My Mommy Medicine

by Edwidge Danticat, Shannon Wright (Illustrator)

Overview

My Mommy Medicine is a picture book about the comfort and love a mama offers when her child isn't feeling well, from renowned author Edwidge Danticat.

Whenever I am sick,

Or just feel kind of gloomy or sad,

I can always count on my Mommy Medicine.

When a child wakes up not feeling well, it’s mommy to the rescue! Her remedy includes a yummy cup of hot chocolate, a cozy bubble bath, unlimited snuggles and cuddles, fun sing-alongs, and all the extra special love and attention a kid could ask for.

Mommy Medicine can heal all woes and make any day the best day!

Award-winning memoirist Edwidge Danticat's rich and lyrical text envelops the reader in the security of a mother's love, and debut artist Shannon Wright's vibrant art infuses the story with even more warmth.

A Parent's Choice Recommended Award Winner 2019

2020 Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the Year List

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250247476
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	02/26/2019
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	43 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

About the Author

Edwidge Danticat was born in Haiti and came to the United States at age twelve. Her first novel was Breath, Eyes, Memory, followed by National Book Award Finalist Krik? Krak! She is a 2009 MacArthur Fellow. Her books for young readers include Eight Days: A Story of Haiti, Mama's Nightingale, and her young adult novel Untwine. She lives in Miami.

Shannon Wright is an illustrator and cartoonist in Richmond, Virginia. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Time magazine, Mother Jones, Google, and KaBOOM! Studios. Shannon co-teaches a comics course at Virginia Commonwealth University. My Mommy Medicine is her first picture book.

Edwidge Danticat is the author of several books, including Breath, Eyes, Memory, an Oprah's Book Club selection; Krik? Krak!, a National Book Award finalist; The Farming of Bones, an American Book Award winner; and the novel-in-stories, The Dew Breaker. She is the editor of The Butterfly’s Way: Voices from the Haitian Diaspora in the United States and The Beacon Best of 2000: Great Writing by Men and Women of All Colors and Cultures, Haiti Noir and Haiti Noir 2, and Best American Essays 2011. She has written several books for young adults and children—Anacaona, Behind the Mountains, Eight Days, The Last Mapou, Mama's Nightingale, and Untwine—as well as a travel narrative, After the Dance, A Walk Through Carnival in Jacmel. Her memoir, Brother, I’m Dying, was a 2007 finalist for the National Book Award and a 2008 winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for autobiography. She is a 2009 MacArthur Fellow.
Shannon Wright is an illustrator and cartoonist based out of Richmond, Virginia. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Time magazine, Mother Jones, Google and KaBOOM! Studios. She is the author of the graphic novel Twins, and the illustrator of Edwidge Danticat's My Mommy Medicine. She specializes in personal and original stories invoking nostalgia, but ultimately loves capturing joyous moments.

Editorial Reviews

10/22/2018
The narrator, a brown-skinned girl, defines “Mommy Medicine” as a special brand of TLC—a combination of pampering and playfulness that her mother offers “whenever I am sick or just feel kind of gloomy or sad.” Mommy’s indomitable energy and toolkit of healing techniques are something to behold: she can plant “a kiss so loud it reminds me of a French horn at Mardi Gras,” deliver a rousing medley, give her all in a session of pretend play, or just sit quietly with her daughter “watching my ceiling’s glow-in-the-dark stars flicker, making our own sky.” Heartfelt prose by adult author Danticat can seem more like an adult’s recollection than a child’s impression (“Sometimes it’s a whispered prayer, just before nodding off at nap time”), but the vignettes are full of glad familial love. Wright, an illustrator and cartoonist making her picture book debut, supplies largely realistic scenes in a poignant home-video style. Together, they leave no doubt about how good it feels to be the total center of attention—even when there’s “actual” yucky medicine involved. Ages 3–6. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

Heartfelt prose . . . [and vignettes] full of glad familial love . . . leave no doubt about how good it feels to be the total center of attention.” —Publishers Weekly

“A warm and fuzzy offering for sick days on the couch or everyday reading. A recommended purchase.” —School Library Journal

“A sweet celebration of the special touch that only a mother can give.” —Kirkus

“Cozy and comforting, this is an effective antidote for childhood illness or anxiety.” —Booklist

From the Publisher

03/01/2019

PreS-Gr 2–Danticat (Mama's Nightingale) pays tribute to the ways in which mothers (or other caregivers, as she notes in the back matter) take care of their children when they are sick or down in the dumps. A young black girl shares a descriptive list of the things her mom does to help her feel better: playing games, telling stories, and making food, among many other acts of comfort and healing. She describes each type of "Mommy Medicine" using vivid language, similes, and metaphors. "Or soup—pea, chicken, or squash. I love squash! It's like sunshine in a bowl." The illustrations by Wright, a political cartoonist, burst with the love between the familial pair. She draws with detail and an array of glowing colors that fill each page. The focus is on the mother and daughter, who appear in each vignette like stills from an animation. VERDICT A warm and fuzzy offering for sick days on the couch or everyday reading. A recommended purchase.—Clara Hendricks, Cambridge Public Library, MA

School Library Journal