My Fade is Fresh

My Fade is Fresh is a witty, vibrant work written by Shauntay Grant and illustrated by Kitt Thomas. A young girl is brought to the barbershop by her mother because her “bushy, brownish, biggish hair was growing almost everywhere” (p. 4). The child sits in the chair and is faced with the suggestions of the barber, mother, and customers in the store as to what to do with the mane of hair. “‘A perm?’ ‘A press?’ ‘A trim?’ ‘A chop?’” they ask, bombarding her with ideas (p. 5). The young customer is adamant about what she wants: “Do you do waves?” she asks the barber, “or high-top fades?” (p. 15). The mane-haired little client knows that hair makes a statement about who they are – and thus, they will not leave the barbershop until they get what they want. Grant’s prose is poetic and rap-like; it reads smoothly and with beat.

Thomas’ illustrations are full of movement and colour. Readers can visually witness the chaos in the barbershop, the barber’s exasperation, the mother’s concern, the child’s elation. The expressions of each character – be they the main ones or background customers in the shop – are engaging and full of emotion.

Shauntay Grant’s My Fade is Fresh is a wonderful addition to any bookshelf. Parents, teachers, and caregivers who are intentional about diversifying their libraries and story times will find this tale to be an asset to their collections. Young and old readers alike will be swept along by the beat-like prose and colourful illustrations.