Sulwe by Lupita Nyong'o
Category: Challenged book
Age group: Ages 4-7
Format: Physical book
Summary: This book follows Sulwe, a young girl, who is described as having skin the color of midnight. Sulwe's skin is darker than her family's skin and she is teased at school because of her skin color. Sulwe wants to have lighter skin just like her sister, in order to have friends. One night, Sulwe prays to God to give her lighter skin. A star visits her at night and takes her on a journey to learn about the importance of darkness and is introduced to two sisters, Night and Day. Sulwe learns that Night is needed just as much as Day. Sulwe wakes up the next day feeling empowered and beautiful, no longer ashamed of the color of her skin.
Justification: I chose this book due to its beautiful cover, and the popularity among the libraries. The beautiful illustrations sparked interest in me to read this book.
Evaluation: I will be evaluating the illustrations, fonts, and the plot.
The illustrations in the book are captivating. The colors used to depict the story were just perfect. The illustrations flowed so well with the story. The small detail of having Sulwe wearing a star necklace throughout the pages was nice to see since Sulwe means star.
The fonts used on some pages seemed a little too small for me. Some of the colors of the fonts almost blended in with the background on some of the pages. I think it would have been nice to see more text be incorporated with the beautiful illustrations for example the words could have flowed around the characters in some scenes. Despite that, it does not take away from the amazing story.
In the beginning of the book, readers will find themselves heartbroken to learn that Sulwe does not like the color of her skin and that she tries to scrub off her color. She also tried eating lighter food in the hopes of becoming lighter. She did not feel beautiful the way she looked, and she longed to have friendships at school instead of being teased. The story shares a beautiful message and leaves the reader feeling empowered as the character sees herself as beautiful after learning darkness is important too. Readers will enjoy this story, and some may be able to relate to Sulwe if they have a feature, they do not like about themselves.
References: Nyong’o, L. (2019). Sulwe (V. Harrison, Illus.). Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
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