"An exquisite gift book that every member of the family will appreciate." - BookPage "Zoboi and Wise beautifully ''sew together a tapestry of / their stories / one fine quilt / a blanket for the children / to keep them warm, protected, and safe.'' Each brightly colored spread tells of important moments and people in African American history.Wise''s sumptuous digital illustrations are reminiscent of the patches created by African American quilters to remind future generations of their past." - Horn Book (starred review) "In lyrical verses with a smoothly rolling, sonorous quality. Zoboi''s poem is a master class in conciseness, expertly evoking powerful images, concepts, and emotions out of just a handful of words, particularly when paired with Wise''s exultant art, and the robust back matter offers even more context and nuance. A must-have for holiday collections, but let its light shine throughout the rest of the year, too." - ALA Booklist (starred review) "Punching the Air is the profound sound of humanity in verse.
About a boy who uses his creative mind to overcome the creativity of racism. About a boy who uses the freedom of art to overcome his incarceration. About you. About me. Utterly indispensable." - Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award-winning and #1 New York Times bestselling author "In this beautifully rendered book, we are reminded again of how brilliant and precarious our Black Lives are and how art can ultimately heal us." - Jacqueline Woodson, award-winning, bestselling author of Brown Girl Dreaming "This immaculately illustrated picture book walks through a vast swath of history.
Zoboi''s poetic retrospective breathes life into Black history narratives and reverently celebrates Black lives." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Zoboi employs magnetic, allusive free verse to describe the course of history as experienced by members of the African diaspora and enslaved African peoples. Zoboi''s lyrical verse is further strengthened by Wise''s eye-catching digital illustrations, composed of lushly colored images realistic and fantastical, historical and contemporary, and painted with spectacular vibrance to portray the experience of African and African American people throughout time. A rich resource ideal for Kwanzaa and beyond." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Zoboi''s gorgeous prose illuminates. and Wise''s illustrations highlight the beauty of African American culture. Their color palette takes readers on an emotional journey that is also a brilliant blend of poetry, African, and African American history. Zoboi skillfully weaves together the narratives of enslaved Africans into a wonderful tapestry that is honest and beautiful.
Perfect for school and public libraries, this must-have offering celebrates African American cultural identity should be included in all collections." - School Library Journal (starred review) "[Ibi and Loveis''s] collaboration focuses on Black resilience, a cultural inheritance powerful enough to break the curse of generational trauma. Guided by the seven principles of Kwanzaa, Zoboi''s narrative explores both the burden and the strength of collective consciousness. The image and the words work in harmony to emphasize the limitless potential of the human spirit." - New York Times Book Review "Zoboi and Salaam together craft a powerful indictment of institutional racism and mass incarceration through the imagined experience of Amal, a Black, Muslim 16-year-old facing imprisonment." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) "The sympathetic, nuanced portrayal of this young man will have readers holding out hope until the novel''s end." - Horn Book (starred review) "A mesmerizing novel-in-verse. The poems--sharp, uninhibited and full of metaphors and sensory language--quickly establish Amal''s voice, laying bare the anger, despair, hope and talent it holds.
Amal''s experience of abuse by the system, as well as his peers'', incites raw outrage, but his artistic self-expression offers a subtle yet significant kind of hope. It is a hope borne of anger, that knows the full depths of injustice and still dreams of a better future." - Shelf Awareness (starred review) "Punching the Air highlights that wrongful convictions, the school-to-prison pipeline and the fear mongering of Black bodies is etched in the United States Constitution itself, ironically in the Thirteenth Amendment that criminalizes slavery but simultaneously creates an entirely new system of enslavement: the American prison system. It is not easy to break these topics down to adults, never mind children. But Punching the Air does so effectively through verse that feels honest and clear." - USA Today "Amal''s voice is often poetic and compelling, and the details of life in NYC juvie are laceratingly vivid. An engaging and accessible read sure to provoke discussion, perhaps in conjunction with a factual exploration of Salaam''s own experiences or in partnership with Myers'' Monster." - Bulletin of the Center for Children''s Books "Stories, at their best, will break something old in you or build something new.
Remarkably, Punching The Air does both. Zoboi and Salaam have created nothing short of a masterwork of humanity, with lyrical arms big enough to cradle the oppressed, and metaphoric teeth sharp enough to chomp on the bitter bones of racism. This is more than a story. This is a necessary exploration of anger, and a radical reflection of love, which ultimately makes for an honest depiction of what it means to be young and Black in America." - Jason Reynolds, award-winning, bestselling author of Long Way Down Praise for PUNCHING THE AIR: "This book will be Walter Dean Myers''s Monster for a new generation of teens. An important, powerful, and beautiful novel that should be an essential purchase for any library that serves teens." - School Library Journal (starred review) "Awardworthy. Soul-stirring.
A must-read." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Prescient and sobering, Zoboi''s book is a vital story for young readers in a tumultuous time." - ALA Booklist (starred review).