Description

From award-winning author Carole Boston Weatherford comes a captivating picture book biography about the incredible life of esteemed author, editor, and activist Toni Morrison, featuring gorgeous illustrations by debut artist Khalif Tahir Thompson.

How do you tell a story?

Before Toni Morrison was a Pulitzer Prize winner and Nobel Prize–winning author, she was Chloe Ardelia Wofford, a little girl in Ohio who was both the only Black child in her first-grade classroom and the only student who was able to read.

This is the true story of how that young girl learned from her upbringing, surrounded herself with stories, and made a tremendous impact on the world. Toni Morrison’s pen was her sword, and she grew to be a titan of the arts. Her legacy is one that still touches readers to this day.

Expertly and evocatively told by award-winning author Carole Boston Weatherford, with beautiful painted illustrations by Khalif Tahir Thompson, this is a must-have picture book biography for any collection. It celebrates Toni Morrison’s legacy while inspiring readers to create art, believe in themselves, and strive for greatness. 

About the Author

Carole Boston Weatherford has written many award-winning books for children, including the Newbery Honor winner BOX: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom and the Caldecott Honor winners Freedom in Congo Square; Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement; and Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom. Her recent books include R-E-S-P-EC-T, The Roots of Rap, Be a King, Dreams for a Daughter, and The Legendary Miss Lena Horne. Carole lives in North Carolina. Visit her at cbweatherford.com.

Khalif Tahir Thompson graduated from Purchase College with a BFA and has since completed fellowships at the EFA Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop in NYC and the Vermont Studio Center. He has also done the Jerome Emerging Artist residency at the Anderson Center and received a 2021 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship in painting. Thompson traveled to Dakar, Senegal, to participate as a 2022 Black Rock Senegal artist-in-residence. He is currently attending the Yale School of Art for an MFA in painting and printmaking. A Crown of Stories is his first picture book.

Praise For…

“Thoughtful. Attending closely observed second-person text that puts the reader in Morrison’s shoes, debut artist Tahir Johnson combines media, including paint and collage, lending textured depth to portraits of a creator whose stories ‘get under our skin, next to our hearts, and inside our souls.’” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Weatherford skillfully weaves together the various aspects of the writer’s life in a lyrical account that flows and reveals her rich contributions. Transcendent and deeply resonant.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Both the reverent art and the text provide an intimate glimpse into Morrison’s remarkable life story.” — Horn Book (starred review)