(2) K-3 Illustrated by Ashley Bryan. "Our Caribbean Creole speech had become established as 'Bad Talk,'" says Berry in a foreword to this fine collection of poems evoking his school years in 1930s Jamaica. The poet's sensitivity to different modes of English underlies his deft handling of the relationship between language and meaning. Bryan's graciously composed illustrations present the budding writer and friends in vibrant black and white. Ind.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2004

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Shelly Hehenberger. Rich hues of magenta, purple, and blue declare the magic of Dreena and Delroy's ordinary world. As they draw, read, bike, and skate through their day, alone or with friends and family, their play is matched by moments of contemplation. Berry moves easily from the quiet of Dreena's dreamy voice as she catalogs her family in verse to the more boisterous poems of her brother.

Reviewer: Susan P. Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 1999