{"product_id":"words-to-my-lifes-song-9781416905417","title":"Words to My Life's Song","description":"Ashley's autobiography is full of art, photographs, and the poignant never-say-never tale of his rich life, a life that has always included drawing and painting. Even as a boy growing up during the Depression, he painted -- finding cast off objects to turn into books and kites and toy and art. Even as a solder in the segregated Army on the beaches of Normandy, he sketched -- keeping charcoal crayons and paper in his gasmask to draw with during lulls. Even as a talented, visionary art student who was accepted and then turned away from college upon arrival, the school telling Ashley that to give a scholarship to an African American student would be a waste, he painted -- continuing to create art when he could have been discouraged, continuing to polish his talents when his spirit should have been beaten. Ashley went on to become a Hans Christian Anderson Award nominee, a May Hill Arbuthnot lecturer, and a multiple Coretta Scott King award winner. As you might imagine, his story is powerful, bursting with his creative energy, and a testament to believing in oneself. It's a book every child in America should have access to and it does what the very best autobiographies do; it inspires\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAshley Bryan (1923-2022) grew up to the sound of his mother singing from morning to night, and he shared the joy of song with children. A beloved illustrator, he was named a Newbery Honoree for his picture book, \u003ci\u003eFreedom Over Me\u003c\/i\u003e. He also received the Coretta Scott King--Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award, was a May Hill Arbuthnot lecturer, a Coretta Scott King Award winner, and the recipient of countless other awards and recognitions. His books include \u003ci\u003eFreedom Over Me\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eSail Away\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eBeautiful Blackbird\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eBeat the Story-Drum, Pum Pum\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eLet It Shine\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eAshley Bryan's Book of Puppets\u003c\/i\u003e; and \u003ci\u003eWhat a Wonderful World\u003c\/i\u003e. He lived in Islesford, one of the Cranberry Isles off the coast of Maine.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Atheneum Books for Young Readers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50515118719250,"sku":"9781416905417","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_52ef8ceb-e46b-4ac4-b0f7-55dbfeb6ebd8.jpg?v=1730998578","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/words-to-my-lifes-song-9781416905417","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}