Blue

October 15, 2021
Grades 1-4 Brew-Hammond explores the history and culture surrounding blue powders and dyes, a rare and prized commodity until recently. She details how the ancient Egyptians ground lapis lazuli rocks from Afghanistan to make blue pigment for royals; later, sea snails were used by dyers until the indigo plant became a more practical solution for large quantities; and finally, Adolf von Baeyer created chemical blue, which led to widespread availability of this color. She also touches on some concepts and emotions associated with this hue: feeling blue (sad), blues music, out of the blue (unexpected), royal blue, and blue ribbons (extraordinary). Minter's acrylic-wash illustrations depict predominantly Black figures, a nod to the key role played by West African dyers in developing these tinctures, and the importance of enslaved Africans whose toil made possible the North American indigo industry. Blue tints appear in every spread, but often as a spotlight color; reds, yellows, and greens do the heavy lifting, allowing the blue tones to stand out. A fascinating look at an underreported topic.

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Starred review from January 10, 2022
In this entrancing metered narrative, Brew-Hammond traces the origins of the color blue—including beliefs around the hue, methods of production and efforts “to make a blue that wasn’t so/ difficult or cruel to produce,” and even resulting idioms. Lilting free verse acknowledges the human pain and labor that went into procuring sources of blue over time, while highlighting the significance the color has held in art, fashion, and culture worldwide. Caldecott Honoree Minter contributes dimensional spreads, rendered in lush layers of acrylic wash that augment the text with carefully balanced abstract images, patterns, and realistic figures, as well as differing shades of the titular color. A vibrant historical picture book that will leave readers curious about other colors. Back matter includes an author’s note. Ages 4–8.

Starred review from April 15, 2022

Gr 1-4-"The color blue is all around us. Have you ever wondered where it comes from?" Thus begins a global history of blue: where it is found in nature, the meaning people ascribe to it, the ways people have produced it (lapis lazuli, snails, indigo, chemicals), and the feelings it represents, including, but not limited to, "the blues." Gorgeous illustrations done in acrylic wash on watercolor paper showcase every shade found in the sky, water, cloth, jewelry, and in religious uses. The people depicted are from various times and places, including ancient Egypt, Phoenicia, Indonesia, Mexico, Israel, and West Africa. Back matter includes an author's note, additional facts, and selected sources. VERDICT This history of a beautiful color with a "complicated history" is valuable on its own, and has potential to be used in English, social studies, and art classes.-Jenny Arch

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2022
This wide-ranging nonfiction picture book explores the many facets of a single color, dipping a brush into culture, history, linguistics, art, science, and more. Brew-Hammond begins with a historical look into the different ways people around the world made the title hue and how the difficulty of those methods influenced the color's early cultural meaning, causing it to be associated with luxury and royalty. After introducing the discovery, in 1905, of a chemical that made blue items (fabrics, etc.) more easily available, Brew-Hammond explores how the history of the color has even influenced language, as when people talk about "the blues" or why first prize is often a blue ribbon. Minter's illustrations -- "layers of acrylic wash on heavy watercolor paper" -- use textures such as patterned West African indigo cloth and mottled clouds in the sky, but blue is often not the predominant color on the page. Large expanses of contrasting colors make the blues pop; the illustration accompanying a discussion of the cruelty of the indigo trade, for example, features the hot reds and yellows of the landscape, against which enslaved people and indentured farmers (painted in deep indigo) toil. Blue has, in Brew-Hammond's words, "a complicated history of pain, wealth, invention, and recovery," and exploring that history will make readers look at the color in a new way. Back matter includes additional facts and sources. Pair with Tamaki's They Say Blue (rev. 7/18) and Brown and Dunn's Perkin's Perfect Purple (rev. 9/20). Laura Koenig

(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from September 15, 2022
A few good reasons to appreciate the color blue. Throughout history, humans have captured, cultivated, and coaxed the color blue out of everything from mollusks to rocks to plants. In this fascinating exploration of our relationship to this once-precious color, Brew-Hammond begins by discussing its elusive nature: Seawater is blue, but the color disappears when water is cupped in one's hand; similarly, crushing iris petals yields blue, but the hue quickly dissipates when soaked in water. Readers learn that the earliest known use of blue dates back to about 4500 B.C.E. in Afghanistan's Sar-e-Sang Valley and that ancient Egyptians used it, too. But blue has been found worldwide. It was extracted from the bellies of particular shellfish in coastal Japan, Central America, the Mediterranean, and Mexico and harvested from plants in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and the Americas. Because of its rarity, blue has been considered a royal color reserved for use by the wealthy and privileged. Laced with insights, Brew-Hammond's meditative verse covers a wide range of cultures, time periods, and geographical locations, while Minter's mesmerizing images highlight the significance of blue to diverse groups of people through culturally specific visuals such as hairstyles and clothing design. The highly textured backgrounds add life and movement to the focal images in the foreground. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Stunning and informative--and as profoundly rich as the color blue. (author's note, facts about blue, selected sources) (Informational picture book. 4-10)

COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2022
This wide-ranging nonfiction picture book explores the many facets of a single color, dipping a brush into culture, history, linguistics, art, science, and more. Brew-Hammond begins with a historical look into the different ways people around the world made the title hue and how the difficulty of those methods influenced the color's early cultural meaning, causing it to be associated with luxury and royalty. After introducing the discovery, in 1905, of a chemical that made blue items (fabrics, etc.) more easily available, Brew-Hammond explores how the history of the color has even influenced language, as when people talk about "the blues" or why first prize is often a blue ribbon. Minter's illustrations -- "layers of acrylic wash on heavy watercolor paper" -- use textures such as patterned West African indigo cloth and mottled clouds in the sky, but blue is often not the predominant color on the page. Large expanses of contrasting colors make the blues pop; the illustration accompanying a discussion of the cruelty of the indigo trade, for example, features the hot reds and yellows of the landscape, against which enslaved people and indentured farmers (painted in deep indigo) toil. Blue has, in Brew-Hammond's words, "a complicated history of pain, wealth, invention, and recovery," and exploring that history will make readers look at the color in a new way. Back matter includes additional facts and sources. Pair with Tamaki's They Say Blue (rev. 7/18) and Brown and Dunn's Perkin's Perfect Purple (rev. 9/20).

(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)