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by Winsome Bingham (Author), Jason Griffin (Illustrator)
Senior citizen mentors help a boy make sense of loss in this powerful collaboration from acclaimed creators Winsome Bingham and Jason Griffin.
On Fridays after school, Jamar takes the bus to meet Momma at the assisted living center where she works. There's always someone interesting to talk to there, like Mr. Dillon, who twirls and slides through the halls; Mr. Riff, who wears a suit and plays guitar in his room; and Miss Neely, who teaches Jamar to garden. They're a community--a family. Everything is right on Fridays. But when Momma wakes Jamar up to drive back to the center in the middle of the night, he knows something must be very wrong. Funerals are for saying goodbye, but Jamar doesn't want to say goodbye to Miss Neely. After all, why didn't she say goodbye to him? Momma explains it wasn't by choice; that's why we have to give people their flowers while they're here. A collaboration between acclaimed author Winsome Bingham and Caldecott Honoree Jason Griffin, On Fridays is a stirring tribute to cross-generational friendship, and a glimpse at how grief can teach us to love better. Musical text and vivid illustrations animate a close-knit cast of characters sure to remain in readers' hearts.Author Biography
Winsome Bingham is a soul food connoisseur, master cook, and disabled US Army war veteran. She has over fifteen years of teaching experience, and holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. She is the author of the picture book Soul Food Sunday, which received a Coretta Scott King Book Award Illustrator Honor; with Wiley Blevins and illustrator Jason Griffin, she coauthored The Table, which received four starred reviews. You can find her at binghamwrites.com.
Jason Griffin is the illustrator of two books written by Jason Reynolds: Ain't Burned All the Bright, for which he won a Caldecott Honor, and My Name Is Jason. Mine Too. He is also the illustrator of The Table, written by Winsome Bingham and Wiley Blevins. His fine art has been shown in major cities all over the world, including during a residency at Amsterdam's Het HEM museum. He lives in Queens, New York.
Number of Pages: 40
Publication Date: September 01, 2026
