STAMPED

I'm going to make this brief and to the point.

Everyone (young people, old people, parents, educators, administrators, stakeholders, everyone) needs to read this book. I mean, look what I wrote in my book journal after I listened to the it.  No notes. No quotes. No review, really. Believe me, I could have filled many pages with quotes but yet, just this:

Jason Reynolds was an amazing morning and luncheon keynote yesterday at the School Library Journal's Day of Dialog.  Jason with Ibram X. Kendi, the adult STAMPED author, kicked off the day inspiring us all.  "Words matter," Jason said. "Strive in each moment to be anti-racist," Kendi plead. Jason described racism as a virus. People can be asymptomatic and still pass it on.  STAMPED is the vaccine and we all need to ingest it. He said it. I say it. Everyone needs to read this book.

My 17 year old daughter sat with me for the lunch keynote and didn't move until Jason disappeared. All I wrote in my notes was, "AMAZING! IMPORTANT!" He became the topic of our dinner conversation that turned to the current events then anger and ultimately, tears. She wants to make a difference. She wants Jason's and #OwnVoices books to be a part of our curriculum. She feels so passionate about this that she wants to do the research and present to the BOE and I support her.  I just forwarded her this article from SLJ and this one.  

I can't speak to the print version of the book, but I will say, the audio of STAMPED is so powerful.  Odyssey and Grammy worthy for sure. Jason reads it and I felt like he was reading to me. I'm sure the print is just as good.  I'll let you know because we'll be getting a copy delivered to my house. I can safely say that my daughter doesn't read my blog so I can share that I ordered her a copy as a graduation gift. I may just slip in a few pages (or the whole book) myself sometime this summer before she embarks on her next chapter. I wouldn't be surprised if she packs STAMPED in among her toothpaste and extra long sheets.  It's that essential.