Going Down Home With Daddy, by Kelly Starling Lyons, Illustrated by Daniel Minter

    Lyons, K. S., & Minter, D. (2020). Going down home with daddy. Peachtree. 

Going Down Home with Daddy, by Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Daniel Minter, is a stunning picture book about a black family getting together for a reunion and a young boy's struggle to find his sense of place among his extended family. Minter uses color masterfully throughout the book to portray emotions as well as the setting in a unique, remarkable manner. Lyon's story is highly descriptive, using phrases such as "peppermint kisses" and "scattering corn for her chickens like tiny bits of gold" to enhance it and bring the story to life. This evocative language is sure to delight any young readers.  

 

Minter used either watercolor or a digital watercolor effect for the illustrations in Going Down Home With Daddy. These illustrations reflect the mood of the story wonderfully. There are designs and shapes overlaid on the pages throughout the book. His use of color serves to highlight the emotions and sensations that our young protagonist experiences, from blue for tiredness in the early morning at the beginning of the book, to warm shades of yellow and orange at the joy of seeing his extended family, to a rainbow of vibrant hues in a moment of inspiration at the book's climax. , The colors and overlaid printed patterns suit this book well, and even help tell the story, rather than simply existing alongside it.

Throughout the book, Minter and Lyons collaborate to create a visually exciting work. Minter uses printed patterns to further complement Lyons' words and his own vivid scenes. For example, while driving through the cotton fields, Lyons describes "a field dotted by puffs of white" cotton. Instead of applying white dots to the green field as another artist might have, Minter provides the viewer with prints of cotton buds overlaying the scene. This creativity on Minter and Lyons' part creates a beautiful story that is ultimately about family and one's roots. This book is a wonderful story for families of all sorts, especially those with strong family traditions who will relate to the family’s experience of seeing each other again for the first time in a while.