Change Has Come

The Drawings of Kadir Nelson with the Words of Barack Obama

Change Has Come: An Artist Celebrates Our American Spirit is a small but powerful book that uses the drawings of award-winning artist and illustrator Kadir Nelson and the words of Barack Obama to commemorate the election of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America. Although published by Simon & Schuster’s imprint for young readers, Change Has Come is definitely not just a book for children. Instead, it is a book for all ages, from children and teens to adults.

Change Has Come: The Book

The quotations in the book come from the period between July 27, 2004, when Barack Obama delivered the keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention, to November 4, 2008, when he made his first speech as President-elect of the United States. Although the quotations in Change Has Come come from five different occasions over a period of more than four years, they flow together relatively seamlessly.

While some of Barack Obama’s words, like “Yes we can” and “the audacity of hope” may be familiar to you, others may not. Much of the emphasis of the quotations in Change Has Come is on change and how people working together (and voting) can bring about change. While acknowledging differences, Obama stresses the need to “find the common stake we all have in one another.”

Change Has Come: The Artist

I was familiar with Kadir Nelson’s dramatic paintings in such children’s books as We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball (first on my Best Illustrated Children’s Books of 2008 list) and MOSES: When Harriet Tubman Led her People to Freedom. I also knew that Nelson had won numerous awards for his children’s book illustrations, including Caldecott Honors and the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award.

I was curious to see how Kadir Nelson illustrated Change Has Come: An Artist Celebrates Our American Spirit, particularly since there was so little time between the presidential election and the publication of the book. I was surprised and delighted to find the book illustrated with simple, yet poignant, sketches. According to Nelson, when he learned that Barack Obama had won the election, and he watched the election night celebration in Chicago's Grant Park,

"I wanted to celebrate that moment in history, and try to save a little bit of the magic that filled the air in Grant Park, and all over the country, all over the world. These very spontaneous drawings serve as a document to preserve our great American achievement, and out new American president. I hope the artwork will remind all who see it of the greatness of our country and its ability to grow and change for the better."

Change Has Come: My Recommendation

For many children, the most important message they received from the election is that an African American really can grow up to be President of the United States. I think there are a lot of messages in this little book that are important to share with our kids and teens:

• Exercising your right to vote can make a difference.
• We are a diverse nation, but together, all of us, regardless of our race or background, make up the United States of America.
• We need to recognize those who came before us and continue working for a better America.
• We all have a role to play.
• We need to remember, “Together, ordinary people can still do extraordinary things.”

I recommend Change Has Come: An Artist Celebrates Our American Spirit for all ages. It would make a good gift book for a tween, a teenager or an entire family. (Simon & Schuster BFYR, An Imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2008. ISBN: 9781416989554)