Gr 5-10 As Whitman turned to free verse to explore the character and complexity of America in the 19th century, so Walter Dean Myers employs it in the 21st. From the Lakota Indian watching his father "in the curl of legend" and the refugee whose freedom dream "lay just beyond the next wave" to the diverse assembly of famous figures depicted in concluding montages, the Myers grapple with the meaning of the country's founding principles. They pair big ideas with specific individuals (real or imagined) culled from a wide swath of peoples. The imagery is beautifully crafted, and the tone allows space for readers to draw conclusions; while acknowledging imperfections, Myers reserves judgment. Relevant quotes are interspersed, adding perspective and sometimes irony. Christopher Myers's paintings cross the gutter in earnest panoramic scenes that vary in effectiveness. There are graphic images (a wounded soldier) and aesthetically pleasing scenes, such as a woman carrying bricks on her head next to Chinese immigrants laying railroad track; the lines offer a pleasing contrast to the opposing curve of the adjacent steel overpass. Several of the compositions, however, try to do too much as they line up literal examples from the text's large time spans. A Guinean iron worker, surrounded by daylight, is next to a man reading and others praying inside a mosque. When Mae Jemison flies in on the opposite page against a starlit sky, it feels disjointed. Notes explain the back story and identify individual portraits. A thought-provoking and largely accomplished work for students of American history. Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library

The Myers team shares their heartfelt and stirring vision of an America flawed but filled with promises and dreams. Like weavers connecting warp and woof, father threads lofty words and son paints seamless pictures. Each double-page spread contains a brief poem and usually a quote from a relevant document or person. A mural rendered in pastels spans both pages. Homage is paid to young people; Native Americans; immigrants from Europe, Africa and Asia; laborers, protesters, soldiers and performers. "We were willing to die to forge our dream" writes Walter Dean Myers while Chris Myers paints snarling dogs attacking civil rights protesters and colonial patriots throwing tea into Boston Harbor. Juxtaposed with this are the opening line to the Constitution and King George's words granting independence. In another tableau, a slave shows his terribly scarred back, Indians lie dead at Wounded Knee and Japanese-American citizens stand behind barbed wire, but Americans learned to "light the darkness with the blazing torch that is the Constitution." Backmatter credits each quotation and identifies the people in each painting. The poetry and the paintings will be an excellent jumping-off point for discussions. Readers will take every opportunity to pause and reflect and trace their fingers along the glorious artwork. Stunning. (Picture book/poetry. 8 & up)

The Myers team shares their heartfelt and stirring vision of an America flawed but filled with promises and dreams. Like weavers connecting warp and woof, father threads lofty words and son paints seamless pictures. Each double-page spread contains a brief poem and usually a quote from a relevant document or person. A mural rendered in pastels spans both pages. Homage is paid to young people; Native Americans; immigrants from Europe, Africa and Asia; laborers, protesters, soldiers and performers. "We were willing to die to forge our dream" writes Walter Dean Myers while Chris Myers paints snarling dogs attacking civil rights protesters and colonial patriots throwing tea into Boston Harbor. Juxtaposed with this are the opening line to the Constitution and King George's words granting independence. In another tableau, a slave shows his terribly scarred back, Indians lie dead at Wounded Knee and Japanese-American citizens stand behind barbed wire, but Americans learned to "light the darkness with the blazing torch that is the Constitution." Backmatter credits each quotation and identifies the people in each painting. The poetry and the paintings will be an excellent jumping-off point for discussions. Readers will take every opportunity to pause and reflect and trace their fingers along the glorious artwork. Stunning. (Picture book/poetry. 8 & up)

Feeling distanced from the wave of patriotism that followed 9/11, Walter Dean Myers turned to America's founding documents, which inspired him to pay his own tribute to our country's history and pen these 14 short, free-verse poems. Beginning with a call out to native peoples Before There Was America, the selections move forward through time, covering such subjects as immigration and expansionism, slavery and civil rights, war and art, and opportunity and injustice. Each entry is set against a blank space with an illuminating quote from varied sources, including Tecumseh, Abraham Lincoln, Barbara Jordan, and the U.S. Constitution. Across the spread from each poem are Christopher Myers' colorful paintings, which incorporate references in the lyrical lines. The appended back matter includes more information about the quotations, along with notes about the artwork. Widely inclusive and full of passion and pride, the book concludes with portraits of citizens, famous and otherwise, above the lines, To each child a freedom dream / To each soul the sweet taste of liberty / To each heart give the promise / Of America.

Father and son team up for this reflection on United States history. The promise and potential of America are explored with a quotation (credited in the notes), poem, and mural-like painting on each spread (the art notes cite page numbers not included on spreads). The backmatter is essential for understanding the content and will make this useful in classrooms.