Prominent Harlem Renaissance figure Langston Hughes was born on this day February 1, 1901 in Joplin, Missouri. Hughes was a groundbreaking poet, playwright, columnist, and social activist.

Let’s Journey Through the newly awarded Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Picture Book, There Was a Party for Langston, to celebrate Langston Hughes’ life, legacy, and influence!

There Was a Party for Langston (2023)

A Caitlyn Dlouhy Book, Antheneum Books for Young Readers, Simon & Schuster•New York

This book was kindly gifted from the publisher as a submission for the 2023 Black Kidlit Award. There Was a Party for Langston received the Best Inspirational Book of 2023!

Purchase this book and other award winners & submissions using this link:

https://www.amazon.com/shop/lulusbookjourney/list/L4C2E6MYLDY?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_mwn_aipsflist_aipsflulusbookjourney_5HX0ZV4PS9TCG6GEF2WV&language=en_US

Author: Jason Reynolds

Jason Reynolds is a New York Times Best Selling and award-winning author. A Party for Langston is his debut picture book! And what a debut! Reynolds is the author of several middle grade and young adult book series such as the Track Boys; the Stuntboy graphic novels; Stamped; and Miles Morales. His novels in verse include Long Way Down; Look Both Ways; Brave as You Are and several more.

Illustrators: Jerome Pumphrey & Jarrett Pumphrey

Jerome & Jarrett Pumphrey are not only illustrators! They are also authors, and they are brothers who who have collaborated on several award-winning children’s picture books such as The Old Truck; The Old Boat; Somewhere in the Bayou: and The last Stand. They are the creators of the graphic novel, Link + Hud: Heroes by a Hair, featuring two brothers whose adventures and antics are telltale of the Pumphrey brothers childhood! The Pumphrey brothers style of art is uniquely stunning in that they utilize stamps which they hand-craft to create their illustrations! Over 250 stamps were made and used for the beautiful illustrations in, The Old Truck!

Author’s Inspiration For There Was a Party for Langston

In the Note From the Author after the story we learn that Jason Reynolds was inspired by a photo he saw of poets Maya Angelou and Amiri Baraka dancing together! Reynolds wanted to know the story behind the photo which he shares with us through this fabulous picture book!

The History On the Pages Of This Book:

In addition to Langston Hughes readers will be introduced to other great Black Literary History Makers such as:

• Maya Angelou
• Amiri Baraka
• James Baldwin
• Gwendolyn Brooks
• Ashley Bryan
• Octavia Butler
• Countee Cullen
• W.E.B. Dubois
• Paul Laurence Dunbar
• Alice Dunbar Nelson
• Ralph Ellison
• Nikki Giovanni
• Alex Haley
• Zora Neale Hurston
• Claude McKay
• Toni Morrison
• Alice Walker
• Richard Wright

Learning Resource: Name Scramble

Readers can familiarize themselves with all of the writers featured in this book by unscrambling their last names. First names are provided as hints! Resource includes two sheets with ten names per sheet. This free resource is available to Download using this link:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/There-Was-a-Party-for-Langston-Name-Scramble-11002934

Time Period & Setting

This book is centered around an event that took place in 1991 at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, New York.

The Schomburg Center is named after Arturo Schomburg, an Afro-Latino historian from Puerto Rico. 2024 marks the 150th birthday of Arturo Schomburg.

Founded in 1925, The Schomburg Center is part of the New York City Library system which established the center after purchasing Schomburg’s extensive collection of materials on Black life not only in America but in the worldwide Diaspora.

An expansion of the Schomburg Center was completed in 1991. Both the lobby and auditorium of the center are named in honor of Langston Hughes. A memorial to Langston Hughes adorns the lobby floor. This memorial is a cosmogram titled, “The Rivers” in which excepts from Hughes’ 1920 poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” are inscribed, some of his ashes also lay beneath. Maya Angelou and Amiri Baraka danced together upon this lobby floor at the grand opening ceremony of the auditorium.

The Cover: Don’t Judge a Book…But Always Take Look

On the amazing book jacket under the raised letters of the title there is the phrase, “King O’ Letters,” referring to Langston Hughes genius way with letters and words. The illustration on the cover features a huge crown inscribed with words such as MOTHER, HARLEM, FREEDOM, and ME. A young Langston Hughes in a bowtie and suspenders sits upon the crown. Two people below are holding the crown up, and two more people are dancing beside it. Remove the book jacket and what do you see? Small shadows of the people from the jacket dancing with large letters in the background!

The Endpapers Within

The endpapers on the front inside cover feature sixteen books with the names and illustrations of Black writers and poets who have contributed and inspired generations of writers. These are all of the writers listed above and included in the learning resource. The endpapers on the back cover features twelve books with the titles of Langston Hughes’ books upon them. Some of the titles included are; The Dream Keeper; I Wonder as I Wander, Laughing to Keep from Crying, and Shakespeare in Harlem.

Journey Inside the Book

Bundle up, it looks to be a cold night in Harlem! But that’s not stopping the crowd at the Schomburg Center as we can see from the title page! A line of smiling people sporting winter coats over their party clothes are joyfully entering the center!

With a turn of the page we follow the people through the doors of the Schomburg Center and find ourselves standing in the Langston Hughes Lobby! Look on the floor! There’s The Rivers cosmogram! Looks like everyone has shed their coats and are entering the Langston Hughes Auditorium. Oh, wow! The announcement on the wall tells us that we are at the Grand Opening of the auditorium! Langston Hughes’ face adorns the announcement which also lets us know that it is February 1991 (so that’s why everyone was so warmly dressed!) Wave to the people standing above us in the balcony! Hey!!! Each and every person in this joint is dressed to the nine! You are pretty sharp too! Should we follow everyone into the auditorium? Of course!Let’s go!

See that distinguished man sitting at the typewriter? That’s Langston Hughes! Watch as he types and you will see the letters float up through the air, over his head and land on his shadow. The letters are in alphabetical order, except for the “W” which is pearched upon Langston’s head like a crown! This beautiful dance between the words and illustrations goes on throughout the book! This book celebrates the letters which create the words, which create the sentences, which create messages of understanding and change!

This story is a true treat to your senses and emotions! Just listen to the THUMP of the drums, feel the love flowing from MOTHER TO SON, the soul of HARLEM radiating through the windows, birds FLYING, books BURN but the FREEDOM of letters rise above the flames! HahA we laugh in spite of the pain.

And they danced for Langston as the great ancestors Baldwin, Brooks, Du Bois, Ellison, and Hurston looked upon! Maya Angelou who let no CAGE confine her danced with Amiri Baraka who LOVED the word BLACK, and knew the truth and power of the word! BLACK is strong, BLACK is proud, BLACK is king! Watch their feet floating upon the words WONDERFUL, WISDOM, BREATH, JAZZ, DREAM…Oh, they danced and they laughed, they laughed and they danced! It was a jammy JAM, a Party for Langston! And we all were there!

There Was a Party for Langston is a great introduction to Langston Hughes for children. The rhythm and flow of the text and illustrations will hold there attention throughout the story. After reading this book children will know the name Langston Hughes and when they hear his name they will remember a grand party with all of the dancing where the letters spun and turned into meaningful words!

Keep Reading & Learning about Langston Hughes

Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for our next Book Journey!