About this item
An award-winning author and a Caldecott Medalist take a creative look at the early life of comedic genius Charlie Chaplin.Once there was a little slip of a boy who roamed the streets of London, hungry for life (and maybe a bit of bread) . His dad long gone and his actress mother ailing, five-year-old Charlie found himself onstage one day taking his mum's place, singing and drawing laughs amid a shower of coins. There were times in the poorhouse and times spent sitting in the window at home with Mum, making up funny stories about passersby. And when Charlie described a wobbly old man he saw in baggy clothes, with turned-out feet and a crooked cane, his mother found it sad, but Charlie knew that funny and sad go hand in hand. With a lyrical text and exquisite collage imagery, Gary Golio and Ed Young interpret Charlie Chaplin's path from his childhood through his beginnings in silent film and the creation of his iconic Little Tramp. Keen-eyed readers will notice a silhouette of the Little Tramp throughout the book that becomes animated with a flip of the pages. An afterword fills in facts about the beloved performer who became one of the most famous entertainers of all time.
About the Author
A visual artist, musician, and psychotherapist, Gary Golio is the author of the New York Times- bestselling JIMI: Sounds Like A Rainbow - A Story of the Young Jimi Hendrix, recipient of a 2011 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award. His other books include When Bob Met Woody: The Story of the Young Bob Dylan; Spirit Seeker: The Musical Journey of John Coltrane; Bird & Diz - Two Friends Create Bebop; Strange Fruit - Billie Holiday and the Power of a Protest Song; Carlos Santana - Sound of the Heart, Song of the World; SMILE - How Young Charlie Chaplin Taught the World to Laugh (and Cry) ; Dark Was the Night - Blind Willie Johnson's Journey to the Stars; and Sonny Rollins Plays the Bridge. His forthcoming books include Everywhere Beauty is Harlem - The Vision of Photographer Roy DeCarava (2023) , and Only A Friend - How Walt Whitman Touched Ten Thousand Lives in the American Civil War (2023) . Each of these books highlights an artist's roots and influences, promoting the idea that artists are models of persistence and commitment, embodying values of imagination, hopefulness, and self-acceptance.