Description: "The roots of rap and the history of hip-hop have origins that precede DJ Kool Herc and Grandmaster Flash. Kids will learn about how it evolved from folktales, spirituals, and poetry, to the showmanship of James Brown, to the culture of graffiti art and break dancing that formed around the art form and gave birth to the musical artists we know today"--Provided by publisher.
Brief description: Carole Boston Weatherford has written many award-winning books for children, including Coretta Scott King winner RESPECT: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul; Newbery Honor winner BOX: Henry Box Brown Mails Himself to Freedom; Caldecott Honor winners Freedom in Congo Square; Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer; and Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom, as well as Golden Kite Award winners Dear Mr. Rosenwald; Schomburg: The Man Who Built a Library; and The Roots of Rap. She is currently a professor of English at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina where she created a hip-hop course. Find out more about her at cbweatherford.com.
Review Quotes: Carole Boston Weatherford's 16 bars of homage to the history of hip-hop accompany the celebrated illustrator Frank Morrison's pulsing and vibrant images, which not only convey the development of hip-hop, they dance on the page.-- "New York Times Book Review"