Book Description
for My Mother Was a Nanny by Laura James
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
A Black child describes her hard-working mother by cataloging the many jobs she does by day of the week. On Monday, her mother nannies for her daughters’ teachers, Tuesday she shops at the greengrocer, Wednesday she bakes bread for the week, Thursday she’s ready for a customer to pick up the wedding dress and cake she made, Saturday she cleans offices. The mother is also a sympathetic friend and listener who makes time for friends and relatives. A story focused on the mother remains marvelously child-centered, just like the young narrator and her sisters are clearly a focus of their mother’s life—made clear when their mother surprises them with matching handmade Easter dresses. “‘I may be busy,’ Mummy said. ‘But I always have time for you.’” Race and class issues are never explicitly mentioned but apparent across the pages of this picture book honoring James’s Antiguan mother and featuring paintings in acrylic on linen with saturated colors that pop. (Ages 4-8)
CCBC Choices 2024. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2024. Used with permission.