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The Year We Learned to Fly
One rainy day, a bored brother and sister listen to their wise grandmother's "Use those beautiful and brilliant minds of yours. Lift your arms, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and believe in a thing."
And before they know it, their imagination takes them on a beautiful adventure through ancestry, strength and resilience. They dream, they believe and eventually . . . they fly.
A poignant tale about the power of imagination, from the award-winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson.
And before they know it, their imagination takes them on a beautiful adventure through ancestry, strength and resilience. They dream, they believe and eventually . . . they fly.
A poignant tale about the power of imagination, from the award-winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline Woodson.
34 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 4, 2022
25 people are currently reading
2032 people want to read
About the author
Jacqueline Woodson
80 books9,079 followersI used to say I’d be a teacher or a lawyer or a hairdresser when I grew up but even as I said these things, I knew what made me happiest was writing.
I wrote on everything and everywhere. I remember my uncle catching me writing my name in graffiti on the side of a building. (It was not pretty for me when my mother found out.) I wrote on paper bags and my shoes and denim binders. I chalked stories across sidewalks and penciled tiny tales in notebook margins. I loved and still love watching words flower into sentences and sentences blossom into stories.
I also told a lot of stories as a child. Not “Once upon a time” stories but basically, outright lies. I loved lying and getting away with it! There was something about telling the lie-story and seeing your friends’ eyes grow wide with wonder. Of course I got in trouble for lying but I didn’t stop until fifth grade.
That year, I wrote a story and my teacher said “This is really good.” Before that I had written a poem about Martin Luther King that was, I guess, so good no one believed I wrote it. After lots of brouhaha, it was believed finally that I had indeed penned the poem which went on to win me a Scrabble game and local acclaim. So by the time the story rolled around and the words “This is really good” came out of the otherwise down-turned lips of my fifth grade teacher, I was well on my way to understanding that a lie on the page was a whole different animal — one that won you prizes and got surly teachers to smile. A lie on the page meant lots of independent time to create your stories and the freedom to sit hunched over the pages of your notebook without people thinking you were strange.
Lots and lots of books later, I am still surprised when I walk into a bookstore and see my name on a book’s binder. Sometimes, when I’m sitting at my desk for long hours and nothing’s coming to me, I remember my fifth grade teacher, the way her eyes lit up when she said “This is really good.” The way, I — the skinny girl in the back of the classroom who was always getting into trouble for talking or missed homework assignments — sat up a little straighter, folded my hands on the desks, smiled and began to believe in me.
I wrote on everything and everywhere. I remember my uncle catching me writing my name in graffiti on the side of a building. (It was not pretty for me when my mother found out.) I wrote on paper bags and my shoes and denim binders. I chalked stories across sidewalks and penciled tiny tales in notebook margins. I loved and still love watching words flower into sentences and sentences blossom into stories.
I also told a lot of stories as a child. Not “Once upon a time” stories but basically, outright lies. I loved lying and getting away with it! There was something about telling the lie-story and seeing your friends’ eyes grow wide with wonder. Of course I got in trouble for lying but I didn’t stop until fifth grade.
That year, I wrote a story and my teacher said “This is really good.” Before that I had written a poem about Martin Luther King that was, I guess, so good no one believed I wrote it. After lots of brouhaha, it was believed finally that I had indeed penned the poem which went on to win me a Scrabble game and local acclaim. So by the time the story rolled around and the words “This is really good” came out of the otherwise down-turned lips of my fifth grade teacher, I was well on my way to understanding that a lie on the page was a whole different animal — one that won you prizes and got surly teachers to smile. A lie on the page meant lots of independent time to create your stories and the freedom to sit hunched over the pages of your notebook without people thinking you were strange.
Lots and lots of books later, I am still surprised when I walk into a bookstore and see my name on a book’s binder. Sometimes, when I’m sitting at my desk for long hours and nothing’s coming to me, I remember my fifth grade teacher, the way her eyes lit up when she said “This is really good.” The way, I — the skinny girl in the back of the classroom who was always getting into trouble for talking or missed homework assignments — sat up a little straighter, folded my hands on the desks, smiled and began to believe in me.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 394 reviews
March 31, 2022
Sometimes the first step toward change is closing our eyes, taking a breath, and imagining a different way. ~Jacqueline Woodson
This new picture book is a beautiful, hopeful reminder for all of us. Don't let yourself be stuck in a bored place, or a mad place, or anywhere. When we fly, we lift others around us. Inspired by Virginia Hamilton's The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales, the duo who brought us The Day You Begin is back with another fantastic book to share.
This new picture book is a beautiful, hopeful reminder for all of us. Don't let yourself be stuck in a bored place, or a mad place, or anywhere. When we fly, we lift others around us. Inspired by Virginia Hamilton's The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales, the duo who brought us The Day You Begin is back with another fantastic book to share.
August 28, 2022
My 7 year old grandson loved this story.
December 31, 2021
Wow! This book is so incredibly moving & beautiful. The words, illustrations, & author's note come together to create a powerful, affirming, empowering, story that uplifts as much as it doesn't shy away. Can't wait to share with kids who will blossom because of it.
July 21, 2023
That was the summer we learned to fly! 🌼
This storybook stole my Heart with the illistration on page 13. Every genre from this Author is Extraordinary.
This storybook stole my Heart with the illistration on page 13. Every genre from this Author is Extraordinary.
February 2, 2022
Open your mind to experience the world and to fly. Be kind. Vibrant illustrations of sisters embracing the past and the future through their imagination, words, and thoughts, which set them free.
May 27, 2023
Escape with imagination, and reading, and the strength passed down from your ancestors.
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June 12, 2022My favorite part of this was knowing the inspiration was Virginia Hamilton's "The People Could Fly" even before it was confirmed in the author's note. And everything else about it is just lovely.
October 7, 2022
The author-illustrator duo Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael López create a magical and empowering gift to children in their new book—𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗪𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗹𝘆. Woodson informs us that her inspiration comes from Virginia Hamilton’s 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗙𝗹𝘆: 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗸𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀. Hamilton’s folktales depict stories of the enslaved men and women who escaped the grueling toll of slavery by flying above and away—surviving at all costs. Woodson tells us, “Virginia Hamilton gave me and so many other writers storytelling wings…I have been able to ‘fly’ past even the hardest of times into the world of my stories.”
In this picture book, two siblings must use their imaginations and fly well beyond their brilliant minds and dream to see a world that awaits them. They are given solid advice by their grandmother: “Lift your arms, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and believe in a thing. Somebody somewhere at some point was just as bored as you are now.” Instead of being bored in their rooms, fighting over pointless things, or not having friends to join them, these siblings must open their minds and learn to be free and survive in our own space or doing something different. The siblings learn that flying above means finding a way to rise above discontentment and not settling.
What I like most about this children’s book is the way it teaches the siblings (children) to learn about family, heritage, and imagination. Family is important in that we learn to support and be there for one another. Heritage is necessary because we must acknowledge who we are, where we come from, and why we matter in this world. Imagination allows us to create, think, and grow as individuals. So all of these qualities make children the best individuals when they are getting prepared to take flight.
This picture book is a must read. Get it before it flies off the shelf.
In this picture book, two siblings must use their imaginations and fly well beyond their brilliant minds and dream to see a world that awaits them. They are given solid advice by their grandmother: “Lift your arms, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and believe in a thing. Somebody somewhere at some point was just as bored as you are now.” Instead of being bored in their rooms, fighting over pointless things, or not having friends to join them, these siblings must open their minds and learn to be free and survive in our own space or doing something different. The siblings learn that flying above means finding a way to rise above discontentment and not settling.
What I like most about this children’s book is the way it teaches the siblings (children) to learn about family, heritage, and imagination. Family is important in that we learn to support and be there for one another. Heritage is necessary because we must acknowledge who we are, where we come from, and why we matter in this world. Imagination allows us to create, think, and grow as individuals. So all of these qualities make children the best individuals when they are getting prepared to take flight.
This picture book is a must read. Get it before it flies off the shelf.
January 17, 2022
Don't go too fast with this one, let it sit with you for awhile. Another fabulous book from this author-illustrator duo. The author's note at the end is a must-read as it gives you even more understanding about the story.
January 20, 2023
A brother and sister get some sage advice from their grandmother.
It's okay for what it is, but I'm just not a fan of picture books that are sort of vague and inspirational. Give me a concrete story and some humor.
(Another project! I'm trying to read all the picture books and graphic novels on the kids section of NPR's Books We Love 2022.)
It's okay for what it is, but I'm just not a fan of picture books that are sort of vague and inspirational. Give me a concrete story and some humor.
(Another project! I'm trying to read all the picture books and graphic novels on the kids section of NPR's Books We Love 2022.)
January 2, 2022
I received a copy of The Year We Learned to Fly from Penguin Random House Canada in exchange for an honest review.
What an inspiring and vibrant picture book from the incredible team of Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael López. Their first picture book - The Day You Begin - is one of my absolutely favourites and I was so excited to see that they have come together for this new 2022 release. The Year We Learned to Fly follows two young grandchildren who find themselves stuck at home. Their grandmother teaches them how to use their imagination and dream away the boredom and angry feelings to find enlightenment and inner strength. She ties in the history of their people and how they have long been dreaming of something better even in the face of such conflict and turmoil. The Year We Learned to Fly is an empowering picture book of dreams and the manifesting positive and wonderful things.
Also, I love that the two grandchildren snuggle up in bed reading a book and that book is The Day You Begin - such a great little easter egg.
What an inspiring and vibrant picture book from the incredible team of Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael López. Their first picture book - The Day You Begin - is one of my absolutely favourites and I was so excited to see that they have come together for this new 2022 release. The Year We Learned to Fly follows two young grandchildren who find themselves stuck at home. Their grandmother teaches them how to use their imagination and dream away the boredom and angry feelings to find enlightenment and inner strength. She ties in the history of their people and how they have long been dreaming of something better even in the face of such conflict and turmoil. The Year We Learned to Fly is an empowering picture book of dreams and the manifesting positive and wonderful things.
Also, I love that the two grandchildren snuggle up in bed reading a book and that book is The Day You Begin - such a great little easter egg.
April 2, 2022
I loved this author’s book from last year, The Day You Begin, and this one is just as good. Somebody somewhere at some point was just as bored (and later, mad) as you. Somebody somewhere at some point had to figure out they could fly. Such wise council the kids receive from their grandma during rough times, who had learned this from her ancestors. And then the family moves to a new street where the other kids look at them funny and wouldn’t answer their invitations to play. Grandma’s words help them figure out they are ready for any new thing coming their way, that they are as free as their own beautiful and brilliant minds, and eventually the other kids learn that they can fly too. It’s an empowering story of hope, family-based wisdom, and internal strength. The author’s note at the back includes insight into her inspiration. “Sometimes the first step toward change is closing our eyes, taking a breath, and imagining a different way.”
April 6, 2022
Absolutely adore this book!! I read it several times and still receive butterflies from this amazing story. This remarkable story is about two children who learn a lesson from their grandma-that one can learn to fly by having hopes and dreams about what they want their lives to become. The story's main purpose is to educate young students to have hope and set dreams for the future. It is noted throughout the story that, before we make changes, we must first imagine what our world would like after making the changes. This story is enlightening and has a powerful message, as well as providing diverse and inclusive characters and content. The two main characters are African American siblings, where they set dreams and desires for their futures. The diverse characters show readers that anyone and everyone, no matter one's race, is capable and powerful of achieving any dream and hope that they set for themselves. This story is remarkable and simple for young children to understand.
December 5, 2022
At this juncture Woodson, whose career I've been following since high school, seems to be unzipping my childhood to pull my experiences out and write them into her stories. I mean, lady, c'mon! I thought the title --The Year We Learned to Fly-- sounded familiar and then I started reading and it was like Virginia Hamilton stepped off the dusty bookshelves in my mind. The Leo & Diane Dillon cover of And the People Could Fly was a staple of my childhood library visits, and it's Dillon art that drew me towards Woodson, too, attracting me to her middle grade novels. So, wow, wow, wow, the new batch of Woodson picture books are packing a punch. It's possible tears are being shed! Looking forward to (and also a little afraid of) more.
January 30, 2022
THE YEAR WE LEARNED TO FLY, written by Jacqueline Woodson and illustrated by Rafael Lopez, is about two children who learn a very important lesson from their grandma: that one can learn to fly by reimagining how life could be and should be. This is an important lesson because it gives us all hope for the future. The author reminds us that before we can make changes, we have to first imagine what our world would be like after those changes are made.
Woodson focused on the power of human tenacity, linking it back to the African American struggle to survive slavery. Lopez used bright colors and changes in the weather when illustrating this beautiful book.
Woodson focused on the power of human tenacity, linking it back to the African American struggle to survive slavery. Lopez used bright colors and changes in the weather when illustrating this beautiful book.
April 14, 2022
On a stormy spring day, a grandmother teaches a brother and sister how to use their "brilliant minds" to fly somewhere outside of their apartment. The children use this technique throughout the year: in the summer when their fussing, in the autumn when their lonely, and in the winter when they move to a new neighborhood. This gorgeous, lyrical picture book inspired by Virginia Hamilton's The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales will pair well with Faith Ringgold's Tar Beach. A timeless inspiration for all ages!
May 20, 2022
The year in question seems too long of a time period to focus on anything specific enough to generate interest in these children and their seemingly petty battles against boredom and negativity, which ironically seem to trivialize the epic fight of their ancestors against the horrors of enslavement repeated in Grandmother’s refrain. Vibrant illustrations help somewhat but not enough to give the story lift to fly as Grandmother promised.
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May 27, 2022An homage to Virginia Hamilton's The People Could Fly, this beautiful picture book shows what happens when a pair of siblings learn that their imaginations can take them anywhere they want to go. Whether they're stuck inside on a rainy day, bored and picking at each other during summer vacation, or moving to a new neighborhood where the kids aren't friendly at first, all they have to do is close their eyes, lift up their arms, and fly away.
January 30, 2022
A stunning book that is hard to describe other than to say it just needs to be read to experience its brilliance and emotional resonance. It’s a book written and illustrated with love and gravitas that honors family, ancestry, and imagination. I’m already putting this on my Mock Caldecott list for 2023.
March 22, 2022
The main characters of this book face a lot of challenges, from boredom to loneliness. But they aren't the first ones to feel this way, and they don't have to get stuck in it.
I don't know that I even fully grasp the meaning of this book, but it speaks to my soul, and I'll be reading it again and again.
I don't know that I even fully grasp the meaning of this book, but it speaks to my soul, and I'll be reading it again and again.
August 6, 2022
A brother and a sister are bored, and their grandmother encourages them to work their way out of their boredrom, saying, "Use those beautiful and brilliant minds of yours. Lift your arms, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and believe in a thing."
A wonderful story by the fabulous team of Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael López .
A wonderful story by the fabulous team of Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael López .
January 5, 2022
Beautiful inspiring words, along with exquisite illustrations will gently remind readers of the will and courage from within.
January 15, 2022
What a lovely book on the power and peace of imagination! Highly recommended.
January 13, 2022
Es un libro que sigue esta línea de vida pandémica pero sin nombrarla, es acerca de estar encerrados y poder volar con la imaginación, la verdad está hermoso tanto las ilustraciones, como el mensaje y la historia.
May 11, 2023
Beautiful poetry and illustration in a tribute to the work of Virginia Hamilton...and a reminder that we can rise above our station and fly within our dreams.
June 22, 2022
This is a beautiful picture book with gorgeous pictures and a wonderful and impactful message.
A young brother and sister are stuck inside their apartment when their grandmother shares with them words of wisdom to help them spark their imagination and help them deal with their emotions. When they get frustrated at being stuck inside, their grandmother helps them to take a deep breath and think about others. She teaches them about their ancestors, who had to overcome so much and who dreamed of a better life. Through her words, the grandmother shares a message of acceptance and empathy, of emotion and the power of hope.
The author's note at the end of the picture book is especially important and powerful to read. Highly recommend!
Sarah M. / Marathon County Public Library
Find this book in our library catalog.
A young brother and sister are stuck inside their apartment when their grandmother shares with them words of wisdom to help them spark their imagination and help them deal with their emotions. When they get frustrated at being stuck inside, their grandmother helps them to take a deep breath and think about others. She teaches them about their ancestors, who had to overcome so much and who dreamed of a better life. Through her words, the grandmother shares a message of acceptance and empathy, of emotion and the power of hope.
The author's note at the end of the picture book is especially important and powerful to read. Highly recommend!
Sarah M. / Marathon County Public Library
Find this book in our library catalog.
January 16, 2022
This book is about a brother and sister who are upset about being stuck inside during the storm. They start to argue over chores and are frustrated at being bored. But then their grandmother encourages them to use their imagination. They try her advice and let their dreams take them out of their boredom. The whole notion of looking up, even on the cover, shows us that the kids are learning to fly as they think of the sky.
I loved this book because it reminds us to get our kids off computers and let them be bored. Thats' when they can let their imagination soar and find their way, no matter what challenges come along.
To listen to my interview with the author, go to my podcast at:
https://zibbyowens.com/transcript/jac...
I loved this book because it reminds us to get our kids off computers and let them be bored. Thats' when they can let their imagination soar and find their way, no matter what challenges come along.
To listen to my interview with the author, go to my podcast at:
https://zibbyowens.com/transcript/jac...
November 29, 2021
3.5 stars. I loved The Day You Begin and was really looking forward to this pairing again. I adore the uplifting artwork, which just invites you to pick up the book and hides beautiful detail amongst the wonderful colours. I also like the overall message, reminding us of how Black people overcame the difficulties of slavery and learned to fly away, using their imaginations. I thought it was less successful in applying it to the current difficulties the characters in the story were experiencing. I'm not sure what younger readers would take away from this book, whether they would 'get' this message, but I will see how they respond once this is published!
January 30, 2022
I feel like I'm missing something. Especially when I see all the 5 star reviews. While I absolutely love the illustrations, I didn't enjoy the text to this book that much. I found it hard to understand. I like that Woodson is promoting imagination and free thinking but I'm just not sure the target audience is going to understand the message she is trying to convey (again, I'm biased because I'm not sure I totally understand the message she is trying to convey). I also am disappointed because I liked The Day You Begin so much so my expectations were high and this just didn't hit the same. Would read just for the illustrations though!
October 16, 2021
I love the Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael Lopez pairing, and the story that managed to be both philosophical and (I think) accessible to younger readers. I found the mindfulness element lovely as well. The author's note reminds us that people have survived horrors in their lives, but manage to rise above and pass along something beautiful for the next generations.
I received an advance copy from Edelweiss and Nancy Paulsen Books, part of Penguin Random House.
I received an advance copy from Edelweiss and Nancy Paulsen Books, part of Penguin Random House.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 394 reviews