My City Speaks

August 15, 2021
A blind child introduces readers to their city en route to a violin recital. Accompanied by their dad, they step out, white cane in hand. In simple, declarative sentences dotted with vivid adjectives and verbs, they narrate the many ways their city "speaks." "It rushes and stops / and waits and goes" as they navigate a pedestrian crossing. It "grows" as they stroke a sunflower and construction workers build nearby. It's "busy" as they feed a flock of pigeons and "relaxed" as they lounge with their dad on a park bench. "Sometimes it's smelly," they note as they pass a dumpster, and "sometimes it's sweet" as they sample ice cream flavors. It "speaks with whispers and giggles and sometimes meows" as they ride a subway crowded with racially and ethnically diverse passengers. As they cross one more busy street, it "also speaks with hasty honks, impatient beeps, distant chimes, reliable rumbles, speedy sirens and urgent clangs." "My city speaks," they repeat, joining fellow musicians on an outdoor stage, "and sometimes it just listens" as they serenade an appreciative crowd. In a warm finale, the narrator and their dad embrace, beaming. With cheerful, doll-like human figures, Barron's bright illustrations highlight the quiet tenderness between father and child--a rarely represented duo in books featuring disabled characters. The narrator and their dad have brown skin. (This book was reviewed digitally.) A celebration of city life's sounds, sensations, and faces. (Picture book. 4-7)

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September 1, 2021
Preschool-Grade 2 Don't flip to the end and spoil the surprise (revealed in the blue bag Dad carries) as a blind, brown-skinned girl takes a journey with her dad in her busy city. Engaging all her senses, she must hear the city "speak" to "see" it in her mind. Using her cane, she navigates street crossings, curbs, and crowds while the city "rushes and stops . . . waits and goes . . . opens and shuts." On their trip, they feed the pigeons, play with dogs and kids at the playground, lick an ice cream cone, and ride the subway. Hasty honks, distant chimes, reliable rumbles, speedy sirens, and urgent clangs provide background noises as the pair make their way to their destination at a park for a concert performance. As for that surprise? Our talented girl is the solo violinist! The joyful artwork in cut-paper collage, watercolor, and acrylic gives a tactile pop to the colorful hustle and bustle of a child's day. A positive book featuring a blind character embracing her full life.

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