{"id":3945,"date":"2015-12-13T00:01:09","date_gmt":"2015-12-13T06:01:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=3945"},"modified":"2015-12-12T17:09:17","modified_gmt":"2015-12-12T23:09:17","slug":"7-imps-7-kicks-461-featuring-marjorie-priceman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=3945","title":{"rendered":"7-Imp\u2019s 7 Kicks #461: Featuring Marjorie Priceman"},"content":{"rendered":"


 

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“The snow had stopped. The sky was blue-black, and the stars looked close enough to pluck right out and put into your pocket if you wanted to,
but Jos\u00e9 decided to leave them just where they were.”<\/em>
(Click to enlarge spread)<\/center>
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\nThis morning at 7-Imp, I’ve got some spreads from Sonia Manzano’s<\/a><\/strong> (otherwise known as MARIA FROM SESAME STREET<\/em>!) Miracle on 133rd Street<\/a><\/strong><\/em> (Atheneum, September 2015), illustrated by Marjorie Priceman<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n

You can tell right away, after seeing the exuberant endpapers, that you’re in for a joyous treat with this one, the story of holiday cheer turning from sour to sweet. It’s Christmas Eve, and Jos\u00e9 has a frown on his face. The tree he’s trying to decorate is “practically a twig,” and his mother is unhappy that the oven is too small for her roast. “We never should have left Puerto Rico,” she tells her husband and son. “There we could have roasted it outside. Everything is too small here.” <\/p>\n


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“‘What’s all this racket?’ she demanded. …
‘Christmas, Christmas, Christmas, that’s all I hear all day.
My kids are driving me crazy. …'”<\/em>
(Click to enlarge spread)<\/center>
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\nJos\u00e9’s father decides that he and his son will take the roast to the nearby pizzeria to ask if they can cook the roast in a large pizza oven. As they head out through their apartment building, they pass their neighbors, grumbling about one thing or another — from Mrs. Whitman’s children, driving her crazy; to Mr. and Mrs. Santiago’s despair over their children not visiting this year; to Mr. Franklin’s fear of the outdoors (“Are you nuts?! Going out on the day before Christmas?! That’s when all the muggers are out.”), to the Wozenskys, complaining about the high costs of the holidays; and more.
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“Yvonne and Jos\u00e9 decorated the window with the leftover decorations. …”<\/em>
(Click to enlarge spread)<\/center>
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\nBut when Jos\u00e9 and his father bring the cooked roast back to the apartment complex, with the pizzeria owner in tow, its smell brightens the mood of everyone in the building. Priceman’s swooopy, swirly lines for the roast’s delicious scent nearly hypnotizes everyone — and improves their holiday spirits ten-fold. In the end, everyone crowds into the small apartment of Jos\u00e9 and his Mami and Papi: “Thanks goodness this apartment is big enough to hold all our friends,” says Mami. “It’s a miracle.”
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\nPriceman’s artwork here is a riotous burst of joy, energy, and color, and the gathering of folks is a truly multicultural one. (Priceman was the perfect<\/em> choice for this story.) Manzano’s text is detailed, and she has a particularly good ear for dialogue. I like how Maria Russo put it in the New York Times<\/em><\/a><\/strong>: This is a “buoyant Christmas tale.” <\/p>\n

And it’s just right if you’re feeling a bit of holiday malaise. It might cure just what ails ya. <\/p>\n

If you wanna see even more art, head over to Jama Rattigan’s site here<\/a><\/strong>!<\/p>\n

MIRACLE ON 133RD STREET. Copyright \u00a9 2015 by Sonia Manzano. Illustrations copyright \u00a9 2015 by Marjorie Priceman. Spreads used by permission of the publisher, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, New York.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Note for any new readers: 7-Imp\u2019s 7 Kicks is a weekly meeting ground for taking some time to reflect on Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week, whether book-related or not, that happened to you. New kickers are always welcome. <\/p>\n

* * * Jules’ Kicks * * *<\/strong><\/font>
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1)<\/strong><\/font> Marjorie Priceman’s artwork always makes me happy. <\/p>\n

2)<\/strong><\/font> Hope<\/a><\/strong> for our planet. <\/p>\n

3)<\/strong><\/font> This, from Rufus<\/a><\/strong>, is beautiful (and way too short):
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