Girls on the Rise

November 15, 2024
Former National Youth Poet Laureate Gorman invites girls to raise their voices and make a difference. "Today, we finally have a say," proclaims the first-person plural narration as three girls (one presents Black, another is brown-skinned, and the third is light-skinned) pass one another marshmallows on a stick around a campfire. In Wise's textured, almost three-dimensional illustrations, the trio traverse fantastical, often abstract landscapes, playing, demonstrating, eating, and even flying, while confident rhymes sing their praises and celebrate collective female victories. The phrase "LIBERATION. FREEDOM. RESPECT" appears on a protest sign that bookends their journey. Simple and accessible, the rhythmic visual storytelling presents an optimistic vision of young people working toward a better world. Sometimes family members or other diverse comrades surround the girls, emphasizing that power comes from community. Gorman is careful to specify that "some of us go byshe / And some of us go bythey." She affirms, too, that each person is "a different shape and size," though the art doesn't show much variation in body type. Characters also vary in ability. Real-life figures emerge as the girls dream of past luminaries such as author Octavia Butler and activist Marsha P. Johnson, along with present-day role models including poet and journalist Plestia Alaqad and athlete Sha'carri Richardson; silhouettes stand in for heroines as yet unknown. Imagining that "we are where change is going" is hopeful indeed. Enthusiastic and direct, this paean has a lovely ring to it.(Picture book. 4-8)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 30, 2024
“Who are we? We are girls on the rise,” begins Gorman (Something, Someday) in validating lines that ring with tonal resolve.
As the pages turn in this conceptual picture book, groups of individuals work in concert, lifting a banner and protesting as well as resting and playing. Digital artwork from Wise (Magnolia Flower) incorporates collage elements and embellishments in portraying the communal scenes. On one spread, figures pass dishes at a candlelit table, while other pages show youths helping one another in the face of fear, donning wings, and contemplating well-known luminaries including Frida Kahlo and Marsha P. Johnson. Lines that embrace intersectional girlhood (“Some of us go by she/ And some of us go by they”) suggest both that “we are different people,/ Each
of us a different shape and size,/ A different wonder and a different wise” and that
“in our hearts, we are the same: We are a power, a movement,/ Pretty powerful.” As characters sow seeds and nurture the earth, final pages reveal a lush, easeful portrait: “Because when one girl is one the rise,/ It means everyone else is, too.” Characters are portrayed with various abilities, body types, and skin tones. Ages 4–8.

December 1, 2024
Grades K-3 Harnessing her gift for poetry, Gorman delivers an inspiring call to action for young readers, empowering them through uplifting rhymes that fill each page with purpose. Through just a few stanzas per page, Gorman captures the essence of girlhood and its many forms, showing how every individual adds to a collective striving for justice, peace, and positive change. The words flow beautifully, encouraging young girls to see themselves as part of a united movement for a brighter future: "We are girls like never before, / Speaking out more and more, / Because when our quiet is broken, / The world must hear us roar." Wise's digital-collage illustrations burst with vibrant colors and diverse representations of girlhood that showcase a wide range of body types, abilities, and identities. In word and art, each page celebrates both the uniqueness and the unity of girlhood experiences across cultures, appearances, and personal journeys. An excellent read-aloud, this commanding offering speaks to a future marked by strength and endless possibilities.

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