Black Magic

by Dinah Johnson, R. Gregory Christie (Illustrator)

Black is a look, a taste, a speed, an emotion. It's the surprising stripes on a zebra, the taste of dark chocolate, the scary, exciting feeling of going inside a tunnel, and a mother's voice as her daughter falls asleep. In this celebration of the African American spirit, Dinah Johnson and R. Gregory Christie paint a picture of "black" that is vivid, varied, and proud.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Poetry

32 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2007

About the author

Dinah Johnson is the award-winning author of many books for young readers, including Black Magic, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie; Hair Dance! with photographs by Kelly Johnson; Quinnie Blue, illustrated by James Ransome; Sunday Week, illustrated by Tyrone Geter; and All Around Town: The Photographs of Richard Samuel Roberts. A professor of English at the University of South Carolina, she lives in Columbia, South Carolina.

Reviews

[Mario Flores · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, what an excellent book for teaching children that the color black is such a beautiful color, and that it is a color to be proud of being associated with. Too often people make negative connections to the color black, like the black cat that people think is evil (in a superstitious way), and the black feeling that we say we feel when we feel empty and/or are in a "dark place" in our lives. I for one, have learned to snap out of this kind of thinking, and embrace the color and its beauty. In this story, the little girl points out all of the great things and people that directly affect her that have the color black in them/on them, and she also expresses how proud she is of having black skin. I really enjoyed the innocent-like illustrations of her and her siblings, and I would definitely recommend this to kids that are learning about the different colors that exist.

[Mary Green]

I thought it was going to be a book about magic, however, in reality it was a book about an African American girl that is proud of herself, her family, her community, and her culture. Her pride and wonder of the world is apparent throughout the book and it culminates in explaining that "Black is the magic, the blue black magic, the always magic inside of me" as she performs on stage with a clarinet the blues. I appreciated all the visual elements which combined paint, markers, and colored pencil together to convey the girls dreams from riding on a zebra to adventuring in mali.

[Isabella Hoffmaster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Magic is such an important book, especially during these times. This book emphasizes that black is a beautiful color and it can mean so many different things. The purpose of this book is wonderful, as it helps young people understand that black is a powerful color. I love the message that this book brings.

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joyful, lively poem that celebrates the color black and all of the things it can be.

[Victoria Long · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dinah Johnson has definitely created a unique take on empowering the African American cultural. This book is written in almost a poetry form and describes the many things that black can be (loud, proud, exciting etc.). I can see some of the aspects celebrating the culture, but I don't fully understand her description of everything black is. She states black is slow, quick and delicious. These are just some adjectives that don't make sense when empowering a culture. R. Gregory Christie adds very fun and colorful illustrations to this book. The facial expressions are so entertaining and match the text very well. The images cover the entire spread of pages and cover all events of life from graduation to car washing to dance and family.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lyrical and exuberant language leads us on a journey as a young girl celebrates the black magic that she finds in her life. Black is loud, delicious, quick, and slow, and found everywhere from the black of written music notes to the stripes of a zebra. The illustrations match the rollicking energy of the book with its bright colors as our eyes are drawn from one page to the next in this celebration of the magic found in the color, concept, and all things black.

[Cara Byrne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A joyful, engaging picture book about a little girl who learns to celebrate the wonderful ways "black" manifests in the sky, in her father's eye, and in the pigment of her skin. Written by a professor of English, the work is soulful and poetic and a wonderful contribution to the genre of children's literature.

[Sima · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a story that shows all the ways things can be black. To me, a story that conveys that being different is okay. Great book for simile/metaphor.

[Shellee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book that encourages self worth about what it means to be balck. Some students may find it very empowering. Some of the metaphors are a stretch..

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for a good example of a color poem like you would find in Hailstones and Halibut Bones, try this for Black is… It does the trick.

[Nicole Holden · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book to about celebrating self worth.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good way to introduce to the idea that black is not a negative thing to be or a negative color. Great figurative language and illustration--introduce kids to poetry!

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Incredibly expressive and detailed faces.

[A.V. · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this story being Black is described in many ways to be beautiful and exciting. Fun illustrations.