Skit-Scat Raggedy Cat: Ella Fitzgerald by Roxane Orgill illus. by Sean Qualls.When, we first meet Ella, she's a young girl singing along to a phonograph with her two sisters and their mother, Tempie. Orgill text is entertaining and informative. Sometimes I am still surprised how many facts authors can smoothly fit into a paragraph, as was the case here.
"Where did Ella live? Anywhere and nowhere. People took her in, gave her a meal and a bed. Or didn't. In 1934, half of Harlem was out of work. Men, women, and children were scrounging in garbage cans for food. At the Baptist church, you could get a bowl of soup for free. They gave out used clothing too. Ella got a pair of men's boots to keep the cold off her dancing feet. She was a half starved raggedy cat of seventeen with no home, but she was free to slip down to new Apollo Theater on 125th street."
I've always been a fan of Qualls artistic style. I love his use of color and Ella's expressive eyes. Orgill and Quall have created a wonderful picture book biography. We get so much of Ella. Its a whole lot of fun to read and look at. It will make you want to dance and sing. A great addition to any library. ages 8up
read an excerpt
illustrator Quall featured at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast. I highly recommand checking it out, their illustrator break downs are clinic good.
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