by Catherine Johnson
with illustrations by Katie Hickey
“Some people say I changed the world. I like that. I reckon this world needs a heap of changes”.
Our doyenne of middle grade historical fiction is back and, this time, Catherine Johnson is tasked with relaying the knotty, sometime controversial, always complex, life of Josephine Baker. A dancer, comedian, impersonator, singer and silent movie star, Josephine Baker was also a French Resistance agent and a civil rights activist- indeed, an activist who was asked in 1968, by the widow of Martin Luther King Jnr, to become the new leader of the civil rights movement!
Johnson tracks Josephine Baker’s life from her upbringing in “the meanest, most run-down part of the city of St Louis”, to joining family musical troop tours whilst still in her teens, to her stage debut in Harlem, to her arrival at famed Parisian musical theatre, Folies Bergère, and then her rise and rise –coinciding with years working for the counter intelligence service of the French government during WWII- before, finally a decline in her wealth, health and fame. The narrative ends, however, with a final boost of acclaim and adoration with details of a 1975 tribute concert held to mark her 50 years in show business, attended by Mick Jagger, Diana Ross and Liza Minnelli.
A quite extraordinary life, one very hard to condense in its fullness and one very hard to communicate to young readers due to the harsh conditions, abuse and virulent racism which figured so often in Josephine Baker's life, alongside the acclaim and extravagant lifestyle she enjoyed. But, as ever, Catherine Johnson has managed to extract from a complicated history, all of the gems and then polished them up so as she can deliver them both honestly and thoughtfully to her young audience. Add to this the trademark accessibility of publisher Barrington Stoke (famed for their appeal to reluctant and dyslexic readers especially) and you have the highlights of an extraordinary life compacted down in to a finely crafted novella. [Full marks too for naming JB’s bisexuality and giving her her place in LGBTQ+ History]. Reading age: 8+ Interest: 9+, Paperback 108pp
Themes: LGBTQ+
Themes: Black History