Part of Alphabet City Kids, a new series for children 4+ and their families. 

Discover a world of creativity and tradition through a picture book program with Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond, author of Blue: A History of the Color as Deep as the Sea and as Wide as the Sky. Named one of the best books of 2022 by NPR, Blue explores the history and cultural significance of the color blue.

This program features a visit with author Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond and includes a story time, an interactive activity about color, and a book signing. Children and families are encouraged to wear the color blue in celebration of the program. 

You can purchase your own copy of Nana’s book Blue at City of Asylum Bookstore.  

This program is generously underwritten by The Jack Buncher Foundation.

Curator Notes: 

“I am thrilled to celebrate the return of City of Asylum events for children with Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond, author of one of NPR’s best books of 2022—Blue: A History of the Color as Deep as the Sea and as Wide as the Sky. Perfect for children ages 4–8, this picture book illustrated by Caldecott Honor Artist Daniel Minter is visually stunning and rich with the history of a color that is beloved by so many.” – Kelsey Ford, Director of Programs

About the Author: 

Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond is the editor of Relations: An Anthology of African and Diaspora Voices. She is the author of the children’s picture book Blue: A History of the Color as Deep as the Sea and as Wide as the Sky, illustrated by Caldecott Honor Artist Daniel Minter, and the young adult novel Powder Necklace, which Publishers Weekly called “a winning debut.” Her short fiction for adult readers is included in the anthologies Accra Noir, edited by Nana-Ama Danquah; Africa39: New Writing from Africa South of the Sahara, edited by Ellah Wakatama Allfrey; New Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby; Everyday People: The Color of Life, edited by Jennifer Baker; and Woman’s Work, edited by Michelle Sewell, among others. Forthcoming from Brew-Hammond are a novel and children’s picture book. 

Brew-Hammond was a 2019 Edward F. Albee Foundation fellow, a 2018 Aké Arts and Book Festival guest author, a 2017 Aspen Ideas Festival Scholar, a 2016 Hedgebrook writer in residence, and a 2015 Rhode Island Writers Colony writer in residence. Every month, Brew-Hammond co-leads a writing fellowship whose mission is to write light into darkness. Follow her: @nanaekuawriter (FB and IG), @nanaekua (Twitter).