ACCESS DIGITIZED EDITION
Guide/Reviews Database
PICTURE BOOKS
Weatherford, Carole Boston , Weatherford, Jeffrey Boston

Rap It Up!

32 pp. | Holt | March, 2025 | Trade ISBN 9781250833570 $18.99
(2) K-3 Illustrated by Ernel Martinez. "My mom claims I was rapping before I could speak. / Matter of fact, I freestyled eight days a week." A young MC serves as the narrator of this ode to hip-hop, which introduces readers to rap as an art form that is primarily about wordplay. An early illustration shows three kids drawing on a wall with the word hyperbole incorporated into the art. The word is then defined on the following page, providing an important lesson about language: "Remember that rap is poetry." The text includes several terms that reinforce the use of literary devices -- alliteration, onomatopoeia, and personification -- all of which are defined in an appended glossary. The young protagonist provides a step-by-step guide to writing and performing rap lyrics, with many instructions written on what appears to be notebook paper. Martinez's illustrations in a dreamlike watercolor style include some classic hallmarks of rap: a crate full of records, a cassette tape, a large boom box, shell-top sneakers, and plenty of microphones. The young characters' faces are expressive and lifelike. One particularly effective double-page spread depicts a tree whose branches sprout words and verses. An author's note by Jeffery Boston Weatherford is appended.
Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2025

RELATED 

PICTURE BOOKS

Born Ready
by Patterson, Jodie
PICTURE BOOKS

The House of Grass and Sky
by Ray, Mary Lyn
PICTURE BOOKS

The Dog's Gardener
by Storms, Patricia
PICTURE BOOKS

And I Paint It
by Kephart, Beth
PICTURE BOOKS

Poem in My Pocket
by Tougas, Chris
More

Get connected. Join our global community of more than 200,000 librarians and educators.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?