Winter brings all the passion he can muster to this picture-book biography of the Democratic presidential candidate, to whom he dedicates the book. Questions of identity form the theme of the brief account, as young Obama's family forms, fractures, re-forms in Indonesia, only to dissolve again. Who am I? and Where do I belong? become the touchstone questions as the text confronts his ethnic identity—"Barack's mother was Caucasian. His father was African. So what did that make Barack?"—and draws the conclusion that "no matter where he was, the world was his home." Both text and illustrations take advantage of loaded images: One double-page spread places a grown Obama, head bowed, before the Washington Mall's Reflecting Pool, the Lincoln Memorial (impossibly foreshortened, so its top is level with Obama's head) in the background; one passage describes a rally in historically freighted Birmingham. There's no effort at nonpartisanship, making Obama something of a Messiah figure come to save America at its darkest moment—but it sure is heartfelt. (author's note) (Picture book/biography. 5-9)

This most recent picture book about a 2008 presidential candidate (see Reviews, Aug. 11 for more books on the subject) could serve as an object lesson in haste: the publisher has said that Winter (<EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">Frida) turned the text around in two weeks and, unfortunately, it shows. Known for his clarity and lively prose, the author punctuates this biography with clichés. Barack Obama's life is framed as a “journey” through a complicated childhood to “unimaginable heights” (Winter doesn't specify those heights until an endnote, which centers on Obama's presidential campaign). At first Winter depends heavily on existential questions (“Where do I belong?” “Who am I?”), but these are poorly suited to the target audience, and some of his answers are glib. For example, discussing Obama's biracial background, he writes: “So what did that make Obama? For Caucasians, it simply made him 'black.' For some African Americans, though, it made him <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">less African American.” Debut artist Ford deserves credit for executing more than 20 paintings in only months; however, his figures are often distorted or strained. Ages 4–7. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Oct.)

PreS-Gr 2 More tribute than biography, Winter's picture book adopts the same reverential tone found in Nikki Grimes's Barack Obama (S & S, 2008). Yes, the facts of Obama's life can be found here. Readers learn about his brief interactions with his father from Kenya, his stay in Indonesia with his white mother and her new husband, his work in Chicago, election to the Senate, and nomination for the presidency. But Winter also includes speculations about Obama's inner questioning of his identity and endows his life with an almost messianic quality. After quoting Martin Luther King, Jr., he declares that Obama "would be the embodiment of King's dreama presidential candidate whose very being was a bridge that joined nations." Ford's illustrations reinforce this vision of greatness, whether Obama delivers a speech in front of a huge American flag or gazes confidently into the future while skies clear behind him. Even his enthusiastic supporters may squirm at such adulation. Children deserve a more evenhanded presentation. Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato

In an election year, no demographic goes totally ignored, including those who have quite a few years left before they can vote. Following a model similar to Nikki Grimes' Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope (2008), Winter's book focuses on Obama's upbringing, his travels between Hawaii and Indonesia, and how he was shuttled between parents and grandparents. The book's refrain consists of two questions Obama keeps asking himself: "Who am I?" and "Where do I belong?" The nitty-gritty of politics are ignored (the word Democrat only comes up in the author's note); Winter instead focuses on inspiring messages of hope and change. Although filled with fewer specifics than Grimes' book, the paintings are more realistic. Interestingly, both books share some nearly identical illustrations, including an image of a tear rolling down the cheek of a churchgoing Obama. As with any such book, there is a danger in mythologizing a figure who is only beginning his political journey, but for young readers wondering about that man on the TV, this is a good starting point.

This picture book biography starts off well enough: readers learn about Obama's unconventional upbringing, which inspires the existential questions "Who am I?" and "Where do I belong?" By book's end, though, the text reads more like a mawkish tribute ("Who he was could be summed up in one word: lovable"). The staid illustrations are realistic but stiff.