Kenny’s story takes place in 1968, during an exciting time in history when new political, social, and cultural ideas were being embraced. A great middle grade novel about that time is: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia, Scholastic, 2012. Kenny, his sister Gwen, and brother, Vaughn, were all affected by these ideas. Inspired by the Black is Beautiful movement, Kenny wanted to design costumes that had an African flair, while his sister, Gwen hoped to become an opera star like her hero, the great African American soprano Leontyne Price. Vaughn, chose the activism of the Black Panthers as his way to help black people in their struggle against injustice.
Click here to watch an interview with the author.
Kenny was fascinated by a book on African Costumes that he saw at the Heritage Bookstore. Here are three books on African Costumes:
Traditional Costumes in Africa Coloring Book: A Vibrant Journey Through Africa’s Heritage by Cs Colors, 2024
Costumes of the World: Africa: Coloring book with traditional African costumes; for children and adults by Reubenshaft, 2023
Traditional African Costumes Paper Dolls by Yuko Green Dover Paper Dolls, 1999
Gwen and Kenny went to private schools where there were only a few black students. The New Kid, by Jerry Craft, Harper, 2019, is an award-winning graphic novel about an African American boy’s experience at an exclusive and mostly white private middle school.
Gwen and Kenny were inspired by the protest of Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Olympics. Victory! Stand! Raising My Fist For Justice by Dr. Tommie Smith, Derrick Barnes and Dawud Anyabwile, Norton Young Readers, 2022, is an outstanding graphic novel which tells the story of Tommie Smith, from young boy to Olympic champion.
Read about Gwen’s hero: Leontyne Price: Singing Star by Kirsten Woronoff, Blackbirch Press, 2002
Vaughn was a young activist. Youth to Power: Your Voice and How to Use It, by Jamie Margolin, HatchetteGo, 2020 is a manual on activism written when Jamie was in high school. Find out about the Black Panthers: Revolution in Our Own Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon, Candlewick Press, 2021.
To learn more about activism visit:
To learn more about opera visit:
https://operaversity.com/audiences/opera-books-kids
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGt5Q2v-3fw&t=23
For fun things to do visit Saving Kenny Kids Interactive Page. Go to the Opera With Kenny watch the Triumphant March, hear Leontyne Price sing, watch Aida at: https://www.charlesbridgemoves.com/pages/saving-kenny
Saving Kenny is available for order on Bookshop.org
Saving Kenny is available for order on Amazon.