Book Descriptions
for Just Like a Mama by Alice Faye Duncan and Charnelle Pinkney Barlow
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
"My mother and father live far away. / I wish we lived together. / I wish that they were here. But I live with Mama Rose right now." This phrase is repeated three times throughout the narrative in the voice of a small African American girl who describes her life with her beloved Mama Rose. Just like a mama, she takes care of her needs, teaches her things (including how to dribble a basketball), makes her behave, and loves her. The watercolor illustrations show the child as a light-skinned girl with a lot of curly hair and missing her front tooth, and Mama Rose is a dark-skinned middle-aged woman. The text never tells us why her parents live far away or how she came to live with Mama Rose, which makes this applicable to many different family situations. The author's note mentions the African American tradition of "fictive kin"-made-up or invented relatives who step into a caring role when needed. The illustrations, rendered in watercolor, gouache, colored pencil, and gel pen, were created by a granddaughter of Jerry Pinkney, making this the debut of the third generation of artists from the Pinkney family. (Ages 3-7)
CCBC Choices 2021. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2021. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
Celebrate the heart connection between adopted children and the forever families who welcome them with kindness, care, and unconditional love in this powerful picture book from the author of Honey Baby Sugar Child.
Carol Olivia Clementine lives with Mama Rose. Mama Rose is everything—tender and sweet. She is also as stern and demanding as any good parent should be. In the midst of their happy home, Carol misses her mother and father. She longs to be with them. But until that time comes around, she learns to surrender to the love that is present. Mama Rose becomes her “home.” And Carol Olivia Clementine concludes that she loves Miss Rose, “just like a mama.”
This sweet read-aloud is, on the surface, all about the everyday home life a caregiver creates for a young child: she teachers Clementine how to ride a bike, clean her room, tell time. A deeper look reveals the patience, intention, and care little ones receives in the arms of a mother whose blood is not her blood, but whose bond is so deep—and so unconditional—that it creates the most perfect condition for a child to feel safe, successful, and deeply loved.
Carol Olivia Clementine lives with Mama Rose. Mama Rose is everything—tender and sweet. She is also as stern and demanding as any good parent should be. In the midst of their happy home, Carol misses her mother and father. She longs to be with them. But until that time comes around, she learns to surrender to the love that is present. Mama Rose becomes her “home.” And Carol Olivia Clementine concludes that she loves Miss Rose, “just like a mama.”
This sweet read-aloud is, on the surface, all about the everyday home life a caregiver creates for a young child: she teachers Clementine how to ride a bike, clean her room, tell time. A deeper look reveals the patience, intention, and care little ones receives in the arms of a mother whose blood is not her blood, but whose bond is so deep—and so unconditional—that it creates the most perfect condition for a child to feel safe, successful, and deeply loved.
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.
