We Are America: a Tribute From the Heart (Walter Dean Myers)

Written by the award-winning author of "Monster" in a timeline of gorgeous, moving poetry and illustrations, Walter Dean Myers says, "Writing 'We Are America' has been a journey not of discovery, but of rediscovery."

This book is a beautiful combination of art and history woven into one, from the British arriving in America, to Americans fighting for equality in the 1960s. Myers' son, Christopher Myers, offers illustrations that portray the emotions of each sequence of time included in the book, and work well parallel to his father's writing.

I believe one of the best ways to learn about history is through real peoples' viewpoints, seeing through their eyes and imagining how they viewed this world at their time, and Myers does just that through this picture book.

Along with quotations from a variety of historical and/or political figures (i.e. Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Edward Johnson) the book mixes historical fiction with real history, to give you a piece of writing spilling with information on America and its inhabitants from a variety of perspectives.

A wonderful investment for any teacher, parent or student, "We Are America" is a timeless tale of our ever-evolving nation. Ages 9 and up.