The Day Madear Voted

April 15, 2024
Preschool-Grade 3 In 1969, two young Black boys watch their mother, whom they call Madear, fix their breakfast while they listen to her tales of poll taxes, reading tests, and other unfair practices that kept her from voting in the past. But times have changed. They take the bus to city hall, where they recognize many friends and neighbors who have come to vote. The atmosphere is joyous. While Madear greets the many people she knows from church on their first trip to the polling place, she seems nervous when some white voters glare at her. Afterwards, Madear calls the day "a turning point." In 2008, her grown sons drive Madear to the polling place. That night, they learn that Barack Obama will be the incoming president, a victory that allows them "to imagine a different future." The illustrations, created with "digital watercolor and mixed media," clearly express the characters' shifting emotions. Told from the son Ralph's point of view, the straightforward first-person narrative is engaging, and at the story's end, the family's joy is heartfelt and memorable.

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June 15, 2024
Hard-won civic rights turn Election Day into something special for one Black mother. Madear's children aren't fully aware of how special today is, but their mother--sporting one of her best dresses--joyously explains that this Tuesday in 1969 will be the first day she gets to vote. She delivers a straightforward civic and history lesson to her children (one of whom narrates) and to readers: "Many obstacles [were] put up to prevent Black folks from voting." The digital watercolor and mixed-media illustrations become relatively muted during flashbacks in which distressed Black folk are subjected to poll taxes, reading tests, and "even a test where people had to correctly guess the number of jelly beans in a jar!" The subsequent spread of protests contrasts with the vibrant images of Madear with kids in tow proceeding to their city hall in Taylorville, Louisiana. The monumental shift from the disenfranchised past to the present of 1969 is significant, but even still, the young narrator witnesses the mean looks Madear receives as she queues before the voting booth. Nonetheless, she votes and triumphantly leaves the building in her floral dress, bright orange coat, and head scarf, sun streaming behind her. Her children are equally ecstatic; the Voting Rights Act of 1965 would be just the beginning of Madear and her family's electoral participation. The book concludes with the family celebrating the election of Barack Obama in 2008. This straightforward yet empowering tale will get youngsters energized for Election Day. A brightly colored retread of voting rights in an easy package. (author's and illustrator's notes) (Picture book. 5-8)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 15, 2024
Personal and political history intertwines in a warmly affirming tale of two Black siblings witnessing a milestone event—their mother voting for the first time in 1969 Louisiana. An unnamed narrator and younger brother admire Madear, smartly dressed to vote. Concise narration outlines the U.S.’s history of Black voter suppression before following the family to the polling station, which “felt just like being at church, with people greeting us enthusiastically.” Voting still requires courage, but exiting the curtained booth to friends’ “Amen!”s, Madear discusses how good the action feels. She also speculates on a world in which Black people will be elected to political office, an idea shown as actualized when Madear votes in the 2008 Presidential election. In brown-outlined digital watercolor and mixed-media images by Tate, Madear’s hands-on-hips stance embodies power and pride in an intergenerational book about a woman who “walked into a voting booth... and allowed us to imagine a different future.” Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Creators’ notes conclude. Ages 3–7.

Starred review from August 30, 2024

Gr 1-5-Just in time for the upcoming 2024 presidential election, Hudson and Tate combine their formidable talents to bring to young readers the historical context of the hard-won rights of Black people to vote. Tate's sepia-toned illustrations identify scenes of voting in 1969 as "longer-ago" history as the young male narrator recalls his mother's first time voting in the South after a lifetime of Jim Crow deprivations in Louisiana. The palette becomes enlivened by brighter primary colors as history moves through the 2008 election and into the present day; these beautifully convey Madear's feelings of joy and collective empowerment. Hudson, known for his prolific and dedicated lifetime of work ensuring that Black children can see themselves in books and that history is preserved and told in the most engaging ways possible for young readers, adds an author's note summarizing the larger historical context of the narration. Keeping pace is Tate, who movingly shares in an illustrator's note that details his familial connections to the story, making this picture book a useful one for older elementary students as well as those in middle school and high school working with picture books. VERDICT This timely and timeless selection is a perfect fit for every school library.-Jessica Fenster-Sparber

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