(1) K-3 Illustrated by Ekua Holmes. Adapted from King's autobiography, this picture book offers a new generation the remarkable story of the activist, artist, wife, and mother whose grace in the face of unspeakable loss continued the momentum of a movement. Beginning with glimpses into her childhood in segregated Alabama, King (1927–2006) describes being the second Black student admitted to Antioch College (her older sister Edythe was the first) and her fight to teach in Ohio -- readers see that her pursuit of equality started long before she met and married Martin Luther King Jr. The first-person retelling of events such as the March on Washington is compellingly personal. Holmes's vibrant illustrations (in acrylic with elements of collage incorporating print and photos) saturate the pages with color. The illustrations also take great care in communicating the very human emotions that King and her family experienced in scenes including her surrounded by her young children at the piano; a phone receiver hanging from its cord at the news of MLK's death; and her speaking to a crowd despite her grief just hours after arriving in Memphis. Art and text bring this civil rights icon to life, reminding readers of a dream yet to be fully realized. Back matter includes a timeline of her life and major events.

Reviewer: Monique Harris | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2024

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Gregory R. Christie. In a sophisticated, poetic picture-book biography, Duncan alternates double-page spreads featuring prose or poems in a variety of forms that highlight Coretta Scott King's accomplishments. ("I wanted to capture the musical quality of her voice and bearing.") Each poem highlights a significant date, such as 1927, which opens the book: "Alabama soil / A fertile plain of black earth / Coretta was born." Lengthy prose sections expand on the poems' topics or move the narrative forward. From her childhood in Alabama under Jim Crow to college in Ohio and studying music in Boston, Coretta followed her mother's encouragement to "get an education and try to be somebody" and her father's assurance that she could "do anything anyone else can do." After Coretta's marriage to Martin Luther King Jr., Duncan describes how the husband-and-wife team became the prominent faces of the civil rights movement and ardent proponents of nonviolent protest. Following MLK's assassination, Coretta continued the mission and worked to establish a national holiday in honor of her husband. Duncan's reverent tone gleams thanks to an effective combination of forthright prose and eclectic poetic forms. Christie conveys the highlights of Coretta's life story in vivid and engaging watercolor renderings. A timeline and bibliography are appended.

Reviewer: Pauletta Brown Bracy | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(4) 4-6 Who HQ: Who Was...? series. Illustrated by Gregory Copeland. Grosset's long-running Who Was...? series is re-branded. These readable, informative biographies are marred only by the caricatured cover illustrations (typical of the classic series) and interior pencil illustrations that are inconsistent in style. Otherwise, these will give young readers a good sense of who these people were (or are). Occasional full- and double-page text boxes successfully illuminate related topics. Timeline. Bib. Review covers these Who HQ: Who Was...? titles: Who Was Jane Austen?, Who Was Chuck Jones?, Who Was Coretta Scott King?, Who Is Ralph Lauren? Who Was Alexander Hamilton?, Who Was Lewis Carroll?, Who Is Pope Francis?, and Who Was Andrew Jackson?.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.

(4) 4-6 Women Who Broke the Rules series. Illustrated by Laura Freeman. Lincoln and King, often historically secondary to their more-famous husbands, take the lead in these biographies. Accompanied by cartoony illustrations, these portrayals waver unevenly between illuminating (King had "obey" removed from her wedding vows) and unflattering ("Mary was always nagging...and bragging") as they candidly address controversies surrounding the influential women. Reading list, websites. Bib., ind. Review covers the following Women Who Broke the Rules titles Coretta Scott King and Mary Todd Lincoln.

Reviewer: Andrea Curtis

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kadir Nelson. Shange's spare, poetic text sketches the life of Coretta Scott King. The story begins with her childhood, when she had to walk five miles each way to school, then moves to her leadership role as partner to Martin Luther King Jr. in life and within the civil rights movement. Nelson's gorgeous oil paintings capture the essence of the woman and her times.

Reviewer: Henrietta M. Smith

(4) YA People in the News series. From politicians to actors to world leaders, these biographies provide mostly adulatory portrayals of their subjects (with the exceptions of Castro and Kim Jong Il); occasionally something controversial slips in to spice up the texts. Each volume includes biographical information, photographs, and career highlights (through 2008). Reading list, timeline, websites. Ind. Review covers these People in the News titles: Salma Hayek, Nancy Pelosi, Al Gore, Coretta Scott King, Pope Benedict XVI, Fidel Castro, and Kim Jong Il.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(3) YA Black Americans of Achievement, Legacy Edition series. Each updated biography (Cochran, King, Parks) explains its well-known subject's rise from adversity to national and/or international recognition, working for social justice in his or her own way. Glover's volume details his past and present-day career as a tap dancer. Captioned photographs and boxed inserts enhance the conversational texts. Reading list, timeline, websites. Ind. Review covers these Black Americans of Achievement, Legacy Edition titles: Johnnie Cochran, Coretta Scott King, Savion Glover, and Rosa Parks.

Reviewer: Henrietta M. Smith

(3) YA Black Americans of Achievement series. Each updated biography raises awareness about the unique contributions of an African American, exploring significant events from the subject's childhood through his or her adulthood while successfully blending information about personal experiences and public achievements. Photographs feature extensive captions, and informative sidebars round out the biographical portraits. There are nine other new books in this series. Reading list, timeline. Ind. Review covers these Black Americans of Achievement titles: Jesse Jackson, Sojourner Truth, Coretta Scott King, Malcolm X, and Frederick Douglass.

Reviewer: Amy Lois Cohn

(4) 4-6 Slick, glossy pages illustrated with sepia photos (some of which are used in more than one book) lend these slim biographies a magazine-like look. A general understanding of African-American history emerges from volume to volume while the individual is the focus of each. The at-times graphic photos are themselves a visual history. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Mary Burkey