Looking Like Me

by Walter Dean Myers

Hardcover, 2009

Status

Available

Genres

Children's Books

Physical description

32 p.; 10.35 inches

Publication

EgmontUSA (2009), 32 pages

Description

Jeremy sets out to discover all of the different "people" that make him who he is, including brother, son, writer, and runner.

User reviews

LibraryThing member mfowleramato

Looking Like Me is the latest collaboration between Walter Dean Myers and his son, Christopher Myers. This picture book is a celebration of who we are and the many roles we take on in our daily lives. Looking Like Me sends a message to youth that life is full of unlimited possibilities, encouraging

them to approach it with confidence.

Christopher Myers makes use of collage, pairing brightly-colored cutouts of youth with photographs of various places and people around the world. His illustrations enhance the message communicated through Walter Dean Myers' text, showing young people that they can make a place for themselves anywhere they choose to do so.

The art and the modern, rhythmic language, which seems to be created in the spirit of hip-hop, will appeal to youth of all ages. I think that this picture book could be used in classrooms to begin a conversation about the different roles we take on as well as the different ways we communicate in various contexts, making space for language varieties to enter the classroom conversation. I also think that this book could be used with pre-service teachers to discuss the different identities that students try on both in and out of school.

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LibraryThing member lnpowers

I liked this book because it was done in a way that could be for any child of any race. The images of people that are doing the things that are discussed in the text are bright and colorful therefore opening the door to many races.

This book could go along with a library program that discusses the

different titles a child could wear. I fun activity could include coloring buttons that identify each child as the things they are.

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LibraryThing member NMkimdykstra

your personal response to the book:

I love the illustrations in this book. I also thought this was a very positive book in that it prompts kids to define who they are.

curricular connections (how you might use it with students in a classroom or school library) or programming connections (how you

might use this book in a public library setting):

I think in a school setting it would be a lot of fun to read this story and challenge the kids to make something similar to this about themselves!

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LibraryThing member calvinsmith8

Oh, yes the roles we do play in life. They can be overwhelming at time, but the young protagonist in this story seems to be quite at ease with his role as a boy, a son, a brother, a student, a reader, a friend, a writer, an artist, and a dreamer! The art seemed unrelated to the central story line,

but the cut out collage is visually captivating, colorful and attractive. I liked how the kid would always hit fists "POW" with all of the people he would meet, on his journey to discovering himself.

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LibraryThing member cspine

The young protagonist in this story seems to be quite at ease with his role as a boy, a son, a brother, a student, a reader, a friend, a writer, an artist, and a dreamer! The art seemed unrelated to the central story line, but the cut out collage is visually captivating, colorful and attractive.

LibraryThing member BrittaSorensen

Summary: In this rhythmic book, a young boy looks in the mirror, wondering what kind of person he is. He goes through his day, meeting people who tell him what he is to them: a son, a brother, a writer, a city child, an artist, etc. It reads like a poem or a song, with only a few lines per page and

the repetition of the phrase, "I gave it a bam."

Genre: Picture book, Poetry

Comments: The illustrations, a collage of photographs and paintings, are complex, bright, and fun, drawing the reader in and asking for multiple interpretations. The use of rhythm and rhyme appeals to children of all ages, as does the repetition of the phrase, "I gave it a bam." It would be an EXCELLENT book to use as a starting-off point for the kids writing their own poems that describe what kind of people they are. They could even bring in pictures to use to make collages, like the illustrator does.

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LibraryThing member tzarate

This book has great illustrations and it talks about being yourself and accepting yourself as you are.

LibraryThing member jegammon

Response - The book is upbeat and energetic. The style teaches lessons about identity in an engaging way.

Curricular connection - read aloud, teaching identity and self-awareness

LibraryThing member thewanderingjew

Just 32 pages long, this brief, little picture book would be a welcome read for children of all ages, adults too, because of the message of self-esteem it imparts. I enjoyed listening to it and am sorry I did not get to see the illustrations. The narrators read it with inspiring expression and

feeling. Everyone reading or listening to this lyrical, rap-rhythm presentation of the book, will get the message of hope and confidence, the message to believe in one’s own ability to be all that is possible. It is an uplifting message that is sorely needed, not only in urban communities, but everywhere in the world!

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LibraryThing member matesewiggns

Lookin Look Me written by Walter Dean Myers and illustrated by Christopher Myers is a colorful artist story about a young African American boy life through rhythm. The story starts with Jeremy looking in the mirror and seeing a handsome dude. As the book continues Jeremy sisters, brother, father,

teachers, and community is shown through his eyes and is introduced in rhythms. Some themes that can be found in this book is Self-love, self-worth, family, and community.

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