Laban Carrick Hill

Biography

Laban Carrick Hill's newest book When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Origins of Hip Hop is illustrated by the amazing Theodore Taylor III. Time Magazine describes the book as, "Completely awesome." It was be selected for six 2014 Notoble Book Lists and its illustrator Theordore Taylor III was selected as the 2014 Coretta Scott King/​John Steptoe Award for New Talent.

Hill's previous Dave the Potter: Artist, Slave, Poet is a picture book poem illustrated by Brian Collier and won a 2011 Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Illustration Award along with 12 other book honors and awards. His award-winning America Dreaming: How Youth Changed America in the 60's (also with Little, Brown & Co.) won the 2007 Parenting Publications Gold Award. The New York Times Book Review wrote, "Excellent." Howard Zinn praised the cultural history as "a phenomenal piece of work, extensively researched and visually stimulating; an essential resource for children and adults of all ages." America Dreaming examines the legacy of the sixties, and how the events that took place then inform our lives today.

Hill is the author of more than 35 books, including the 2004 National Book Award Finalist Harlem Stomp!: A Cultural History of the Harlem Renaissance, a book he researched for more than a decade. He was drawn to this era because the Harlem Renaissance seemed to embody Ralph Ellison’s sense that America could not be America without African Americans. Hill has also taught writing at the Solstice MFA in Creative Writing Program at Pine Manor College, Columbia University, Baruch College, St. Michael’s College in Vermont, University of Colombo in Sri Lanka, and the University of Cape Coast in Ghana. In the fall of 2008, when he was a visiting professor of creative writing at the University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana, he co-founder and still co-directs of the Writers Project of Ghana, which was formed to promote literacy and literary culture and to publish literary books in Ghana. The Writers Project of Ghana has been supported by the U. S. State Department. In 2010, Hill went to the University of Colombo in Sri Lanka to teach writing on a Fulbright Fellowship. As well, the U.S. State Department has brought him to Egypt, the Philippines and Indonesia to lecture on American culture, African American history, hip hop, and writing.

Hill is the author of more than 35 books, including the 2004 National Book Award Finalist Harlem Stomp!: A Cultural History of the Harlem Renaissance, a book he researched for more than a decade. He was drawn to this era because the Harlem Renaissance seemed to embody Ralph Ellison’s sense that America could not be America without African Americans. Hill has also taught writing at the Solstice MFA in Creative Writing Program at Pine Manor College, Columbia University, Baruch College, St. Michael’s College in Vermont, University of Colombo in Sri Lanka, and the University of Cape Coast in Ghana. In the fall of 2008, when he was a visiting professor of creative writing at the University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana, he co-founder and still co-directs of the Writers Project of Ghana, which was formed to promote literacy and literary culture and to publish literary books in Ghana. The Writers Project of Ghana has been supported by the U. S. State Department. In 2010, Hill went to the University of Colombo in Sri Lanka to teach writing on a Fulbright Fellowship. As well, the U.S. State Department has brought him to Egypt, the Philippines and Indonesia to lecture on American culture, African American history, hip hop, and writing.

Hill has written two young adult novels: A Brush with Napoleon, based on the life of the French Romantic painter David, and Casa Azul, based on the Frida Kahlo painting Self Portrait (with Monkey and Hummingbird). Casa Azul was selected as a New York Public Library 2006 Book for the Teen Age. His poems have been included in the Contemporary Poetry of New England anthology and in numerous literary magazines, including Solstice Literary Magazine, Tar River Review and Denver Quarterly. He was one of the founding editors of American Letters & Commentary. He has also written critical biographies for Scribners American Writers and British Writers series on J. M. Coetzee, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Jane Kenyon. His articles have appeared in a variety of publications such as The New York Times, The Smithsonian, and Eating Well.

Hill was born in New York, but grew up primarily in Memphis, TN, where his family was from. In Memphis, he attended a segregated religious school until he was asked not to return after the 9th grade. He then attended three quarters of the year of a religious boarding school in Chattanooga until he was asked to leave. He then moved to Denver, CO, to live with his father where he attended East High School until graduation. He moved to NYC when he was 17 and lived in the East Village where he became wrapped up in the Punk music scene. At 20, he apprenticed with Allen Ginsberg in Boulder, CO. When he returned, he got a job as a copywriter at The New Yorker Magazine. While there, he enrolled at Benard M. Baruch College where in 1986 he earned his BA in English and earned a number of academic awards. Upon graduation, he attended the CUNY Latin Institute where he graduate Magna cum Laude and then entered the Columbia University School of the Arts with a Teaching Fellowship. In 1989, he graduated with an MFA in Writing, specializing in Poetry.

Hill has written two young adult novels: A Brush with Napoleon, based on the life of the French Romantic painter David, and Casa Azul, based on the Frida Kahlo painting Self Portrait (with Monkey and Hummingbird). Casa Azul was selected as a New York Public Library 2006 Book for the Teen Age. His poems have been included in the Contemporary Poetry of New England anthology and in numerous literary magazines, including Solstice Literary Magazine, Tar River Review and Denver Quarterly. He was one of the founding editors of American Letters & Commentary. He has also written critical biographies for Scribners American Writers and British Writers series on J. M. Coetzee, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Jane Kenyon. His articles have appeared in a variety of publications such as The New York Times, The Smithsonian, and Eating Well.

Hill was born in New York, but grew up primarily in Memphis, TN, where his family was from. In Memphis, he attended a segregated religious school until he was asked not to return after the 9th grade. He then attended three quarters of the year of a religious boarding school in Chattanooga until he was asked to leave. He then moved to Denver, CO, to live with his father where he attended East High School until graduation. He moved to NYC when he was 17 and lived in the East Village where he became wrapped up in the Punk music scene. At 20, he apprenticed with Allen Ginsberg in Boulder, CO. When he returned, he got a job as a copywriter at The New Yorker Magazine. While there, he enrolled at Benard M. Baruch College where in 1986 he earned his BA in English and earned a number of academic awards. Upon graduation, he attended the CUNY Latin Institute where he graduate Magna cum Laude and then entered the Columbia University School of the Arts with a Teaching Fellowship. In 1989, he graduated with an MFA in Writing, specializing in Poetry.

After publishing several children's books and working at Bantam Books, Hill moved to Vermont with his wife and toddler. He has lived in Vermont ever since. He is active in the community. He coached girls soccer for 14 years. He was on the local library board. He is on several other local boards and has volunteered with several organizations, including PartnershipforChange.org and Winooski Dollars for Scholars.

www.labanhill.com www.writersprojectghana.com

Laban Hill is available to visit your school, library or organization. He can lead presentations, workshops, lectures, and activities based on his award-winning books, including When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop and Dave the Pottter: Artist Poet Slave.

Hill is also available to give readings, talks and creative writing workshops.

After publishing several children's books and working at Bantam Books, Hill moved to Vermont with his wife and toddler. He has lived in Vermont ever since. He is active in the community. He coached girls soccer for 14 years. He was on the local library board. He is on several other local boards and has volunteered with several organizations, including PartnershipforChange.org and Winooski Dollars for Scholars.

www.labanhill.com www.writersprojectghana.com

Laban Hill is available to visit your school, library or organization. He can lead presentations, workshops, lectures, and activities based on his award-winning books, including When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop and Dave the Pottter: Artist Poet Slave.

Hill is also available to give readings, talks and creative writing workshops.

Books

When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop

Illustrated by Theodore Taylor III, a hot, young new artist, this new picture book by Laban Carrick Hill tells the story of the Godfather of Hip Hop. When DJ Kool Herc spun records for his sister's sweet sixteen birthday in the South Bronx in the 1970s, he didn't know that he would invent rap and hip hop. But that's what he did. This is the amazing story of how a kid scratched and rapped his way into starting an entire new music.

2014 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent (Illustrator Theodore Taylor III)
2014 Junior Library Guild Selection
2014 CBC/NCSS Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Reading List
2014 IRA Notable Books for a Global Society
2014 Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
2014 American Library Aassociation Notable Children's Book
2014 Capitol Choices Notable Book
2014 Booklist Notable Book
2014 Notable Children's Book for Middle Readers Association
2015 Towner Award Finalist
2015 Texas Bluebonnet Award Finalist
2015 NCSS-CBC: Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People
  • "Completely awesome" --Time
  • "Hill tells the story of the birth of hip-hop with his own catchy rhythm, and Taylor’s illustrations bring out the enthusiasm and sense of community at the heart of this trend-setting sound." --New York Times Book Review
  • "Here’s a twofer: an expert biography of a hip hop and rap pioneer, and a not-to-be-missed picture-book debut by Taylor." -- Publishers Weekly

America Dreaming: How Youth Changed America in the 60s

Essentially what we have here is a book written about the children of the 50s and 60s for the children of the 00s, reviewed by a child of the 80s. Now let me tell you a little story. My husband is friends with a former Black Panther. It’s New York. You can meet anyone here. And as a result, for years now I’ve been searching desperately for child and YA novels and works of non-fiction that mention the Panthers. Until now I’ve come up bone dry, but then, lo and behold, I heard about “America Dreaming: How Youth Changed America in the ’60s”

New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age Selection

Starred Selection, Best Children's Book 2008, Bank Street College

2007 Parenting Publications Gold Award
  • "Excellent..for the children and, probably, grandchildren of baby boomers who want to know what the youth culture of the time was all about." – New York Times Book Review
  • "America Dreaming is a phenomenal piece of work, extensively researched and visually stimulating; an essential resource for children and adults of all ages. Laban Hill has built a time machine with this book, bringing to life not only the music and culture of the 1960s but also the turbulence of change, politics and people standing up for what they believed in." – Howard Zinn
  • "This is a great book. It tells an important story and tells it well--and pictures it well too." – Pete Seeger, singer/songwriter

Dave the Potter

Beautifully illustrated by award-winning artist Brian Collier, Dave the Potter tells in verse the story of Dave, a slave potter who was not meant to be remembered because he was a slave and considered property. Dave however wrote poems on the sides of his pots and ensured that his work would live well beyond his death. This poem explores the story of Dave's work and his struggle to be remembered.

New York Times Bestseller
2011 Caldecott Honor
2011 Coretta Scott King Gold Award for Illustrations
New York Public Library's Top 50 Children's Books of All Time
Chicago Public Library's 2010 Best of the Best List
New York Public Library's 2010 Best 100 Books of the Year
Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2011
2010 Junior Library Guild Selection Arkansas Diamond Primary Award Reading List
Georgia Children’s Storybook Award 2012-13
NCCBA (NC) 2012
Louisiana Young Readers Choice 2013
Black-Eyed Susan Award (MD) 2010
Diamond Primary Book Award (AK) 2010
Picture Storybook (GA) 2012
Goldfinch Award (IA) 2012
Prairie Bud Award (SD) 2012
Page Ahead’s 2011 Best Books for Kids Award
  • “An inspiring story, perfectly presented....Outstanding in every way.” - School Library Journal, Starred Review
  • “K-Gr 4–The life of an astonishingly prolific and skilled potter who lived and died a slave in 19th-century South Carolina is related in simple, powerful sentences that outline the making of a pot. The movements of Dave's hands are described using familiar, solid verbs: pulling, pinching, squeezing, pounding. Rural imagery–a robin's puffed breast, a carnival wheel–remind readers of Dave's surroundings. The pithy lines themselves recall the short poems that Dave inscribed on his pots. Collier's earth-toned watercolor and collage art extends the story, showing the landscape, materials, and architecture of a South Carolina farm. Alert readers will find hidden messages in some of the collages, but what stands out in these pictures are Dave's hands and eyes, and the strength of his body, reflected in the shape and size of his legendary jars and pots. A lengthy author's note fleshes out what is known of the man's life story and reproduces several of his two-line poems. A photograph of some of Dave's surviving works cements the book's link to the present and lists of print and online resources encourage further exploration. An inspiring story, perfectly presented and sure to prompt classroom discussion and projects. Outstanding in every way.” - School Library Journal, Starred Review

Contemporary Poetry of New England

This collection of 178 recent poems about New England is a testament to the region’s enduring power as a source of inspiration for poets. Laban Carrick Hill has two poems included in the anthology.

  • “Ice fishing, Robert Frost and the Boston Red Sox's reliable losing streaks are among the subjects taken up in Contemporary Poetry of New England. . . Pastoral landscapes abound, Emerson and Dickinson are regularly apostrophized and there are many, many snowstorms.” — Publishers Weekly

Harlem Stomp! A Cultural History of the Harlem Renaissance

Harlem Stomp! is a breathtaking whirlwind tour through this fascinating era. Lavishly designed and illustrated, it’s a virtual time capsule, packed with poetry, prose, photographs, paintings, and historical documents that introduce the amazing lives and work of such notable figures as: Louis Armstrong, Aaron Douglas, W. E. B. Du Bois, Duke Ellington, Jessie Fauset, Marcus Garvey, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Alain Locke, and Augusta Savage.

2004 National Book Award Finalist

2004 National Book Award Finalist

2004 Parent’s Choice Gold Award

2004 Bookbinder’s Guild New York Book Fair First Prize

2005 Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People

Capitol Choices: Noteworthy Books for Children 2005

  • "This energetic, elegantly designed volume documents the artistic, literary and musical surge of black culture in Harlem." ―Publishers Weekly, starred review
  • "The volume is a visual feast....Together, the words and images bring this extraordinary period to life." ― School Library Journal, starred review
  • "With a beautiful open design, this illustrated history combines the politics of the black metropolis in the roaring 1920s with.... Detailed chapters on the 'blazing creativity' of performers, writers, visual artists, and intellectuals.... Wonderful for browsing." ―Booklist, starred review

Casa Azul

When does reality end and fantasy begin? Maria and Victor are about to find out as they journey in search of their mother through a Mexico City populated by god-like wrestlers–the mighty El Corazón and his nemesis El Diablo–a blind guitarist named Old Big Eyes, and a talking monkey. Maria does not know it, but she and her brother may be the key to ending the pain and suffering that ferments inside a far more magical place, Casa Azul, the home of painter Frida Kahlo.

New York Public Library 2006 Book for the Teen Age
  • "In Casa Azul, Laban Carrick Hill has woven a strange and wonderful tale, as compelling, surprising, and surreal as Frida Kahlo¹s paintings. A powerful look at one of the 20th century's great artists, and at the magical world in which she lived." --Pete Hautman, author of Godless, 2004 National Book Award Winner

A Brush with Napoleon

What is the point of art? Is it to transform the viewer or to create propaganda? In this novel Jean discovers the struggle that artist David lives with in trying to create great paintings and please Napoleon.

  • "Grade 6 Up—While serving in Egypt in the rear line alongside Napoleon's artists, 17-year-old French private Jean discovers his passion and talent for drawing. But hungry to prove himself an able soldier like his father, he is severely injured in a battle with the Austrians at Marengo. After this close call, his friend and father-figure, Alain, convinces him to pursue his art and, by a stroke of luck, Jean is commissioned to study under the great painter Jacques-Louis David. He tries desperately to impress the master but continues to grapple with his own insecurities, including his humble upbringing and guilt about leaving the army. The historical emphasis is intentional yet subtle in this dramatic tale of a young man coming of age during the height of Napoleon's empire. Jean's experiences on the battlefield and what he witnesses in the hospital amputee ward are not for the faint of heart, but they are honest. Readers can't help but receive an education on this turbulent period and the brilliance behind David's creations as they are wrapped up in Jean's struggle to find his place in a rapidly changing France."—Kimberly Monaghan, formerly at Vernon Area Public Library, IL

Xtreme Mysteries

Book 1: Deep Powder Deep Trouble
Book 2: Crossed Tracks
Book 3: Rocked Out: A Summer X-Games Special
Book 4: Half Pipe Rip-Off
Book 5: Lost Wake
Book 6: Out of Line
Book 7: Spiked Snow
Book 8: Total Whiteout

  • "This is also one of my favorites in the series it has a lot of stoke in it and the mistery is very good i would recomend this book to any one who likes extreme sports and another up side is that it has a semi dictionary in the back of the book to tell u all the lingo but i think there are two better books in the series the first and last one they are the two snowboarding books in the series (i might just like them the best because i love snowboarding." – Willy Allen Book Review

At the 2010 National Book Awards where I was a judge for Young People's Literature

Solstice MFA in Writing Program at Pine Manor College

Selected Works

1. Nonfiction

When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop "Completely awesome"--Time "Hill tells the story of the birth of hip-hop with his own catchy rhythm, and Taylor’s illustrations bring out the enthusiasm and sense of community at the heart of this trend-setting sound."--New York Times Book Review America Dreaming: How Youth Changed America in the 60s "Phenomenal."–Howard Zinn "Excellent."–New York Times Book Review Harlem Stomp! A Cultural History of the Harlem Renaissance “Harlem Stomp! is a wonderous new book: it celebrates a time, a place, an energy, and a people who refused to be held back and so they created a culture the entire world is still reeling from.” --George C. Wolfe, writer, director, and producer of the Public Theater, NYC

2. Fiction

A Brush with Napoleon A seventeen-year-old is plucked out of the Grande Armee to sit in place of Napoleon for a portrait of the Emperor by the artist David. Casa Azul "I felt like a kid reading every word on the page! I liked the strains of "magic realism" coming through in Frida's house! Children will relate to this very much! The story is charming and reads like a thriller." –Margarita Aguilar, Assisant Curator, El Museo del Barrio

3. Poetry

Dave the Potter A picturebook poem describing the life of the slave potter Dave. Illustrated by Bryan Collier. Contemporary Poetry of New England “Contemporary Poetry of New England offers a vivid portrait of a region, its colors and smells, its physical and emotional textures, and the people…. It presents a range of poets, few of whom would call themselves a “region poet,” although each has taken to heart in a private way Frost’s haunting dictum: ‘Locality gives art.’” --from the Introduction

4. Middle Grade Series

Xtreme Mysteries These kids love extreme sports--snowboarding, skateboarding, rock climbing, wake boarding--and are ready to fight when the right to do their sport is threatened.

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