a song for august
by Sally Denmead, illustrated by Alleanna Harris
An ode to one of America's foremost Black playwrights, August Wilson, and a meditation on culture, erasure, and what ultimately drives an artist's desire to create.
August Wilson grew up open to the creative inspiration in everything he encountered: in library books, in music, in artworks, in the lively conversations overheard in the restaurants and barbershops lining the Pittsburgh neighborhood of his childhood.
August paid attention. He listened. And when he got older, he got ideas about what to do with everything he’d seen and heard — ideas that would make him one of the greatest playwrights in American history.
Type: Picture Book
Pages: 40
Format: Hardcover
Publication: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781646144396
PRAISE
“A warm introduction to a master of American drama.”
–Kirkus
“Harris’s emotionally resonant illustrations (sketches composed with digital ink pens and finished using digital gouache brushes) support Denmead’s lyrical narrative and inspirational tone.”
–Horn Book
“Debut author Denmead takes readers on the journey through the life of American playwright August Wilson… Readers will appreciate the obstacles August overcame to become an iconic playwright… Highlighting Wilson’s talent and determination, Denmead helps readers appreciate his genius.”
–Booklist
“"A meditation on culture, erasure, and what ultimately drives an artist's desire to create, A Song for August is especially and unreservedly recommended for picture book biography collections."
–Midwest Book Review
“Finally, the brilliant chronicler of Black life in America, author of the Century Cycle, is the focus of a book accessible to young readers."
–Imaginary Elevators
About Sally Denmead
Sally Denmead is an opera singer, director, and actor who moved from Brooklyn to Pittsburgh, where she fell in love with the plays of August Wilson. This is her first book.
About Alleanna Harris
Alleanna Harris is a children's book illustrator and artist. As a kid, she would doodle on notebooks in school and on programs in church. She graduated from the University of the Arts with a BFA in animation with honors. Harris lives in New Jersey.
