Jalani and the Lock

by Lorenzo Pace, Lorenzo Pace (Illustrator)

Overview

As a little boy, Jalani loves playing with his imaginary friends in the forest near his home in Africa. One day, a stranger takes Jalani from the forest and sends him to America on a big boat. Jalani is covered in locks and chains, forced to work all day and never to play again. After many years, Jalani and the other slaves are freed. Jalani decides to keep the lock and key so his family would never forget where they came from. Inspired by true events, this boldly illustrated story is a lesson in resilience and remembrance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538395219
Publisher:	Windmill Books
Publication date:	07/30/2023
Edition description:	3rd ed.
Pages:	24
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.00(d)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

Editorial Reviews

Noted sculptor Pace makes a stunning children's book debut. Disarming in its simplicity, his narrative conveys complex themes in a fairy tale structure. "A long time ago in Africa," reads the left-hand page of the first spread, opposite a childlike outline of the continent in orange, clearly labeled, which vibrates against a cherry-red background. The next two spreads continue, "a little boy named Jalani/ loved to play in the forest." Jalani's smiling face dominates his portrait; the forest is a grove of lollipop trees. In these three spreads, Pace introduces the key elements of his story. Like other classic fairy tales, the forest, once a child's magical kingdom, becomes a source of terror; this is the scene where "a strange man came and took him away." Pace marks Jalani's transition into life as a captive in America with a single word, "Locks," paired with the image of a padlock so carefully rendered that it seems to be animated on the page. The compositions depict Jalani's fellow field hands but never his oppressors, and his memories sustain him until he is finally freed. He keeps the lock, however, and hands it down to his eldest son "so they would never forget from where they all came." Based on the biography of Pace's own great-great-grandfather, the volume ends with a photograph of the lock. In his choice to adhere to a child's vocabulary and view of the world, Pace conveys the childlike hope that kept Jalani and his past alive. Ages 8-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Book Review—“Details...Will Move Children And Those Who Read To Them As Much As The Elemental History Of The Child Torn From Home.” —Booklist Book Review “...A Stunning Children’S Book, Disarming In Its Simplicity...In His Choice To Adhere To A Child’S

From the Publisher