Momma's Going to March

Written by Jennifer Maruno

Illustrated by Vivian Rosas

Groundwood Books

978-1-77306-551-9

32 pp.

Ages 3-6

August 2024

Protest marches have long been a part of history. They are a kind of activism that can inspire change. In a series of vignettes through different periods of time, Jennifer Maruno and Vivian Rosas show us protest marches that brought mother and child out to fight for positive societal change. 

 

In  the first spreads, a mother and her daughter prepare signs for their march for freedom. It's a march for a myriad of civil rights, from voting and integrated schools and decent housing. It's a 1960s march by Black Americans for recognition of their equal rights and the racial discrimination they continued to endure.

From Momma's Going to March, written by Jennifer Maruno, illustrated by Vivian Rosas

Then in the late 1970s, a child and her momma, both dressed in white, join a march for equality, advocating for the ERA (Equal Rights Amendment), emboldened to fight for equal rights for women, from voting to employment. 

From Momma's Going to March, written by Jennifer Maruno, illustrated by Vivian Rosas

There's a pro-peace and anti-war march, sadly one which we must repeat with each new conflict. There is one advocating for clean water in Indigenous communities, and another for the environment by initiating a global climate strike. In each case, a mother and child head out to march to encourage positive change.

From Momma's Going to March, written by Jennifer Maruno, illustrated by Vivian Rosas

Jennifer Maruno's message of "march, March, MARCH" is loud and clear, and she adds to that message with notes about what makes a march, like signs and clothing, flags and banners, as well as identifying the historical marches represented in her story. In each case, her emphasis is on the relationship between mother and child, with one inspiring the other to do good by fighting for something important. It may be promoting social justice or bringing attention to causes too often neglected or unanswered but it's always about doing something. Whether it's walking or carrying a sign, riding in a wagon or shouting slogans, these mommas and their ones are community activists at a grass roots level.

Vivian Rosas, the Toronto artist who also illustrated Queer History A to Z: 100 Years of LGBTQ+ Activism, seems to have found a social justice niche for her art, though I suspect her style is equally effective across all genres. Her digital illustrations, though, strongly support diverse communities, depicting people of all ages, ethnicities, races, abilities, and more, making for inclusive marches and encouraging empowerment. Moreover, Vivian Rosas's vibrant colours and strong shapes lend themselves to Jennifer Maruno's messaging about standing up and marching for important causes.

 

Mommas, and Pappas and little sisters and big brothers and everyone, have always marched to do right and make people see and hear what needs to be done. Now, with Jennifer Maruno and Vivian Rosas's story of Momma's Going to March, young readers can see the big impact a little marching can kickoff.

Black History Month: Additional titles

In 2014, I posted my first listing of youngCanLit which could be read to commemorate Black History Month.  There were 54 titles in that initial listing which is posted here.






In 2016, I updated that listing, adding more titles of those recently published and those I'd missed, reaching a total of 76 titles.  That post is available here.




But the list keeps growing.  Rather than updating the list i.e., posting the previous list with new additions, I am going to just prepare a list of new titles that could be added to those previous lists.  Some were only published since my last book list was posted and others were just titles I missed. Hopefully this collection of titles, which includes both stories of history and those of contemporary experiences, will help to make my book lists for Black History Month more complete.  At least for now.


PICTURE BOOKS

Abigail's Wish
Written by Gloria Ann Wesley
Illustrated by Richard Rudnicki
Nimbus Publishing
32 pp.
Ages 4-9
2016
Reviewed here

A Change of Heart
Written by Alice Walsh
Illustrated by Erin Bennett Banks
Nimbus Publishing
32 pp.
Ages 4-10
2016
Reviewed here

Community Soup
Written and illustrated by Alma Fullerton
Pajama Press
32 pp.
Ages 4-7
2013
Reviewed here

Freedom Child of the Sea
Written by Richardo Keens-Douglas
Illustrated by Julia Gukova
Annick Press
24 pp.
Ages 9-12
1995

Gift Days
Written by Kari-Lynn Winters
Illustrated by Stephen Taylor
Fitzhenry & Whiteside
32 pp.
Ages 7+
2012
Reviewed here

A Good Trade
Written by Alma Fullerton
Illustrated by Karen Patkau
Pajama Press
32 pp.
Ages 5+
2012
Reviewed here

Grandpa's Visit
Written by Richardo Keens-Douglas
Illustrated by Frances Clancy
Annick Press
24 pp.
Ages 4-7
1996




Greetings, Leroy
Written by Itah Sadu
Illustrated by Alix Delinois
Groundwood Books
32 pp.
Ages 4-7
2017
Reviewed here

In a Cloud of Dust
Written by Alma Fullerton
Illustrated by Brian Deines
Pajama Press
32 pp.
Ages 4-8
2015
Reviewed here 

Malaika's Winter Carnival
Written by Nadia L. Hohn
Illustrated by Irene Luxbacher
Groundwood Books
36 pp.
Ages 3-7
2017

Name Calling
Written by Itah Sadu
Illustrated by Rasheeda Haneef
Canadian Scholars' Press
34 pp.
Ages 4-8
1992

The Nutmeg Princess
Written by Richardo Keens-Douglas
Illustrated by Annouchka Galouchko
Annick Press
32 pp.
Ages 4-8
1992

Oscar Lives Next Door

Written by Bonnie Farmer

Illustrated by Marie Lafrance

Owlkids Books

Ages 4-8

2015
Reviewed here

The Stone Thrower
Written by Jael Ealey Richardson
Illustrated by Matt James
Groundwood Books
32 pp.
Ages 5-9
2016
Reviewed here

A Touch of the Zebras
Written by Itah Sadu
Illustrated by Stephen Taylor
Canadian Scholars' Press
32 pp.
Ages 5-8
2003







NOVELS

Aluta
Written by Adwoa Badoe
Groundwood Books
216 pp.
Ages 14+
2016

Blue Mountain Trouble
Written by Martin Mordecai
Scholastic
341 pp.
Ages 9-13
2009

Child Soldier: When Boys and Girls are Used in War
Written by Jessica Dee Humphreys and Michel Chikwanine
Illustrated by Claudia Dávila
Kids Can Press
48 pp.
Ages 10-14
2015
Reviewed here

The Journey of Little Charlie
Written by Christopher Paul Curtis
Scholastic Canada
256 pp.
Ages 9-13
2018







NON-FICTION

Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13
Written by Helaine Becker
Illustrated by Dow Phumiruk
Christy Ottaviano Books/Macmillan
40 pp.
Ages 7-12
June 2018

From the Heart of Africa: A Book of Wisdom
Collected by Eric Walters
Tundra Books
40 pp.
Ages 6-10
2018

Runner: The Life of Harry Jerome, World's Fastest Man
Written by Norma Charles
Red Deer Press
208 pp.
Ages 12+
2017

Freedom's Just Another Word

by Caroline Stellings

Second Story Press

978-1-77260-011-7

232 pp.

Ages 12+

September 2016

From the title (taken from the song “Me and Bobby McGee”) to her unexpected stop in Saskatoon in 1970 and the journey Easy Merritt takes to meet up with her idol, Janis Joplin is the soundtrack for Caroline Stellings’ latest young adult novel, Freedom’s Just Another Word.  And what a soundtrack it is: earthy, guttural, soulful and rich with the blues.

But when she sang–oh, when she sang–that tempered-in-a-forge voice of hers was like a flame in this burned-out world.  You ’d have to be stone deaf or a cadaver not to be electrified by her; she could sound as smooth as the Southern Comfort that dribbled from the corners of her mouth, or as gritty as sandpaper.  And the way she clutched every stanza like it was her last made me shake with anticipation. (pg. 1)

Though her name might suggest otherwise, growing up half-black–the product of her black father’s affair with a white prostitute named Wendy Wood–in Saskatoon has not been comfortable for Easy (Louisiana) Merritt.   She may be good at car mechanics like her father but she wants to sing the blues, and the two venues in town, Saskatoon Blues and The Beehive are not willing to give her a chance.  So Easy saves her money from working at the garage and singing in front of the liquor store, playing her accordion and frottoir, for the chance to get out.  Her break comes after a fortuitous meeting with the great Janis Joplin when the Festival Express train stops for a booze run in Saskatoon and Easy helps the singer get a bottle of her much-loved Southern Comfort liqueur and earns an invitation to meet up with her in Austin, Texas the following week.  So, Easy begins her pilgrimage, accompanying two nuns, the upbeat Sister Beatrice and the sour postulant Marsha, whom she’d assisted in purchasing a used car, on their journey to a mission in Albuquerque from which Easy could head to Texas.

Like any road trip, Easy’s is a mixture of highs and lows, and more so in 1970 when the civil rights movement is struggling to get a foothold in both Canada and the US, and an eighteen-year-old girl of black and white parentage isn’t always tolerated, much less accepted.  And travelling the famous Route 66, a.k.a. The Mother Road, a road in the process of being retired for the faster, more direct I-40, foreshadows some mother issues with which Easy must grapple to understand herself and others better, if she is to make a success of herself.

Like her Geoffrey Bilson Award-nominated book The Manager (Cape Breton University Press, 2013), Freedom’s Just Another Word is a story based in the 1970s, a time often disregarded in much historical fiction.  But it’s an important time of change, with respect to civil rights and opportunities for women, and Caroline Stellings composes a story that is both embedded in the time yet universal in its themes of acceptance, tolerance, and family.  By taking Easy on a journey both spatially from Saskatoon to Albuquerque and Texas and back, and emotionally as she struggles with acknowledgement of her own family’s secrets and story, Caroline Stellings creates an alluring, cross-country excursion of the soul and heart which ends with finding enlightenment, sometimes closer to home than you might expect.

Black History Month: An updated youngCanLit book list

Two years ago I prepared my first book list of 54 youngCanLit titles for Black History Month.  I have updated that list periodically when important titles were brought to my attention or were newly published, like Caroline Pignat’s Governor-General award-winning book, The Gospel Truth.  But, it gets to the point when that list becomes a bit ragged and the formatting starts to go wonky and I thought it best to update it and reorganize it completely.  I hope that, in this more complete list of 76 titles, enhanced with the addition of titles brought to my attention by readers, everyone will find something that helps them grasp the importance of Black History Month to all Canadians.



Dear Baobab
Written by Cheryl Foggo
Illustrated by Qin Leng
Second Story Press
24 pp.
Ages 5-8
2011
Immigration to Canada

From Lands of the Night
Written by Tololwa M. Mollel
Illustrated by Darrell McCalla
Red Deer Press
32 pp.
Ages 7+
January, 2014
East African traditional stories, celebration

Malaika’s Costume
Written by Nadia L. Hohn
Illustrated by Irene Luxbacher
Groundwood Books
32 pp.
Ages 3-7
2016
Carnival, immigration to Canada

Mayann's Train Ride
Written by The Honourable Mayann Francis
Illustrated by Tamara Thiébaux Heikalo
Nimbus Publishing
32 pp.
Ages 4-9
2015
Biography

Music From the Sky
Written by Denise Gillard
Illustrated by Stephen Taylor
Groundwood Books
32 pp.
Ages 4-7
2011
African Canadian intergenerational relationship

Nana's Cold Days
Written by Adwoa Badoe
Illustrated by Bushra Junaid
Groundwood Books
32 pp.
Ages 3-7
2002
Visit to Canada from Africa

The Orphan Boy
Written by Tololwa M. Mollel
Illustrated by Paul Morin
Oxford University Press
32 pp.
Ages 5-9
1990
Masai folklore





A Pot of Wisdom: Ananse Stories
Written by Adwoa Badoe
Illustrated by Baba Wagué Diakité
Groundwood
62 pp.
Ages 7-10
2001
African folklore 

Up Home
Written by Shauntay Grant
Illustrated by Susan Tooke
Nimbus
32 pp.
Ages 7-11
2011
North Preston’s black community

Viola Desmond Won't Be Budged!
Written by Jody Nyasha Warner
Illustrated by Richard Rudnicki
Groundwood
32 pp.
Ages 7-10
2010
Biography, civil rights

Black and White
Written by Eric Walters
Puffin
232 pp.
Ages 10-13
2009
Racism, friendship

Crossing to Freedom
Written by Virginia Frances Schwartz
Scholastic Canada
231 pp.
Ages 10+
2010
Slavery, freedom

Dark of the Moon
Written by Barbara Haworth-Attard
Roussan Publishers
136 pp.
Ages 9-12
1995
Underground Railroad

A Desperate Road to Freedom: The Underground Railroad Diary of Julia May Jackson (Dear Canada)
Written by Karleen Bradford
Scholastic Canada
240 pp.
Ages 9-13
2009
Slavery, Underground Railroad

Elijah of Buxton
Written by Christopher Paul Curtis
Scholastic Canada
288 pp.
Ages 9+
2007
Freedom, slavery, Ontario

The Freedom of Jenny
Written by Julie Burtinshaw
Raincoast Books
182 pp.
Ages 7-10
2005
Underground Railroad, British Columbia

Grease Town
Written by Ann Towell
Tundra
192 pp.
Ages 10-13
2010
Racism, Ontario

The Heaven Shop
Written by Deborah Ellis
Fitzhenry & Whiteside
192 pp.
Ages 10-14
2004
Malawi, HIV/AIDS

Hurry, Freedom (A Canadian Flyer Adventure)
Written by Frieda Wishinsky
Illustrated by Dean Griffiths
Maple Tree Press
81 pp.
Ages 6-9
2008
Underground Railroad

I Came as a Stranger: The Underground Railroad
Written by Bryan Prince
Tundra Books
160 pp.
Ages 11-14
2004
Underground Railroad, slavery

If I Just Had Two Wings
Written by Virginia Frances Schwartz
Stoddart Kids
221 pp.
Ages 11+
2001
Underground Railroad, slavery

Last Days in Africville
Written by Dorothy Perkyns
Sandcastle Books/Beach Holme
110 pp.
Ages 8-12
2003
Africville, Nova Scotia, racism

The Madman of Piney Woods
Written by Christopher Paul Curtis
Scholastic
384 pp.
Ages 9+
2014
Sequel to "Elijah of Buxton"

Morning Star
Written by Judith Plaxton
Second Story Press
277 pp.
Ages 11-14
2011
Underground Railroad

Moses, Me, and Murder: A Barkerville Mystery
Written by Ann Walsh
Dundurn
112 pp.
Ages 10-14
2013
Based on a Gold Rush murder

My Name is Henry Bibb: A Story of Slavery and Freedom
Written by Afua Cooper
Kid Can Press
160 pp.
Ages 10-14
2009
Historical fiction, slavery, abolitionism

My Name is Phillis Wheatley: A Story of Slavery and Freedom
Written by Afua Cooper
Kid Can Press
152 pp.
Ages 11+
2009
Biography, slavery, poetry

Rachel: Certificate of Freedom (Our Canadian Girl)
Written by Lynne Kositsky
Penguin Canada
112 pp.
Ages 8-12
2003
Slavery, racism, freedom, Nova Scotia  

Rachel: An Elephant Tree Christmas (Our Canadian Girl)
Written by Lynne Kositsky
Penguin Canada
84 pp.
Ages 9-11
2004
Racism, Nova Scotia

Rachel: The Maybe House (Our Canadian Girl)
Written by Lynne Kositsky
Penguin Canada
83 pp.
Ages 9-11
2002
Loyalists, slavery, racism, Nova Scotia

Rachel: A Mighty Big Imagining (Our Canadian Girl)
Written by Lynne Kositsky
Penguin Books
64 pp.
Ages 8-11
2001
Slavery, freedom

Seas of South Africa (Submarine Outlaw series)
Written by Philip Roy
Ronsdale Press
200 pp.
Ages 10+
2013
Racism, violence, South Africa, apartheid

Send One Angel Down
Written by Virginia Frances Schwartz
Holiday House
163 pp.
Ages 12-14
2000
Slavery, racism

Stones
Written by William Bell
Doubleday Canada
210 pp.
Ages 10+
2001
Racism, intolerance

Underground to Canada
Written by Barbara Smucker
Puffin Canada
144pp.
Ages 9-12
2003
Slavery, Underground Railroad, freedom

Between Sisters
Written by Adwoa Badoe
Groundwood
205 pp.
Ages 13+
2010
Ghana

A Big Dose of Lucky
Written by Marthe Jocelyn
Orca Book Publisher
249 pp.
Ages 12+

2015

Heritage

Cape Town
Written by Brenda Hammond
Great Plains Teen Fiction
326 pp.
Ages 14+
2012
Apartheid, South Africa


Chasing Freedom
Written by Gloria Ann Wesley
Fernwood Publishing
240 pp.
Ages 13+
2011
Black Loyalists coming to Nova Scotia

Chanda’s Secrets
Written by Allan Stratton
Annick
193 pp.
Ages 12-15
2004
HIV/AIDS

Chanda’s War
Written by Allan Stratton
HarperCollins
382 pp.
Ages 13-17
2008
Civil war, child soldiers

The Gospel Truth
Written by Caroline Pignat
Red Deer Press
328 pp.
Ages 12+
2014
Slavery, freedom

The House of Good Spirits
Written by Donn Kushner
Lester & Orpen Dennys
214 pp.
Ages 12-15
1990
Racism, slavery, African folktales

If This is Freedom
Written by Gloria Ann Wesley
Fernwood Publishing
272 pp.
Ages 13+
2013
Black loyalist settlers in Nova Scotia

My Life Before Me
Written by Norah McClintock
Orca Book Publishers
248 pp.
Ages 12+
2015

Civil rights, racism

Rush Home Road
Written by Lori Lansens
Back Bay Books
387 pp.
Ages  16+
2011
Town founded by fugitive slaves

Zack
Written by William Bell
Doubleday Canada
165 pp.
Ages 12-16
1998
Slavery, racism, Richard Pierpoint

Africans Thought of It: Amazing Innovations
Written by Bathseba Opini and Richard B. Lee
Annick Press
48 pp.
Ages 8-12
2011
Inventions

All Aboard! Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine (Great Ideas Series)
Written by Monica Kulling
Illustrated by Bill Slavin
Tundra Books
32 pp.
Ages 5-8
2010
Biography

Big League Dreams: Baseball Hall of Fame's First African Canadian, Fergie Jenkins
Written by Richard Bridnall
Lorimer
152 pp.
Ages 11-13
2010
Biography, Fergie Jenkins

The Bite of the Mango
Written by Mariatu Kumara with Susan McClelland
Annick Press
216 pp.
Ages 14+
2008
Sierra Leone, civil war

Children of Africville
Written by Christine Welldon
Nimbus
81 pp.
Ages 8-12
2009
Africville, racism, community

Five Thousand Years of Slavery
Written by Marjorie Gann and Janet Willen
Tundra
168 pp.
Ages 11-16
2011
Slavery

Harriet Tubman: Freedom Seeker, Freedom Leader (A Quest Biography)
Written by Rosemary Sadlier
Dundurn
190 pp.
2012
Biography, Harriet Tubman

How the Blacks Created Canada
Written by Fil Fraser
Dragon Hill
255 pp.
Ages 16+
2009
Achievement, Canada, settlement

Jailed for Being Black: The Story of Rubin "Hurricane" Carter (Real Justice)
Written by Bill Swan
Lorimer
144 pp.
Ages 13-17
2014
Biography, Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, injustice, racism

Jarome Iginla: How the NHL’s first black captain gives back
Written by Nicole Mortillaro
Lorimer
112 pp.
Ages 11-14
2010
Biography

The Kids Book of Black Canadian History
Written by Rosemary Sadlier
Illustrated by Wang Qijun
Kids Can Press
56 pp.
Ages 9-12
2003
Canada, history

Nelson Mandela: Champion of Freedom (Remarkable People series)
Written by Simon Rose
Weigl Publishers
24 pp.
Ages 8-12
2010
Nelson Mandela, South Africa

On an American Day: Story Voyages Through History, 1759-1899
Written by Rona Arato
Illustrated by Ben Shannon
Owlkids Books
96 pp.
Ages 9-13
2011

On a Canadian Day: Nine Story Voyages Through History
Written by Rona Arato
Illustrated by Peter Ferguson
Maple Tree Press/Owlkids Books
96 pp.
Ages 9-13
2009
Underground Railroad

Out of Slavery: The Journey to Amazing Grace
Written by Linda Granfield
Illustrated by Janet Wilson
Tundra Books
40 pp.
Ages 9+
2009
Slavery, John Newton

People Who Said No: Courage Against Oppression
Written by Laura Scandiffio
Annick Press
168 pp.
Ages 9-14
2012
Civil rights, Rosa Parks, NAACP, apartheid, South Africa

Season of Rage: Hugh Burnett and the Struggle for Civil Rights
Written by John Cooper
Tundra Books
71 pp.
Ages 10-15
2005
Racism, civil rights, Ontario

Singing Towards the Future: The Story of Portia White (Stories of Canada)
Written by Lian Goodall
Illustrated by Liz Milkau
Napoleon Publishing
63 pp.
Ages 9-11
2004
Biography, Portia White

Stay Strong: A Musician's Journey from Congo (Arrivals)
Written by Natalie Hyde
Clockwise Press
160 pp.
Ages 12-16
2015
Biography

Talking about Freedom: Celebrating Emancipation Day in Canada
Written by Natasha L. Henry
Dundurn
174 pp.
Ages 12+
2012
Slavery, emancipation

To Stand and Fight Together: Richard Pierpoint and the Coloured Corps of Upper Canada
Written by Steve Pitt
Dundurn
144 pp.
Ages 10+
2008
War of 1812, Richard Pierpoint, soldiers, Canada

To the Rescue! Garrett Morgan Underground
Written by Monica Kulling
Illustrated by David Parkins
Tundra Books
32 pp.
Ages 5-8
2016
Biography

Trials and Triumphs: The Story of African-Canadians
Written by Lawrence Hill
Umbrella Press
64 pp.
Ages 11+
1993
Settlement, slavery, racism, achievements

The Underground Railroad: The Long Journey to Freedom in Canada (Amazing Stories)
Written by L. D. Cross
James Lorimer
144 pp.
Ages 12+
2010
Slavery, Underground Railroad, freedom

When I Get Older: The Story Behind Wavin’ Flag
Written by K’NAAN with Sol Guy
Illustrated by Rudy Guttierez
Tundra Books
32 pp.
Ages 7-12
2012
Biography

Willie O'Ree: The Story of the First Black Player in the NHL (Recordbooks)
Written by Nicole Mortillaro
James Lorimer
140 pp.
Ages 11-13
2012
Biography, hockey, Willie O'Ree

Working for Freedom: The Story of Josiah Henson
Written by Rona Arato
Napoleon
78 pp.
Ages 10-13
2009
Biography, Josiah Henson, slavery, Underground Railroad

In the Freedom of Dreams: The Story of Nelson Mandela
Written by Michael A. Miller
Playwrights Canada Press
67 pp.
Ages 14+
2003
Biography, Nelson Mandela




Loyalties: A Trip Down Slavery Lane
Directed by Lesley Ann Patten
Produced by Kent Martin and Lesley Ann Patten
National Film Board of Canada
57 min., 3 sec.
Ages 11+
1999
Heritage, slavery, South Carolina, Halifax