Happy
BOOK Birthday,
MARKED Ezra Jack Keats!
But when she finds out she was admit-
ted by mistake, she has two months to
prove she belongs.

‘The Boy Who
Became a Dragon’
By Jim Di Bartolo
This graphic novel biography is a great
introduction to martial artist and
movie star Bruce Lee. A child actor, he
was known for getting into fights until
he enrolled in martial arts school. He
combined his talents for a successful
career until his early death.

‘Me and Banksy’
By Tanya Lloyd Kyi
Dominca’s school has a new state-of-
the-art security system, but someone
is leaking footage online to embar-
rass students. When the teachers don’t
seem overly concerned, Dominica and
her friends launch a Banksy-inspired
protest while searching out the bully.

YOUNG ADULT
‘The Plain Janes’
By Cecil Castellucci,
illustrated by Jim Rugg
After moving to the suburbs, Jane
befriends several other girls with the
same name and they start a guerrilla
art group to change their lives and
town. This reissue combines the orig-
inal 2007 release, 2008’s “Janes in
Love” and a brand-new story.

‘Crying Laughing’
By Lance Rubin
Winnie knows she’s funny, but after a
disastrous stand-up set at her bat mitz-
vah, she’s given up performing. She
reconsiders her stance when asked to
join the school improv team, finding a
place to laugh when other aspects of
her life start to spin out of control.

‘Playlist: The Rebels and
Revolutionaries of Sound’
By James Rhodes,
illustrated by Martin O’Neill
A classical pianist, Rhodes introduces
readers to composers and music that
may initially seem dull, showing how
they lived their lives like rock-stars
and how their work laid the musi-
cal foundations for everything that
came after. T
Each month we celebrate a
birthday of literary significance
Ezra Jack Keats was born in Brooklyn,
New York, on March 11, 1916. As a young
child, Keats loved the arts
and spent most of his time
drawing and painting. At
the age of 8, he entered
the workforce, earning a
living as a sign-painter.

As time went by, Keats continued to
perfect his craft and received several
awards for excellence in art, which
served as much needed motivation in
an industrial world.

Following graduation and the sudden
death of his father, Keats committed
himself to becoming an artist. He was
hired to illustrate a number of children’s
books, leading him to coauthor the
children’s book “My Dog Is Lost!” with Patt
Cherr in 1960. The first book he wrote and
illustrated himself, “The Snowy Day,” was
one of the only books of its time to feature
a child of color as the protagonist. It won
the Caldecott Medal in 1963.

Keats’ books are renowned for their
multiracial characters and inner-city
sceneries. Born to a Jewish family
during the Great Depression (his given
name was Jacob Ezra Katz), Keats
understood the hardships caused by
poverty and cultural discrimination
and wanted every child to feel
included in his stories. His life work
embodies his dedication to illustrating
the lives of children who are often
underrepresented in literature.

Keats wrote 22 children’s book and
illustrated 85 children’s books, including
“Whistle for Willie,” “Peter’s Chair,” and
“Pet Show.” In 1980, Keats was awarded
The University of Southern Mississippi
Medallion for
outstanding contributions in the
field of children’s
literature. He died
on May 6, 1983 at
the age of 67. T
—MAYA HENRY
WashingtonFAMILY.com 45