Reviews

The Last Stand by Antwan Eady

mnstucki's review

hopeful informative sad medium-paced

3.0

naomiysl's review

emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Very moving portrait of Black family farm, and the ways in which they support the community, and the community supports them in return. 

mldavisreads's review

emotional reflective

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Picture book. Earl's pumpkins, peppers, plums, and eggs is the last stand at the farmer(s) market in this town. Earl comes every Saturday with his grandson who refers to him as Papa.  They have a routine of who harvests what and who sets up what, and which customers need which purchase.  But when Papa gets too tired, his grandson tries to do it all himself.  Too young to drive, he tries valiantly to take his bike.  The  following week he ties a wagon to his bike and is pleased to find that the regulars are still there. They come bearing gifts of pumpkin pie, candied plums, and stuffed peppers for the ailing grandfather-- all made with the produce they bought from him. 

This is a slow paced, kind of melancholy story, but yet still hopeful.  At the end, we see one of the other booths re-opens as a watermelon stand.  The feeling of a poor town in a food desert is there, but so too is the feeling of love and community.  The illustrations by the Pumphrey brothers--done with handmade stamps and edited digitally according to the art note-- do a great job at capturing the full range of work and emotions around this family farm.

librarica11's review

emotional

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0