African American Lit

Marzollo, Jean. 1993. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MARTIN LUTHER KING. Illustrated by J. Brian Pinkney. New York: Scholastic. ISBN: 0590440659.

The life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr. are presented in simple words and beautiful pictures that even a preschooler can understand in this book. Children will learn about how there used to be laws to keep black and white people separate, and how Martin Luther King worked to change these things. The book includes a forward by author Jean Marzollo for parents and teachers, explaining, "the tragic fact of Martin Luther King's murder may be too difficult for preschoolers to deal with." She suggests the words "shot and killed" may be changed to say Martin Luther King "died".

Pinkney uses scratchboard illustrations with fine white lines and shading to depict black people and their struggles during the Civil Rights Movement. Pictures of Freedom Riders on buses, drinking fountains labeled "white" and "colored", and King delivering his famous "I Have A Dream" speech will help children understand the events of his life, and why we now honor him with a holiday on his birthday.

Connections:

Talk about the segregation laws mentioned in the book, that required separate restaurants, drinking fountains, and schools for whites and blacks.

Talk and read about Rosa Parks, Freedom Riders, and other leaders of the Civil Rights Movement.

Listen to the "I have a Dream Speech".

Discuss problem solving through peaceful methods.

Read MARTIN'S BIG WORDS and other books about Martin Luther King.



Woodson, Jacqueline. 2009. PEACE, LOCOMOTION. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. ISBN: 9780399246555

Sixth grader Lonnie, aka Locomotion, shares his heart wrenching story through the letters he writes to his younger sister, Lili, after the tragic death of their parents. The children are separated when different foster families take them in. Writing letters is the way Lonnie stays connected to Lili, and keeps the memory of his parents alive.

We learn that Lonnie and his sister are African American when he gets a new teacher who is "brown like Mama"; and again during a visit, Lili touched Lonnie's braids. Lonnie watches CNN for news about Lonnie's foster brother, Jenkins, who is away at war. "The newscaster lady kept talking about insurgents and a car bomb and missing soldiers." This establishes the story as taking place during the Iraq War.

Lonnie and his sister both have good and stable foster homes. Still, the pain Lonnie feels over the loss of his parents is palpable. He writes, "I don't want to hear anything about the month of December. I don't want to hear about Christmas or New Year's or Kwanzaa. Nothing. I hate December. If it wasn't for December, Mama and Daddy would be alive and you and me would still be living together."

School Library Journal gives PEACE, LOCOMOTION a starred review. "When war directly affects the family, the 12-year-old begins to hope and pray for peace and to grapple with its meaning."

Connections:

Read LOCOMOTION, the first book about Lonnie and his sister. It is written in poetry.

Try writing/telling a story in poetry or letter format.

Write poems/letters about happy/sad things.

Read other verse novels, such as OUT OF THE DUST.



Grimes, Nikki. 2006. WELCOME, PRECIOUS. Illustrated by Bryan Collier. New York: Orchard Books. ISBN: 0309102480

Child magazine's Best Children's Book Awards 2006, WELCOME, PRECIOUS is the story of an African American couple who are elated with their newborn baby. Grimes' lyrical text takes the baby from one loving family member to another. "Welcome to the warm circle of your daddy's arms/ the slippery kisses of your giddy grandmothers/ and the cool tickle of Mommy's nose rubbing against your belly button."

The cultural markers are only in the illustrations. Bryan's mixed media watercoler and collage pictures of the family are bold and bright, with deep, dark glowing skintones. Readers will be delighted with the joyful text and illustrations.

Connections:

Read and talk about all kinds of families and family members.

Make a display or bulletin board of baby pictures of children and/or family members.

Read and discuss all kinds of babies - humans and animals.

Draw pictures of ourselves and families doing favorite things.

Identify senses used in the story. Hear the robin sing and leaves swish. Feel the squish of sand between your toes. Smell the spiced cider on the wind, etc.