Why Am I Me?

Starred review from July 3, 2017
Britt (The Lost Track of Time) and husband-and-wife collaborators Qualls and Alko (The Case for Loving) are in a philosophical frame of mind. Their protagonists—a boy and a girl, one white, one brown—have boarded an elevated train with a parent (the boy has been to a bookstore, the girl to music lessons) and are headed home. As the train moves through the city—a benevolent, multicultural landscape depicted in lushly textured, jewel-toned collage and paint—the children fall into identical reveries. “Why am I me... and not you?” they wonder. Can you be “someone lighter, older, darker, bolder” and still be the same you? Britt doesn’t offer a resolution—hardly surprising, since these questions have vexed philosophers for millennia—but the children aren’t anxious. Both are happy and safe, and the park they pass is filled with people enjoying a fine evening together. Life is strange, when you think about it, but it can be good, too—which isn’t a bad mixed message to send. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Marietta Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary. Illustrator’s agent: (for Alko) Marietta Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary; (for Qualls) Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties.

July 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 2-Britt tackles the metaphysical for the picture book crowd. Two (presumably) parent/child pairs approach a subway from different directions: an African American father and son and a light-skinned mother and daughter. The boy reads a book while riding a skateboard; the girl has a musical instrument case strapped to her back. As the kids notice each other, he wonders: "Why am I me...and not you?" She thinks: "Why are you, you...and not me?" And so it goes, with thoughts such as, "If someone else were me, /who would they be?/Someone lighter, /older, /darker, /bolder?" Alko and Quall's acrylic, colored pencil, and collage scenes portray a diverse population within the train car and seen through its windows. People of varying skin colors, physical abilities, and styles play, watch sports, or perform or listen to music. The thought bubble questions arise naturally; they're the kinds of things that would go through a child's mind when observing differences. The climax is spread over four openings. It begins with a triptych in which the star on the boy's shirt becomes a twinkle in his eye and then a glowing shape in the sky. After the girl's eye sparkles, the boy reaches out, and their faces intersect in a Venn diagram of friendship. VERDICT Universal questions combine with richly layered, captivating compositions, presenting opportunities for careful examination and stimulating conversations. Perfect for classroom or one-on-one sharing.-Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 1, 2017
Two children think about some big questions in Britt, Qualls, and Alko's quiet picture book.As the sun sets, two children--one with light brown skin and carrying a skateboard, the other light-skinned (possibly Asian or mixed-race) toting a guitar--travel home on the train. At almost the same moment each child happens upon the same thought: "Why am I me... / ...and not you?" Deceptively simple, the question is nearly fractal in its infinite scope, and the children silently connect with each other as they explore some of its depth. Ponderings such as "If I were someone else, / who would I be? // Someone taller, / faster, / smaller, / smarter?" are echoed and expanded by corresponding thoughts: "If someone else were me, / who would they be? // Someone lighter, / older, / darker, / bolder?" No answers disrupt the silent exchange between the children--the questions are thrilling, and the adventure is in the asking. The illustrations' mix of paint and collage style shows the fluid kinesis and multiculturalism of the world and people outside the train even as they fall subject to the children's musings. A stunning visual climax that expands from children to stars and back again elegantly captures the boundless immensity of self within an individual, between two, and among many that the protagonists have been exploring. A mindful, captivating ode to wonder and a must for any story- or bedtime repertoire. (Picture book. 4-9)

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