Starboy: Inspired by the Life and Lyrics of David Bowie

Written and illustrated by Jami Gigot
Henry Holt and Company
978-1-250-23943-3
40 pp.
Ages 4-8
May 2021 

Fans of musician David Bowie will certainly welcome this new picture book from Jami Gigot, now of Vancouver, but anyone who has ever felt different and unable to fit in without compromising self will appreciate Starboy.

From Starboy by Jami Gigot

This is the story of David who felt different, like maybe he'd fallen to Earth from outer space. His mismatched eyes, skinny legs (perfect for dancing) and keen hearing with sticky-out ears alluded to his difference. And then there was the "cosmic murmur" or "chattering of stars" he could hear and got his body moving and his toes tapping. Then he felt "connected to the universe and the rhythm of the stars."

From Starboy by Jami Gigot

But at school, his need to move and live with colour was not appreciated. When the kids asked him what planet he was from, he wondered too, though he made efforts to fit in. 

Though the stars could bring out the spark in him, it would go away if he closed his window. That is, until that same spark came through his radio and he realized it was music that was giving him the spark. He started making his own music, with homemade instruments, taking the spark with him wherever he went.

His eyes FLASHED,
his toes TIP-TAPPED,
and his hips SHIMMY-SHAKED!

The music fed his imagination and, with a revolution in world music–Elvis Presley is seen in the news–it was feeding those around him too. 

From Starboy by Jami Gigot

No one can deny the contributions of David Bowie to the music world. Through more than several generations, his music evolved in time and space, created in permutations that were both personal and worldly. From a child who felt different but found a spark in the greater universe and then in music, David Bowie evolved, accepting his inspiration and his métier as he needed it to be, not as prescribed by others, and never languishing in one genre of music or style. Playing off of Bowie's many personalities as well as relevant lyrics, particularly from his "Ziggy Stardust" album, Jami Gigot lets us see this boy who found the music in his soul by looking to the stars but who lived a grey life by silencing it. The colour was always there, especially in the brilliant pinks and purples that swirl in and around him, but it's when he finally feels heard, that the colour lives in him.

From Starboy by Jami Gigot

Jami Gigot may honour David Bowie with her Starboy story but she tells all children that they can be themselves and it will be glorious when they do and are heard.