Sidewalk Chalk: Poems of the City [Paperback]

At every corner, down every block, a city percolates with people at work and play: girls jumping double Dutch, the shoeshine man polishing a pair of wing tips, boys heading toward the basketball court. Each neighborhood is filled with unique characters (the beautician, the barber, the short-order cook) and places (the storefront churches, the outdoor market, the park pool) - all as familiar as family. Carole Boston Weatherford pays tribute to these sights and sounds of urban life in twenty fresh and rhythmic poems. In quiet moments and lively street scenes, her work captures the excitement and diversity found in these places that have no trees / to climb but where people young and old still reach for the stars. Dimitrea Tokunbo's vivid illustrations are sure to delight. Every selection is set into one of Tokunbo's remarkable textured watercolor paintings that reflect the diversity and richness of a big-city neighborhood. The animated faces of children fully engaged in the wide variety of activities bring the poetry to life. This partnership of word and illustration works well and belongs in most collections. --School Library JournalCarole Boston Weatherfordis an award-winning poet and author of more than a dozen books for children, includingA Negro League Scrapbook. She lives in High Point, North Carolina.

Dimitrea Tokunbois the illustrator ofHas Anybody Lost a Glove?by G. Francis Johnson. She lives in New York City.CN