Haircut Day with Dad by Monica Mikai and For a Girl Becoming by Joy Harjo

Ferguson Library is continuously adding new books to its children's collection. Two beautiful new ones tap into the love and nurturing that exist within circumscribed communities. 

In Haircut Day with Dad by Monica Mikai, a child is taught what to expect at the barbershop on Saturday morning trips there with his dad. 

In a Black barbershop, there is much more than hair cutting and shaving going on. As "the broom sweeps up endless conversations," a haircut experience feeds the soul and refreshes the spirit in so many ways that "Dad and I leave feeling like two new guys. I feel like I could win any race, and I feel a little taller." 

A little of that feeling rubbed off on me in reading this charming book. It captures the remarkable richness of a seemingly routine experience. This is a book for a dad and small son or daughter to share even if the barbershop is chiefly the territory of the male gender. The illustrations are infectious, with particular attention to hair and to the variety of expressions captured on faces of all ages in the shop. It's a lesson for anyone on how to nurture a child's well being.   

Another beautiful book - For a Girl Becoming - is by former United States Poet Laureate Joy Harjo. This one is about the joy the birth of a child brings to a Native American family and community, and the guidance children are given, based on spiritual principles of reciprocity and kinship with everything in the universe. A small example of the content:

"As you travel...remember this. Give a drink of water to all who ask, whether they be plant, creature, human or spirit; may you always have clean, fresh water. 

"Give kind words and assistance to all you meet along the way. We are all related in this place. May you be surrounded with the helpfulness of family and good friends." 

The entire book is written in this manner while the captivating illustrations enrich the written content on every page.

These two books are all about teaching the ways of the world in ways that simultaneously nurture children and prepare them for living in it. 

-Marianne W.