How better to communicate this vital history of racism in America to its young audience than to have the audiobook narrated by a peer? Nine-year-old Pe’Tehn Raighn-Kem Jackson hits it out of the park with her lively and engaging reading. Her voice and delivery are unmistakably those of a kid—and she's an inspired casting choice. Short chapters, ideal for listening to one at a time followed by time for discussion and reflection, connect the history of racist ideas with what is still happening in America today. The audiobook’s timeline continues through 2020, addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and recent police violence against Black people. Jackson’s relatable performance increases the accessibility of this important, sobering, and inspiring work for young listeners. J.M.D. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2022 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

Praise for Stamped (for Kids)

A 2022 ALA Notable Children’s Book
#1 New York Times bestseller
A Parents Magazine Best Book of the Year
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year
A New York Public Library Best Book for Kids
A Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Selection
A 2020 American Library Association Notable Book

* “Exhilarating, excellent, necessary.”

* “A wonderfully accessible version of the already seminal work for teens.”

★ 06/04/2021

Gr 4–8—In this adaptation of Reynolds and Kendi's award-winning Stamped from the Beginning, Cherry-Paul uses a rope analogy to examine unjust racial hierarchy ideas and concepts. Throughout history, this rope has been used by the dominant culture to tie oppressed people to a corrupt ideology. It has also been used as a symbol of the power struggle bet2ween antiracist and racist thought patterns. This young readers edition assesses how the symbols and monuments of flawed heroes affect our country today. Kids who are just learning about the world around them will now have the tools to begin to understand the complicated path the United States took toward the racial inequity we see today. This version of Stamped features a time line and a glossary and, most important, includes kids in the fight to dismantle racism. The concepts of segregationist, assimilationist, and antiracist are simplified and presented in terms that tweens can understand. Cherry-Paul took the emotional development of children into account when crafting the narrative around the difficult nature of antiracist work. She effectively holds space for kids while supplying them with concepts they will need to be a part of an antiracist society. VERDICT A wonderfully accessible version of the already seminal work for teens; ideal for upper elementary and middle school libraries.—Desiree Thomas, Worthington Lib., OH

★ 2021-04-07
A remixed remix of a foundational text.

Kendi’s Stamped From the Beginning (2016) is a crucial accounting of American history, rewritten and condensed for teens by Jason Reynolds as Stamped (2020). Educator Cherry-Paul takes the breadth of the first and the jaunty appeal of the second to spin a middle-grade version that manages to be both true to its forebears and yet all her own. She covers the same historical ground, starting with the origins of anti-Blackness and colonialism in medieval Europe, then taking readers through the founding of the U.S.A. and up to the present, with focuses on pivotal figures and pieces of pop culture. Cherry-Paul does an unparalleled job of presenting this complex information to younger readers, borrowing language from Reynolds’ remix (like the definitions of segregationists, assimilationists, and antiracists) and infusing it with her own interpretations, like the brilliant, powerful, haunting metaphor of rope woven throughout. “Rope can be a lifeline,” she says, and “rope can be a weapon….Rope can be used to tie, pull, hold, and lift.” Readers are encouraged to “Think about the way rope connects things. Now think about what racist ideas have been connected to so far: Skin color. Money. Religion. Land.” Baker’s stark portraiture paces the text and illustrates key players.

Exhilarating, excellent, necessary. (timeline, glossary, further reading.) (Nonfiction. 10-14)