Seven-year-old Zuri unsuccessfully attempts to style her hair using a hair tutorial video made by her mother.
Her father, Stephen, tries to style her hair himself and fails, upsetting Zuri. Zuri and Stephen then watch the video together and pull off the style.

Matthew A. Cherry (December 14,[1] 1981)
s an American film director, writer, producer, and former American football player. He wrote and directed two independent films,
The Last Fall (2012), and 9 Rides (2016). He is best known for the 2019 Academy Award-winning animated short film, Hair Love.
The Kickstarter campaign for Hair Love raised nearly $300,000 and broke the record for the highest amount raised for any short film on the platform.

Zuri's hair has a mind of its own- but it is beautiful, and when daddy tells her it's beautiful, she feels proud. She explains that when it is braided, she is a princess. When it is in two puffy pig tails, she is a superhero. One morning, Zuri tries to do her hair all by herself and cracks the iPad. Mommy is out, and daddy steps up to the plate; but he struggles. Zuri doesn't feel pretty with the hairstyles he tries. Finally, with some pointers from Zuri on hair care, daddy makes 3 puffy buns that Zuri loves. Mommy approves too!

This book is such a precious look at the love a father has for his daughter and how hard he'll try to affirm her worth. Since Black hair is often criticized in media and society, this book is so important for kids to see.

Puoi trovare questa recensione anche sul mio blog, La siepe di more

Hair Love è la breve storia di una bambina che vuole farsi un’acconciatura speciale per celebrare un giorno importante: ne trova una che le piace su YouTube e suo padre cerca di darle una mano. I primi tentativi sono decisamente disastrosi, ma alla fine la piccola Zuri riesce ad avere l’acconciatura che desiderava.

La storia è nata per raccontare un rapporto positivo tra padre e figlia nella comunità afroamericana, visto che nei media mainstream di solito è la madre a occuparsi dellз figliз, soprattutto delle figlie, e i padri sono visti per lo più stravaccati sul divano davanti al televisore.

Inizialmente, si trattava di un corto lanciato tramite una raccolta fondi su Kickstarter, campagna che ha avuto un successo strepitoso, continuato poi con la vittoria di un Oscar. Il corto potete trovarlo liberamente su YouTube e l’ho trovato molto più riuscito del libro e anche più commovente: il libro dà proprio l’impressione di essere stato creato per dare un contesto in più all’importanza che Zuri dà all’avere un’acconciatura particolare.

Il mio consiglio è di vedere il corto (ci sono due scambi di parole in croce, potete guardarlo tranquillamente anche se l’inglese non è il vostro forte) e, se proprio vi è piaciuto tanto, buttarvi sul libro. ( )

“Zuri’s hair lets her be her. It coils and kinks to perfectly match a princess tiara or a superhero cape. But an extra-special day calls for an extra-special style” – from the book

In ‘Hair Love’, Zuri wants to have an extra-special hair style because it’s an extra special day. She goes through her day preparing, along the way explaining the hair styles she has sported, and some failures too. Her dad tries his best to help, and it’s not easy to create a beautiful crown of hair. Lots of patience, a tablet with videos, and finally success, Zuri is ready for her special day! Spoiler alert: Her mom is coming home from the hospital.

Since I was reading inclusive children’s books, I wanted to read one targeted to black children, too. This book is for a younger age, possibly pre-school to kindergarten. I think it’s super cute, very sweet, well-illustrated, and most importantly, I think it’ll help with a tender subject – hair. Let’s face it, I’m not black, and even I know this is a tender subject. Just like Asians are mocked for eyes, hair can be a challenging feature for Blacks. I can just see the tears of the little girls while their parents are combing out their hair. In my research, this is the best book on this subject. I can see why. Thumbs up. ( )

Title: Hair Love
- Author: Matthew A. Cherry
- Illustrator: Vashti Harrison
- Publisher: Penguin Random House LLC
- Date: 2019
- Pages: 24
- Type of Book/Genre: Picture Book, Realistic Fiction
- Short Summary of the Plot: The story begins with a little girl named Zuri, who has beautiful hair that has a mind of its own. She talks about when she has her hair with different styles it makes her feel like a superhero or a princess. Then, the author shows her dad sleeping, he has been tired lately because he works so hard at his job and taking care of her. She woke up early to try and do a perfect hairstyle because it is a special day, her dad wakes up and offers to help. They go through different hairstyles and even try wearing a hat, but its not what Zuri had in mind. She starts to cry, but her dad reassures her that they will figure it out. Her dad gathers the tools needed, and works away on her hair, when he is done Zuri loves it. Zuri’s mom comes home and she loves Zuri’s hair too, and then they hug and take a selfie together saying “its hair love.”
- Tags/subject headings that describe the content: hair love, beauty, family, love.
- My Response: I really liked this story, I can relate to trying to make my hair perfect for a special day.