LoveReading4Kids Says
LoveReading4Kids Says
July 2022 Graphic Novel of the Month
This remarkable collaboration between Carnegie medal winning Jason Reynolds and acclaimed artist Jason Griffin has created both a lasting memorial to what the world endured in the pandemic of 2020 and a testament to the enduring horror of racism and what humans do to each other and the world.
Printed on yellowed lined paper with every appearance of a notebook it looks and feels like an artefact of the troubled times we have all survived. This is lived experience we can all share with the creators, who have captured so brilliantly the sheer claustrophobia of being trapped within four walls, as indeed is the narrator.
With a mother glued to the news with its rolling horror and a brother glued to his video games, a father coughing in isolation and a sister plotting protest, the boy wonders why the human race seems so intent on destroying themselves. The collage illustrations mainline emotion and every word of the spare poetic narrative hits home.
The connection between George Floyd unable to breathe, tear gas victims unable to breathe, COVID victims unable to breath and the world in the grip of pollution, unable to breathe is truly powerful. But what we and the narrator realise is that the everyday mundane moments that we share with our loved ones is our “oxygen mask” and the repeated refrain as we are reminded to “breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth” brings solace and hope. While capturing a specific moment in time the messages are timeless and enduring.
This is essential reading.
Joy Court
Find This Book In
| Suitable For: |
|
| Other Genres: |
|
| Recommendations: |
|
About
Oxygen Mask A Graphic Novel Synopsis
And so for anyone who didn't really know what it means to not be able to breathe, REALLY breathe, for generations, now you know. And those who already do, you'll be nodding yep yep, that is exactly how it is . . .
Intimately set within the walls of a family home, this book is an incredible artefact of the historic year we have all lived through. We travel from the depths of despair but not without hope; the mundane details contained within four walls becomes our sanctuary.
This is a gift in commemoration of a time and place, of a world wide pandemic, of loss and of the murder of George Floyd. It is a reminder of how, in uncertain times, we can cling to the simple things for respite, for hope.
A reminder of how comforting books and artworks are in times of extreme stress.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9780571374748 |
| Publication date: |
2nd June 2022 |
| Author: |
Jason Reynolds |
| Illustrator: |
Jason Griffin |
| Publisher: |
Faber & Faber |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
384 pages |
| Suitable For: |
|
| Other Genres: |
|
| Recommendations: |
|
Press Reviews
Jason Reynolds Press Reviews
‘A powerful message in just three sentences. Reynolds and artist Jason Griffin have created a masterful collage of words and images about race and (in)justice.’ The Washington Post
‘An important combination that expresses the zeitgeist of a troubled time. It’s essential reading.’ Booklist
‘Prepare yourself for something unlike anything: A smash-up of art and text for teens that viscerally captures what it is to be Black . . . Does Jason Reynolds ever disappoint?’ Book Riot
‘Stunning poetry and rich artwork come together to create a tender look, through the eyes of a teen, at . . . what is exactly unfolding in 2020 . . . a moving manifesto.’ Buzzfeed
‘A must read.’ The Boston Globe
Author
About Jason Reynolds
Jason Reynolds is a New York Times bestselling author, shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal, a Newbery Award Honoree, a Printz Award Honoree, National Book Award Honoree, a Kirkus Award winner, a two-time Walter Dean Myers Award winner, an NAACP Image Award Winner, and the recipient of multiple Coretta Scott King honors. The American Booksellers Association's 2017 and 2018 spokesperson for Indies First, his many books include When I Was the Greatest, Boy in the Black Suit, All American Boys (cowritten with Brendan Kiely), As Brave as You, For Every One, the Track series (Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and Lu), and Long Way Down, which received both a Newbery Honor and a Printz Honor. He lives in Washington, DC.
From Jason: "Here's what I know: I know there are a lot - A LOT - of young people who hate reading. I know that many of these book haters are boys. I know that many of these book-hating boys, don't actually hate books, they hate boredom. So here's what I plan to do: NOT WRITE BORING BOOKS."
Photo copyright Dayo Kosoko
More About Jason Reynolds
