[1][2][3] Kathy Piehl, who reviewed for the School Library Journal, noted how some of Julie Morstad's illustrations evoked Gyo Fujikawa's style of "elegance and simplicity".

[3] Kirkus Reviews praised Morstad's art, saying she "precisely balances white space with vignettes, black-and-white illustrations with eye-catching color."

[2] Publishers Weekly's review praised the art and the writing of It Began with a Page, as well as how the "biography conveys with quiet power how recently segregation reached into every aspect of American life, and how one woman did her part to defeat it.

"[1] Writing for The Horn Book, Katrina Hedeen commented on the different styles of art employed by Morstad, such as "in liquid watercolor, gouache, and pencil crayons", used to demark different points of Fujikawa's life.

One of the judges, during the presentation of the award, said: "In powerful poetic text and spare delicate color and black and white artwork, Kyo Maclear and Julie Morstad chronicle the many challeges faced by Fujikawa".