Mirandy and Brother Wind by Patricia C. McKissack, Jerry Pinkney (Illustrator)
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(Paperback)
- Age Range: 5 to 8
- Pub. Date: January 1997
- 32pp
- Sales Rank: 49,483
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| Hardcover | $16.15 |
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Product Details
- Series: Dragon Tales Series
- ISBN-13: 9780679883333
- ISBN: 0679883339
- Edition Number: 1
Synopsis
Illus. in full color."Mirandy is sure she'll win the cake walk if she can catch Brother Wind for her partner, but he eludes all the tricks her friends advise. This gets a high score for plot, pace, and characterization. Mirandy sparkles with energy and determination. Multi-hued watercolors fill the pages with patterned ferment. A treat to pass on to new generations."--(starred) Bulletin, Center for Children's Books. Cassette running time: 20 min.
Annotation
To win first prize in the Junior Cakewalk, Mirandy tries to capture the wind for her partner.
Publishers Weekly
As a prefatory note explains, this picture book was inspired by a photo of the author's grandparents winning a cakewalk``a dance rooted in Afro-American culture''and her grandfather's boast that, in her dancing, his wife had captured the wind. In the book, Mirandy determines to catch Brother Wind and have him for her partner in the upcoming junior cakewalk. She tries a number of tactics springing from folk wisdom, and finally succeeds in trapping her prey in the barn. At the contest, Mirandy chooses to dance with her friend Ezelbut, with Brother Wind to do her bidding, the two friends win the cakewalk in style. Told in spirited dialect and rendered in lavish, sweeping watercolors, this provides an intriguing look at a time gone by. As a story, however, it proves somewhat disappointing. After the colorful description of cakewalking in the author's note and the anticipation created through Mirandy's own eagerness, the brief and rather static scenes portraying the dance itself are a letdown. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)
More Reviews and RecommendationsBiography
Award winning author Patricia McKissack comes from a family of skilled storytellers, who taught her to listen and observe and who encouraged her life-long love affair with words. The Dark Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural was a 1993 Newbery Honor Book. Pat also received the Coretta Scott King Award in 1993 for The Dark Thirty. Pat wishes she could have talked to her hero, Frederick Douglass, about his rise from slavery, his daring escape, and freedom -- at last! If she was not an author, Pat would like to be an interior designer or an architect so she could tell stories through design.
Pat frequently collaborates on books with her husband, Fredrick. They have three sons and live in St. Louis, Missouri.
Customer Reviews
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Easy reading for childrenby Anonymous
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October 26, 2009: My grandchildren, ages 6 and 8 years, enjoyed reading this book; particularly after attending the play (by the same name) in Atlanta, Ga. Brother Wind became a big topic with the children and their parents. The teachable moments from reading this book were priceless. This book is written in a language form which caused the children to ask questions. However, the brief history lesson here was appreciated. This is indeed a book to share with others.
Mirandy and Brother Windby Anonymous
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April 13, 2007: This is a great cultural book about a girl named Mirandy who really wants to win the junior cake walk. Her Ma told her ?that whoever catches the Wind can make him do their bidding.? Mirandy asks her Grandmama Beasley, all of her neighbors, and Mis Poinsettia how she could catch Brother Wind so that he could be her partner at the junior cakewalk. Grandma Beasley said ?can?t nobody put shackles on Brother Wind, chile. He be special. He be free.? None of the neighbors thought she would be able to catch Brother Wind. Her clumsy friend Ezel also wanted to be her partner for the junior cakewalk but she was so interested in catching Brother Wind that he didn?t have the nerve to ask her. When she went to Mis Poinsetia so she could give her a potion to catch Brother Wind, but it didn?t work. What is she going to do? Who will her partner be for the junior cakewalk? Will it be Brother Wind or clumsy Ezel? I loved reading this book. It was very enjoyable and fun to read. Patricia C. McKissack writes mostly historical fiction books about African Americans. Her intention for writing these books is to increase the self-esteem and encourage African American children. She uses ideas from her family to write her stories.
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