Black Trailblazers: 30 Courageous Visionaries Who Broke Boundaries, Made a Difference, and Paved the Way

by Bijan C. Bayne, Joelle Avelino (Illustrator)

A gorgeously illustrated compendium of 30 black luminaries who changed the world.
Thirty bite-sized biographies of black thinkers, activists, and innovators with beautiful full-color illustrations throughout. Black Trailblazers is an illustrated inspiration for children that gives these important figures their due, highlighting their work to make our world a brighter, better place. An appealing blend of history, quotes from the figures themselves, and gorgeous visuals, this book will educate, entertain, and inspire.

Including luminaries such C. J. WalkerJames BaldwinShirley ChisolmDick GregoryNina SimoneThurgood MarshallMisty Copeland...and many more!

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

227 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 27, 2022

Reviews

[A Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short work is an exploration of Black trailblazers who made meaningful contributions throughout American history. Some of them are well known, others aren’t, which made this read interesting and informative.

I really enjoyed how the work is set up with a full illustration of the person, followed by a short biography that includes smaller illustrations and a quote or two, as well as a couple highlighted facts. This made the biographies accessible and easy to read. I highly recommend this work be added to schools, especially homeschools! I learned much from it, loved the art style, and think it’s an excellent way to learn.

My thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for allowing me to read and review this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A much needed publication! This book reminds me a lot about the Rebel Girls series and I truly appreciate the inclusion of the other genders in this compilation.

I love such books which accurately gives the basic description of these amazing personalities. Got to learn a lot about some familiar as well as some unfamiliar visionaries.

The entire book is colourful inside out. I wish the colours used were a little easy to the eyes.

It's uplifting. It's inspirational. Just go for it.

Thank you, Andrews McMeel Publishing, for the advance review copy.

[Ghada ツ · Rating 4 out of 5]

An absolutely gorgeous collection of bit-sized biographies featuring a wide assortment of Black pioneers who broke new grounds and changed history. I found Black Trailblazers to be eye-opening and profoundly delightful from the diverse career paths and manners of activism, to the fair representation of genders, and then down to the adorable illustrations and visually attractive page design. I highly recommend to young and older readers alike.

Thank you to netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This picture book biography tells the stories of several black role models who have made history in their leadership roles. Each person chosen to be a part of this book has a short section with: a full page, colourful portrait, words that describe them, basic biographical information, smaller pictures related to their story, and quotes or details about the impacts they made. The pictures are detailed and colourful and add to comprehension of the story. The font is a good size, is simple and easy to read and is mainly black text on white or light coloured backgrounds. Some sections have colourful monotone backgrounds with black or white font as well, but these are smaller and are usually intentional in order to point out or differentiate between parts of text. The people chosen for the book have a range of backgrounds and have made a variety of contributions to history in their fields and include a wide range of generations and time periods. This is great for readers who may be looking for a role model in a specific field or from a specific time in history. I think this book is very well written and would be great for middle grade classrooms. As a grade 3 teacher I do think there is a little too much text and the vocabulary is a little high for my students, though the content would be fine for adults to read with them. I would recommend this book to parents and teachers of children in the age 8-14 range, with the target grade levels being around 5-8. I think this book would be a perfect source of information for research projects. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book!

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Black Trailblazers: 30 Courageous Visionaries Who Broke Boundaries, Made a Difference, and Paved the Way is a collection of short illustrated biographies of famous men and women of color in a wide variety of fields written by Bijan Bayne. Released 27th Sept 2022 by Andrews McMeel, it's 128 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats.

This is an accessible and well written anthology of short bios for 30 innovators and icons from a broad section of media, entertainment, science/medicine, philosophy, politics, sports, aviation, mathematics, and more. These famous men and women excelled and succeeded despite racism and phenomenal hindrances.

Each of the biographies is accompanied by one or more portraits and illustrations. The art is rendered by Joelle Avelino. The art is simple, but effective and suits the direct nature of the book very well. The themes of racism and segregation are written in age-appropriate language, but also honestly.

Five stars. This would be an excellent choice for public or school library acquisition, home use, and gift giving. Lexile 1040, intended for readers aged circa 10-15 years.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Black Trailblazers is a fascinating book that introduced young readers to some of the Black figures in history that made a difference. Coupled with bright illustrations, Black Trailblazers methodically details some of the life events of people like Soujourner Truth, W.E.B. DuBois, Shirley Chisholm, James Baldwin and Mahalia Jackson.

The Black figures included in Black Trailblazers range from singers, scientists, writers, activists, artists, athletes and more. Each figure has a short biography that is filled with interesting tidbits, quotes and dates. Some sections include illustrations that add to the information being discussed, for example, the chapter on James Baldwin has an illustration of novels, with the title of Baldwin's books on the spines.

Some figures in Black Trailblazers aren't just historical figures, people that are still alive and active in their communities are included. People like Quincy Jones who still mentors Black artists and Diane Nash who is still an activist in her own right. Oprah Winfrey and Stevie Wonder get their own biographies told in addition to Barack Obama.

Black Trailblazers is a fun book marketed toward those children who want to learn more about Black historical figures in a fun illustrated way!

[joyce w. laudon · Rating 5 out of 5]

How many of the people on this book’s cover can you or a young reader that you know identify? Whatever your answer, take a look inside this title to find thirty biographies filled with inspiration. Just some of those featured in this title are Sojourner Truth, Mahalia Jackson, Martin Luther King, Jr., Oprah Winfrey Barack Obama and Kamala Harris. There were other people whose lives I learned about for the first time, for example, Ella Baker and Bessie Coleman.

Each entry features bold and appealing graphics. There is also a biography for each person.

This book will remind children that so much is possible and that, despite obstacles, there are many who have achieved great things.

This book deserves a spot in both home and school libraries. It is a wonderful and invitingly written resource.

Many thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley for this title. All opinions are my own.

[Nette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Trailblazers by Bijan Bayne highlights 30 visionaries with mini-biographies.  From activists, innovators, and thinkers.  This children's book is perfect for children.
The illustrations by Joelle Avelino are beautiful and appeal to young children.  Using vibrant colors it showcases special details of each visionary's life.  The quotes from each person were also a favorite part added to the book.

Bijan Bayne makes this book stand out because although we find the mini-biographies of some well-known Black figures from history.  Like Nina Simone, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Sojourner Truth.  Black Trailblazers also bring attention to other Black figures, who are known but are not talked about a lot in children's books.  Visionaries like James Baldwin, Dick Gregory, and Thurgood Marshall to name a few.  It also highlights more recent visionaries like Misty Copeland, Kamala Harris, and Barack Obama.  These are just a few of the amazing people you can read about in this book.

[Brooke - TheBrookeList · Rating 3 out of 5]

Carefully curated assortment of Black people of all walks of life, throughout history, who have been the first or the best in their fields. In addition to many we'd expect to see in a collection (like Oprah or Martin Luther King, Jr. ), I loved seeing more I'd never heard of, particularly Bessie Coleman and Madam C. J. Walker or Shirley Chisholm. Their short biographies were inspiring and unique.

The graphic style is modern and fun (although I sort of hoped for some photographs at the end to add to actual recognition). The text is a little heavy and definitely a middle grade read, but provides enough info on each individual to feel you understand them a bit.

Similar to a few other collections like this I've read, but unique in its role in advocating recognition for diverse leaders across a broad spectrum of fields.

Read as a nomination in the non-fiction book award category as a panelist for Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards (Cybils Awards).

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Trailblazers is a fantastic book that can be read by not only children but anyone who would like to learn about important Black historical figures. I knew of most of them but not necessarily their stories and the book made it interesting and engaging to learn. Each person has a mini bio that includes pretty illustrations. There is a lot of text and might be tough for younger kids but could be read together instead! It's a great resource for information to help with research projects.
Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for an advanced copy of this book.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus

This had a lot of figures from the entertainment world, and most of the people are ones about whom I already have biographies. The illustrations are great, but there aren't any photographs of more recent figures. On the plus side, there is a bit more information about each person, so if you don't already have a lot of collective biographies, this is a good choice. Ella Baker, Sidney Poitier, Toni Morrison, Dick Gregory, Nina Simone, Quincy Jones, and Diane Nash, are people about whom I have not see a lot mentioned, and they are included here.

[Lisa Gisèle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the type of book I love having on hand. Various examples of amazing people changing the world due to their inner drive to succeed.

I have seen many similar books, but I notice for reasons I cannot explain they tend to use more athletes, singers and other celebrities throughout time. All those things are well and good (I'm useless at all of the above), but they didn't become the first self made woman millionaire or devolope blood banks in WW1

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Book showcases 30 familiar and not so familiar people who changed the world in some way. A lot of these types of books always have the same information and same people. I did like that this book offered some mini bios of people like Dick Gregory, James Baldwin, Misty Copeland, Phillis Wheatley, Ella Baker, Charles Drew, Nina Simone, Diane Nash, Claudette Colvin and Florence Griffith-Joyner.

[Sandy Brehl · Rating 5 out of 5]

an excellent overview/synopsis of some of the most iconic African American figures in the list two centuries. Each profile incorporates essential details, lesser known fact and connections, excerpted quotes with sourced Terence’s in back, and places them into perspectives of their own times and future impact.

[BiblioBrandie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of 30 short bios highlighting potentially lesser-known individuals. I loved the color illustrations but sometimes I feel like real photographs of the actual person is important for students to see. Biographical spreads include quotes from the subjects and sidebars with additional information.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this group of biographies, organized by birth date, where each person gets four pages, one of them a full page portrait, to celebrate their achievements and milestones with especially attention to barriers they crossed (first Black to get elected, or own a company, etc.). It's all with a very positive attitude, with more attention to progress and how these people made a difference rather than what was dragging them down.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review.

[Aziza · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. I learned so much about people who paved the way for others to achieve greatness too. I also learned about new people and learned more about others I heard of. I highly recommend this book because you will not be disappointed.

[Carissa Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short little snippets of different black people throughout history. How they made history and paved the way for progress. Great intro for people that you might not know much about. The illustrations were good.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through Edelweiss.