colors of the rainbow. Barbara Bader,
in her review for Horn Book, praised Bryan's use of this story
element: “In sum, different as we may be, we can all partake of the
beauty of black. Blackbird,
in turn, radiates the colors of all the others.” (Bader 2003).
The story has a positive, affirming message throughout – that “black is beautiful” - and Blackbird is a generous and humble protagonist. This is a particularly important message for darker skinned children to hear, as much of society tells them the opposite, both directly and indirectly. Blackbird slips another life lesson in before sharing his blackening brew with the first bird: “Color on the outside is not what's on the inside. You don't act like me. You don't eat like me. You don't get down in the groove and move your feet like me.” He later reiterates to the other birds, “Just remember, whatever I do, I'll be me and you'll be you.” He proposes two balanced points for children to consider: that although it's true that you are beautiful just the way you are, real beauty is what's on the inside.
To bring this story to life, children might enjoy extending their wonder about the beauty of black. Some children might enjoy making a science connection: Smithsonian Magazine has an article and accompanying video clip online explaining how the bird of paradise has special black feathers that absorb 99.95% of all light that reaches them, making them similar to a miniature black hole (available at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-shine-new-light-birds-super-black-feathers-180967796/ )! This story also lends itself to art activities experimenting with color contrast or letting students try their hand at cut paper artwork.
If you are looking for a good companion story to Beautiful Blackbird, one good choice is Leo Lionni's A Color of his Own, in which a little chameleon is sad because he doesn't have a color of his own – he isn't striped like the tiger or pink like the pig. With its similar theme and contrasting artistic style, this is a great story to use when examining ways to use color. Another way to complement Beautiful Blackbird is to pair it with other traditional folk tales from the same area of the world, such as The Lonely Lioness and the Ostrich Chicks from the Maasai people or Jackal's Flying Lesson from the Khoikhoi people, both of which are retold by Verna Aardema.
If you are looking for an uplifting tale with a message that's all about generosity and feeling good in your own skin, then Beautiful Blackbird is the book for you! This story earned two paws up!
The story has a positive, affirming message throughout – that “black is beautiful” - and Blackbird is a generous and humble protagonist. This is a particularly important message for darker skinned children to hear, as much of society tells them the opposite, both directly and indirectly. Blackbird slips another life lesson in before sharing his blackening brew with the first bird: “Color on the outside is not what's on the inside. You don't act like me. You don't eat like me. You don't get down in the groove and move your feet like me.” He later reiterates to the other birds, “Just remember, whatever I do, I'll be me and you'll be you.” He proposes two balanced points for children to consider: that although it's true that you are beautiful just the way you are, real beauty is what's on the inside.
To bring this story to life, children might enjoy extending their wonder about the beauty of black. Some children might enjoy making a science connection: Smithsonian Magazine has an article and accompanying video clip online explaining how the bird of paradise has special black feathers that absorb 99.95% of all light that reaches them, making them similar to a miniature black hole (available at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-shine-new-light-birds-super-black-feathers-180967796/ )! This story also lends itself to art activities experimenting with color contrast or letting students try their hand at cut paper artwork.
If you are looking for a good companion story to Beautiful Blackbird, one good choice is Leo Lionni's A Color of his Own, in which a little chameleon is sad because he doesn't have a color of his own – he isn't striped like the tiger or pink like the pig. With its similar theme and contrasting artistic style, this is a great story to use when examining ways to use color. Another way to complement Beautiful Blackbird is to pair it with other traditional folk tales from the same area of the world, such as The Lonely Lioness and the Ostrich Chicks from the Maasai people or Jackal's Flying Lesson from the Khoikhoi people, both of which are retold by Verna Aardema.
If you are looking for an uplifting tale with a message that's all about generosity and feeling good in your own skin, then Beautiful Blackbird is the book for you! This story earned two paws up!
-Charlie Brown
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References
Bader, Barbara. 2003. "Beautiful Blackbird." Horn Book Magazine 79, no. 2: 220.
Bryan, Ashley. 2003. Beautiful Blackbird. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9780689847318
Katz, Brigit. 2018. "Scientists Shine New Light on the Blackest Black Feathers." Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed February 8, 2019. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-shine-new-light-birds-super-black-feathers-180967796/
Kirkus. 2003. "Beautiful Blackbird." Kirkus Review. Accessed February 8, 2019. https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ashley-bryan/beautiful-blackbird/
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