8 December 2016 GARVEY’S CHOICE by Nikki Grimes, Wordsong, October 2016, 120p., ISBN: 978-1-62979740-3

“...My father would lift me high

And dance with my mother and me

And then

Spin me around ‘till I fell asleep

Then up the stairs he would carry me

And I knew for sure

I was loved”

--Luther Vandross, “Dance With My Father”

“The Luther is ‘a house-made brioche donut, glazed in maple-chicken a jus and topped with warm pieces of oven-baked pecans. While that sounds like a meal already, the brioche is cut in half and stuffed with a piece of buttermilk fried chicken and wedges of applewood smoked bacon.’

“...Legend has it that Luther Vandross, the wonderfully soulful R&B singer, created the original sandwich. That might explain some of his health problems that included diabetes and high blood pressure, both linked to bad diet and being overweight. Vandross died in 2005, at the young age of 54, of a heart attack.

“Do you really want to eat a sandwich named after the man it killed?”

-- Davalos McCormick, “The Sandwich that Killed Luther Vandross” (2011)

TOO SOON GOOD-BYE

Luther died before

I knew his music, his name.

It’s the why of it

makes me want to punch a wall.

He shouldn’t have died at all.

News stories agree.

What did him in was his weight,

all that yo-yoing,

up and down, losing, gaining.

His heart just couldn’t take it.

I did the right thing,

giving up crash dieting.

Maybe it’s better

to eat less, jog with Joe, go

slow so I can stick around.

An engaging verse novel for middle grade readers employing the tanka poetic format, GARVEY’S CHOICE features an overweight boy who seeks to discover his own voice as he struggles with body issues and his father’s disapproval.

Garvey is named for black nationalist Marcus Garvey. He’s into reading, astronomy, and chess, activities that don’t involve a lot of running and coordination. He fears that his sports-loving father sees him as an alien. He’s picked on at school for being overweight. His best friend is Joe.

JOE

Joe caught me dancing

in first grade, during recess,

out back by the slide,

alone--or so I thought, till

Joe showed up and joined right in.

Seems funny now, ‘cause

there was no music playing

and neither of us

minded or needed any.

We were our own melody.

We went back to class,

each waiting for the other

to spill his secret

for a laugh. But we didn’t.

That’s how we knew we’d be friends.

Thanks to Joe and another good friend, Garvey finds the confidence to try out for concert choir, and his success with singing helps him strive toward healthier management of his weight problem.

GARVEY’S CHOICE is a feel-good story. Garvey’s newfound talent leads to healthy self-confidence and an improved personal relationship with his father.

This is an important story because of Garvey’s weight problem. For years, experts in public health have warned that the U.S. is suffering catastrophic health crises due to widespread obesity and the related epidemic of Type II diabetes. Diets that include too much soda, junk food, and processed food combine with sedentary lifestyles. The result, according to the CDC, is that one in three American children and adolescents are overweight or obese, and over one-third of American adults are obese and at risk of dying prematurely. Therefore, it’s great to see this issue as part of the story.

For some, GARVEY’S CHOICE will be a quick and easy read. It’s approachable, short, and there is a lot of white space. For others, those who enjoy a memorable turn-of-phrase and who like to poke around in the stitching and see how an author weaves words into a poetic pattern, this is a tasty treat to savor.

Richie Partington, MLIS

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