One Crazy Summer (Module 2)

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Williams-Garcia, Rita. 2010. One Crazy Summer. New York: Amistad. ISBN: 9780060760885.

2. PLOT SUMMARY
During the summer of 1968, three sisters, Delpine, Vonetta, and Fern, travel from New York to Oakland, California to meet their estranged mother who left when Ferm was born. They arrive to find their mother an enigmatic and distant person who spends her time in the kitchen writing poetry and printing it out on a hand crank printing press. Instead of visiting Disney World or finding movie stars as they had imagined, the girls go to a day camp at the People’s Center run by the Black Panthers and get a radical new look at the world they live in.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Williams-Gracia does an excellent job of creating uneasiness in the reader as we witness these three girls walking into such a tumultuous place. There is a stark difference between their home in New York where their Big Ma is worried about them making a “grand Negro spectacle” of themselves to the People's Center of Oakland where they are being taught their rights and to have pride in being black. This difference demonstrates two radically different views of what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s. The uneasiness is also amplified to any reader who has background knowledge of the unrest of Oakland during this time and how “crazy” it was to have these previously somewhat sheltered children taking care of themselves through a good portion of their trip.

The characters are one of the most memorable parts of this novel as they seem to jump off the page. They are fully fleshed out and full of surprises. From what the mom's motivation is to how Delphine will handle her sisters, Williams-Garcia did an excellent job of creating a world that has depth and a plot that does not pander to its audience.

There are many cultural markers in this book that show a diversity of thoughts, vocabulary, and opinions during this time in America. The girls argue with one Panther that they are “colored” not “black.” The same Panther calls Fern a “white baby lover” for having her white baby doll with her at all times. As the girls' eyes are opened to the world around them, the reader also gains an education as well about 1968. There are three sisters who are dressed up like they are going to a go-go, a young boy who is mixed Japanese-Black with his Black Panther father in jail, Hippies singing songs of peace, a Black Panther who speaks fanatically about “offing the pigs,” references to freeing Huey and remembering Bobby, and white foreign tourists who try to take pictures of the young girls.

The only thing that seemed disconnected to me in the whole book was the cover on this particular version. There are other covers of this book, but the one I had was a young girl cupping her chin and looking up. She looks young and sweet. The colors are bright and fun. It looks like a book I could hand to a high reader in third grade. The topic however is something for more mature readers to handle (interest level is grades 5-8 according to Follett). I think this cover doesn't do justice to the topics inside nor prepare the reader for what s/he will encounter.

One Crazy Summer is a wonderful book full of depth. All three girls grow a great deal over the summer they spend with their mother and depart with a deeper understanding of who they are, even if they still have so many questions about who their mother is.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

• Coretta Scott King Award 2011
• Newbery Honor 2011
• Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction 2011
• Booklist Starred: “Set during a pivotal moment in African American history, this vibrant novel shows the subtle ways that political movements affect personal lives; but just as memorable is the finely drawn, universal story of children reclaiming a reluctant parent’s love.”
• Horn Book Starred: “Williams-Garcia writes vividly about that turbulent summer through the intelligent, funny, blunt voice of Delphine, who observes outsiders and her own family with shrewdness and a keen perception.”
• Kirkus Reviews Starred: “The depiction of the time is well done, and while the girls are caught up in the difficulties of adults, their resilience is celebrated and energetically told with writing that snaps off the page.”

5. CONNECTIONS

• The 1968 Exhibit is a traveling exhibit that has a strong website. Use the resources here to help students understand some of the events that are mentioned in the book and to get a better picture of the national climate. The desktop timeline is particularly interesting and holds a wealth of information.
• The Black Panthers are a main part of this novel. Although readers will get a basic understanding of them through this novel, readers would benefit from greater background knowledge before reading or an in-depth study after reading this novel. Students should look beyond what was publicized about them in popular media to the things they were lesser known for, like the free breakfast program that the characters go to in One Crazy Summer.
• Create a poetry reading event for students. Allow them to read other's poetry or their own. One possible theme for this poetry and event could be oppression and how to stop it.
• Other books that have received the Newbery and Coretta Scott King Award:

Curtis, Christoper Paul. Bud, Not Buddy. ISBN: 9780385323062. Coretta Scott King Award 2000 and Newbery Medal 2000.

Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Watson's Go to Birmingham—1963: a novel. ISBN: 9780385321754. Coretta Scott King Honor 1996 and Newbery Honor 1996.

McKissack, Pat. The Dark Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural. ISBN: 97806798186632. Coretta Scott King Award 1993 and Newbery Honor 1993.

The First Part Last (Module 2)

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Johnson, Angela. 2003. The First Part Last. New York: Simon and Schuster Books for Young People. ISBN: 9780689849220.

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Bobby is a 16-year-old father who is deeply in love with his newborn daughter, Feather. Through a series of chapters that go back and forth from “now” and “then,” his story of deciding to raise her primarily on his own and the hardships of doing so is told. Although Bobby's parents and friends are supportive, this story provides a frank look at what it takes for a teen to raise a kid, while trying to finish up school and maintain some friendships as well.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Angela Johnson uses time in her novel in a fascinating way by jumping back and forth between the past and present. This lends a bit of mystery to Bobby's tale and also adds depth to his decision to raise his child. As the story slowly becomes clear as to how he ended up in this place, we are drawn to his character and love for his friends, girlfriend, family, and child. The only time the point of view shifts is in the one chapter that is told by Bobby's girlfriend, Nia It seems a bit jarring to the flow of the novel to hear a different voice in the midst of Bobby's, but that was most likely the goal of Johnson as this comes at the turning point in the novel.

The characters in Johnson's book are well-fleshed out and wonderfully dynamic. The people of this short novel are one of its strengths. Readers will come to like these characters and want to spend more time with them. The characters bring out emotions in the reader, both positive and negative, which is good in such an emotionally charged subject as teenage pregnancy/parenthood.

Some cultural markers are present in this book, but the force of the novel is about telling the story of a teen father, rather than the culture he comes from. The varied descriptions of skin colors (e.g. “mahogany”) is one marker that is apparent. There is also the description of Bobby's apartment as being filled with Jacob Lawrence prints and the sounds of jazz, Motown, and reggae. However, Johnson, of course, doesn't hit a one note cultural marker but shows diversity in the culture through the other apartment described, Nia's, as stark white, post-modern, with Japanese features. Themes of strong families sticking together are another marker.

One of the most mesmerizing parts of this novel is Angela Johnson's incredibly poetic prose. The beauty of language has long been a part of African American literature, and this is no exception. The rhythm and cadence of the words, the metaphors and imagery, and the very fact that something so brief could bring out so much emotion shows Johnson's poetic side.

This novel has universal appeal because of it's themes of love and fidelity. The topic of teen pregnancy also hits a broad audience. Angela Johnson artfully draws the reader in and leaves us wanting to know more about what happened to Bobby and Feather.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

• Coretta Scott King Award 2004
• Michael L. Printz Award 2004
• Booklist Starred: “Johnson makes poetry with the simplest words in short, spare sentences that teens will read again and again.”
• Horn Book Starred: “What resonate in this prequel to the Coretta Scott King Award-winning Heaven are the sacrifices Bobby makes for Feather's sake.”
• Publisher's Weekly Starred: “The author skillfully relates the hope in the midst of pain.”
• School Library Journal: “Brief, poetic, and absolutely riveting, this gem of a novel tells the story of a young father struggling to raise an infant.”

5. CONNECTIONS

• This is the middle book in the Heaven trilogy. The first book is Heaven and the last book is Sweet, Hereafter. After reading all three, have students look at how they are all tied together, as it is not like the “series” books they have become accustomed to.
• Do an author study on Angela Johnson. Have students look at her picture books and poetry as well as her novels. An interview with Johnson can be found on the Ohio Channel.
• Other teen books that won Coretta Scott King and Michael L. Printz:

Myers, Walter Dean. Monster. ISBN: 9780060280772. Coretta Scott King Honor 2000 and Printz Award 2000.

Nelson, Marilyn. A Wreath for Emmett Till. ISBN: 0618397523. Coretta Scott King Honor 2006 and Printz Honor 2006.