Listen Back: Angela Joy shares Black is a Rainbow Color

Original Air Date: January 13, 2020

Angela Joy shares BLACK IS A RAINBOW COLOR. This beautiful book, illustrated by one-to-watch and the one-to-wow Ekua Holmes, is Angela’s debut to the children’s book world. The book answers a question from her daughter, and it also bears witness to history, to legacy, and to community. Angela included robust back matter, incorporating an author’s note, an explanation of phrases referenced, a selection of poems from poets mentioned, a timeline entitled “And What Shall We Call You?”, and a playlist. This picture book has its own playlist! But what I will also say is that this picture book has its own presence, and it’s one that I hope many, many adults will welcome into their reading spaces and those spaces they share.

Listen along:

ABOUT THE BOOK:

A child reflects on the meaning of being Black in this moving and powerful anthem about a people, a culture, a history, and a legacy that lives on.

Red is a rainbow color.

Green sits next to blue.

Yellow, orange, violet, indigo,

They are rainbow colors, too, but

My color is black . . .

And there’s no BLACK in rainbows.

From the wheels of a bicycle to the robe on Thurgood Marshall's back, Black surrounds our lives. It is a color to simply describe some of our favorite things, but it also evokes a deeper sentiment about the incredible people who helped change the world and a community that continues to grow and thrive.

Stunningly illustrated by Caldecott Honoree and Coretta Scott King Award winner Ekua Holmes, Black Is a Rainbow Color is a sweeping celebration told through debut author Angela Joy’s rhythmically captivating and unforgettable words.

SHOW NOTES:

• Angela Joy (publisher website)