Elementary Secondary Higher Ed Common Reads

Elementary Education


Guides
Collections
News
(0)
Wish List (0)
Wish List
Download high-resolution image
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00

Go Forth and Tell: The Life of Augusta Baker, Librarian and Master Storyteller

Author Breanna J. McDaniel
Read by Janina Edwards
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00
Audiobook Download
Audio | Listening Library
0"W x 0"H x 0"D  
On sale Feb 06, 2024 | 12 Minutes | 978-0-593-91503-5
| Grades K-3
Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies
See Additional Formats
From an award-winning author comes this biography about beloved librarian and storyteller Augusta Braxton Baker, the first Black coordinator of children’s services at all branches of the New York Public Library.

Before Augusta Braxton Baker became a storyteller, she was an excellent story listener. Her grandmother brought stories like Br’er Rabbit and Arthur and Excalibur to life, teaching young Augusta that when there’s a will, there’s always a way. When she grew up, Mrs. Baker began telling her own fantastical stories to children at the 135th Street branch of the New York Public Library in Harlem. But she noticed that there were hardly any books at the library featuring Black people in respectful, uplifting ways. Thus began her journey of championing books, writers, librarians, and teachers centering Black stories, educating and inspiring future acclaimed authors like Audre Lorde and James Baldwin along the way.

As Mrs. Baker herself put it: “Children of all ages want to hear stories. Select well, prepare well and then go forth and just tell.”
Breanna J. McDaniel (she/her/hers) is the co-founder of REIYL (Researchers Exploring Inclusive Youth Literature) and the award-winning author of the picture book Hands Up! and Impossible Moon. A proud alumna of Emory University and Simmons University, she is currently a PhD researcher at Cambridge University.

April Harrison is a Coretta Scott King–John Steptoe award winning illustrator and renowned folk artist. Her work appears in the public collections of Vanderbilt University, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, the Atlanta Housing Authority, and the Erskine University Museum, as well as in many private collections.
Breanna J. McDaniel View titles by Breanna J. McDaniel
★ "Intricate details will draw novice readers back to the pages, while more experienced readers will find a treasure trove of biographical sources compiled by McDaniel . . . here’s thoughtfulness here in the craft and pacing of her prose, certainly; reverence, too, inthe textured layers of Harrison’s mixed-media and visual storytelling. But more than anything, simplecare is evident. Care for a Black librarian who sought out every gap a tale could bridge, who shattered barriers to ensure Black children would see themselves on library shelves, and whose legacy continues to this day exactly as it began—in the thrall of good stories." —Kirkus, starred review

★ "Brimming with color and texture, Harrison's illustrations incorporate acrylics, pen, and mixed-media collage elements that bestow a pleasing three-dimensional look to the scenes . . . Appended with a time line, sources, and author's note, this makes a worthy addition to library collections." —Booklist, starred review

★ "[A] glowing account of legendary storytelling librarian Baker . . . Harrison’s intricate mixed-media collages employ shifting scale to bring to life this vital history of a vital figure." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "McDaniel gives an account of Baker’s life that is as celebratory as the heroes in her folktales, attesting that Baker internalized the message that 'where there’s a will, there’s a way'. Harrison’s exuberant mixed-media collage illustrations capture the vibrancy of both the storyteller and her stories, creating worlds and words that leap off pages." —Horn Book, starred review

★ "A blissful walk around the imagination for anyone who has ever been told, or has listened to,a transporting piece of storytelling . . . the colors, books, titles, typeface, faces, people, streets, and words that overflow these pages work intandem with the text to celebrate a life in stories and a life in service to others. An essential purchase not to be missed." —School Library Journal, starred review

About

From an award-winning author comes this biography about beloved librarian and storyteller Augusta Braxton Baker, the first Black coordinator of children’s services at all branches of the New York Public Library.

Before Augusta Braxton Baker became a storyteller, she was an excellent story listener. Her grandmother brought stories like Br’er Rabbit and Arthur and Excalibur to life, teaching young Augusta that when there’s a will, there’s always a way. When she grew up, Mrs. Baker began telling her own fantastical stories to children at the 135th Street branch of the New York Public Library in Harlem. But she noticed that there were hardly any books at the library featuring Black people in respectful, uplifting ways. Thus began her journey of championing books, writers, librarians, and teachers centering Black stories, educating and inspiring future acclaimed authors like Audre Lorde and James Baldwin along the way.

As Mrs. Baker herself put it: “Children of all ages want to hear stories. Select well, prepare well and then go forth and just tell.”

Author

Breanna J. McDaniel (she/her/hers) is the co-founder of REIYL (Researchers Exploring Inclusive Youth Literature) and the award-winning author of the picture book Hands Up! and Impossible Moon. A proud alumna of Emory University and Simmons University, she is currently a PhD researcher at Cambridge University.

April Harrison is a Coretta Scott King–John Steptoe award winning illustrator and renowned folk artist. Her work appears in the public collections of Vanderbilt University, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, the Atlanta Housing Authority, and the Erskine University Museum, as well as in many private collections.
Breanna J. McDaniel View titles by Breanna J. McDaniel

Praise

★ "Intricate details will draw novice readers back to the pages, while more experienced readers will find a treasure trove of biographical sources compiled by McDaniel . . . here’s thoughtfulness here in the craft and pacing of her prose, certainly; reverence, too, inthe textured layers of Harrison’s mixed-media and visual storytelling. But more than anything, simplecare is evident. Care for a Black librarian who sought out every gap a tale could bridge, who shattered barriers to ensure Black children would see themselves on library shelves, and whose legacy continues to this day exactly as it began—in the thrall of good stories." —Kirkus, starred review

★ "Brimming with color and texture, Harrison's illustrations incorporate acrylics, pen, and mixed-media collage elements that bestow a pleasing three-dimensional look to the scenes . . . Appended with a time line, sources, and author's note, this makes a worthy addition to library collections." —Booklist, starred review

★ "[A] glowing account of legendary storytelling librarian Baker . . . Harrison’s intricate mixed-media collages employ shifting scale to bring to life this vital history of a vital figure." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "McDaniel gives an account of Baker’s life that is as celebratory as the heroes in her folktales, attesting that Baker internalized the message that 'where there’s a will, there’s a way'. Harrison’s exuberant mixed-media collage illustrations capture the vibrancy of both the storyteller and her stories, creating worlds and words that leap off pages." —Horn Book, starred review

★ "A blissful walk around the imagination for anyone who has ever been told, or has listened to,a transporting piece of storytelling . . . the colors, books, titles, typeface, faces, people, streets, and words that overflow these pages work intandem with the text to celebrate a life in stories and a life in service to others. An essential purchase not to be missed." —School Library Journal, starred review

Additional formats

Other Books by this Author

Related Articles

Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month
English Language Arts Social Studies & History

Books for Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Every May we celebrate the rich history and culture of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Browse a curated selection of fiction and nonfiction books by AANHPI creators that we think your students will love. Find our collection of titles here: Elementary School

Read more

Books for Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month

English Language Arts Social Studies & History
education translanguaging collections affirming bilingual and multilingual learners
General Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series The Arts

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

General Education & Professional Learning English Language Arts Favorite Authors & Series The Arts
education classroom libraries the heart and soul of any curriculum
General Early Concepts English Language Arts Science & Technology The Arts

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

“Books are a students’ passport to entering and actively participating in a global society with the empathy, compassion, and knowledge it takes to become the problem solvers the world needs.” –Laura Robb   Research shows that reading and literacy directly impacts students’ academic success and personal growth. To help promote the importance of daily independent

Read more

PRH Education Classroom Libraries

General Early Concepts English Language Arts Science & Technology The Arts
Against a green background, four book covers for Black History Month: GO FORTH AND TELL, LITTLE ROSETTA AND THE TALKING GUITAR, MADAM CJ WALKER BUILDS A BUSINESS, INVINCIBLE
Social Studies & History

Books for Black History Month

Join Penguin Random House Education in celebrating the contributions of Black authors and illustrators. In honor of Black History Month in February, we are highlighting essential fiction and nonfiction to be shared and discussed by students and teachers alike. Black History Month – Elementary Explore additional books by Black creators that will educate, empower, and

Read more

Books for Black History Month

Social Studies & History

About Elementary Education

Penguin Random House Education

Penguin Random House

About Elementary Education

Penguin Random House Education

Penguin Random House

Back to Top
0
    • 0
    Elementary Education
    Wish List (0)