More Than Anything Else [Hardcover]

Marie Bradby (Author), Chris K. Soentpiet (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

"A fictionalized story about the life of young Booker T. Washington. Living in a West Virginia settlement after emancipation, nine-year-old Booker travels by lantern light to the salt works, where he labors from dawn till dusk. Although his stomach rumbles, his real hunger is his intense desire to learn to read.... [A] moving and inspirational story." - School Library Journal, starred review

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 3?A fictionalized story about the life of young Booker T. Washington. Living in a West Virginia settlement after emancipation, nine-year-old Booker travels by lantern light to the salt works, where he labors from dawn till dusk. Although his stomach rumbles, his real hunger is his intense desire to learn to read. Back in town, the boy sees a man reading aloud from a newspaper; he envisions himself possessing this magical knowledge and passing it on to others. When his mother presents him with an alphabet book, he studies the letters and "...tries to imagine their song." Just when he is feeling frustrated, he finds the newspaper man, who explains the letters. An exuberant Booker throws his arms in the air, then settles down to learn how to write his name. Bradby's text is eloquent, presenting phrases and spinning images that capture the intense feelings in the story. Throughout the poetic narrative, Booker glows with his desire to read, and the inspiring tone of the language predicts a bright future. Soentpiet's watercolors create a realistic sense of time and place, perfectly matching the emotional level of the text. Booker awkwardly lifting a heavy shovel of salt, his straight-backed posture when accepting the book from his mother, his look of concentration while practicing his letters by candlelight, his face shining with satisfaction when he has written his name?all of these images, underscored by a dramatic use of shadow and light, work with the words to create a moving and inspirational story.?Joy Fleishhacker, New York Public Library
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 5^-8. The spare, lovely narrative of this picture book, based on the childhood of Booker T. Washington, is in the voice of a nine-year-old boy. He tells of leaving his cabin before dark to work all day shoveling salt with his father and older brother: "All day long we shovel it, but it refuses to grow smaller." Despite the community poverty and toil, there's a sense of freedom now, something different: "All people are free to go where they want and do what they can." What Booker wants is to read. Finally, he finds someone to teach him his letters, and it's as if he's reborn. He will read, and he'll teach others to read. Soentpiet's beautiful watercolor paintings show individual portraits lit up from the surrounding darkness. There's some idealization: even in the saltworks the pictures focus not on the back-breaking, skin-tearing labor, but on the child's view of himself and his world. Booker dreams of the light of literacy and the freedom it will bring. The story will hold kids and make them want to find out more about the person and the history. Hazel Rochman

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Orchard Books (September 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0531094642
• ISBN-13: 978-0531094648
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 8.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #153,266 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "More Than Anything Else" - a review, November 14, 2005

By 

Pam Tee "Busy Mom" - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: More Than Anything Else (Hardcover)

Well, 53 Five Star reviews pretty much says it all.

This is a beautiful book. Not only is the artwork superb (see the cover and Amazon's "Search Inside This Book" feature) but the story is glorious. A triumph of the human spirit when everything in the immediate environment says 'give up' and 'don't dare to dream'.

In this fictionalized story of Booker T. Washington, a young boy ignores the difficult world around him -- where newly freed slaves struggle to find their place in the changing American economy, where 9 year old boys work alongside grown men doing hard labor, where families are short of food -- and dreams of something better.

He says in the book:
"I see a man reading a newspaper aloud and all doubt falls away. I have found hope, and it is as brown as me.

"I see myself the man. And as I watch his eyes move across the paper, it is as if I know what the black marks mean, as if I am reading. As if everyone is listening to *me*. And I hold that thought in my hands.

"I will work until I am the best reader in the county. Children will crowd around me, and I will teach *them* to read."

A love for books and the importance of the written word comes through in this book. A great book to include in any home library.

Five Stars. Beautiful art and story. Amazon has the age range as 4 to 8, but as a mom I think 4 is too young to fully absorb the implications of this story. Likewise, I think the message is one that children older than 8 could come to love.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars remarkable, November 17, 1999

By 

Staci "Life in the Thumb" (Jeddo, MI, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: More Than Anything Else (Library Binding)

This book is so special I just checked it out from the Library for my two sons. I can't to read it to them. I read it while I was at the library. The feeling I received after reading this was overwhelming...to have that desire to read and overcoming any obstacle to do it! How much our young people today take for granted! Reading is such a wonderful gift that all should be able to experience! buy it or check it out...you and your family will love it!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for teachers of reading!, May 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: More Than Anything Else (Library Binding)

This is a "must have" for any teacher grades K-3. The illustrations are beautifully done. The text is perfect for a read aloud. It makes a great gift for the end of the year to a teacher who taught your child to read. It would be perfect to use in a workshop on reading and literacy.