ReadItDaddy's Picture Book of the Week - Week Ending 24th April 2020: "The Undefeated" by Kwame Alexander and Kadir Nelson (Andersen Children's Books)

This week's picture book of the week is a powerful and stirring piece of narrative non-fiction from an author and playwright who uses his immense talent to talk to a younger audience than usual.

The result is the stunning "The Undefeated" by Kwame Alexander and Kadir Nelson.

It's a stirring piece of work, discussing the amazing figures in black history, with a spotlight on African-American history in particular.

But the book does more than just list those noted figures, this book is designed to show that ordinary everyday people's lives matter just as much as the artists, athletes and activists described in this book, and the injustices against them deserve to be discussed with youngsters, not hidden from them.

Powerfully poetic, mighty and memorable, this is the sort of book we can't champion enough - a vitally important piece of work for people of colour the world over, and for their kids who want to see more of their own history than current early years books can manage. 

Sum this book up in a sentence: A hugely important piece of work, providing an accessible inroad into black history for younger children who want to know more about their own ancestors, and their struggles to right the injustices served against them over generations. 

"The Undefeated" by Kwame Alexander and Kadir Nelson is out now, published by Andersen Children's Books (kindly supplied for review).