Module 5 - Let It Shine and Goin' Someplace Special

Goin' Someplace Special

by Patricia C. McKissack

2002 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Winner

ISBN 0-689-81885-8

Summary:

It's the 1950's and 'Tricia Ann wants to travel across town, by herself, to visit her Someplace Special.  Her grandmother allows her to go, reminding her as she leaves to, "hold yo' head up and act like you b'long to somebody."  Along her way she rides a bus, plays by a fountain, gets swept up into a crowd into a fancy hotel, meets a friend in a garden, gets embarrassed in front of the movie theater, all before arriving at her Someplace Special destination.  She also encounters Jim Crow signs and unfair treatment because of her skin color.  But when she gets to her Someplace Special, she is accepted for who she is, not because of the color of her skin.

My Impressions:

There is no doubt why this book is a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Winner.  The pencil and watercolor drawings are amazing.  The story is equally as wonderful, made even more touching by the author's note at the end of story, telling us it is her story as a young girl.  'Tricia Ann has some unfair and scary incidences on the way to the library (her Someplace Special) yet there are also friends close by to encourage her in her journey.  This book shows the wonder of the library in the life of a young girl who lives in a frustrating and unfair time.

Professional Reviews:

In a story that will endear itself to children's librarians and, for that matter, all library lovers, 'Tricia Ann begs her grandmother to be allowed to go alone to Someplace Special. Mama Frances acquiesces, sending her off with instructions: "'And no matter what, hold yo' head up and act like you b'long to somebody.'" 'Tricia Ann's special place is not revealed until the end, but on the way there, the humiliating racism she encounters on the city bus, in the park, and in a downtown hotel almost causes her to give up. "'Getting to Someplace Special isn't worth it,' she sobbed." When she recalls her grandmother's words: " 'You are somebody, a human being--no better, no worse than anybody else in this world,' “she regains the determination to continue her journey, in spite of blatant segregation and harsh Jim Crow laws. " Public Library: All Are Welcome" reads the sign above the front door of Someplace Special; Mama Frances calls it "a doorway to freedom." Every plot element contributes to the theme, leaving McKissack's autobiographical work open to charges of didacticism. But no one can argue with its main themes: segregation is bad, learning and libraries are good. Pinkney's trademark watercolors team with realistically drawn people, lush city scenes, and a spunky main character whose turquoise dress, enlivened with yellow flowers and trim, jumps out of every picture. A lengthy author's endnote fills in the background for adults on McKissack's childhood experiences with the Nashville Public Library. This library quietly integrated all of its facilities in the late 1950s, and provided her with the story's inspiration. A natural for group sharing; leave plenty of time for the questions and discussion that are sure to follow, (Picture book. 5-9)

Goin' someplace special [Review of the book Goin’ someplace special, by P. McKissack]. (2001). Kirkus Reviews, 69(18), 1362. Retrieved from www.kirkusreviews.com.

Young `Tricia Ann is off to Someplace Special--and about to "burst with excitement" because her grandmother is letting her go there alone for the very first time. The journey is not an easy one: she must face the indignities of life in the Jim Crow South. She has to sit behind the sign on the bus that says "COLORED SECTION." She is not allowed to sit in the park by the Peace Fountain her stonemason grandfather helped build. She visits her friend the doorman at the elegant Southland Hotel and is asked to leave. "What makes you think you can come inside? No colored people are allowed!" the manager says. Despite these humiliations, `Tricia Ann is strengthened at every turn by people who care about her and who bolster her with reminders to "Carry yo'self proud" and "Don't let those signs steal yo' happiness." Soon she reaches her beloved Someplace Special--the public library. The words carved in stone proclaim: "Public Library: All Are Welcome." Jerry Pinkney's illustrations place `Tricia Ann at the center of each page, willing to face the challenges the outside world throws at her. Whether `Tricia Ann is in her grandmother's kitchen (surrounded by bountiful fresh fruits and vegetables and the love they symbolize) or fearfully looking over her shoulder on the bus, Pinkney makes it clear that she will triumph. Though this story takes place in an unnamed Southern city, the helpful author's note states that McKissack was raised in Nashville, where, unlike many other Southern cities of the 1950s, the public libraries welcomed African Americans. The library pictured on the final pages, bathed in hopeful lemon sunshine, is the downtown library of 1950s Nashville. There are many books about a child's first trip alone, and many books about racism and the struggle for civil rights, but this book is about more than either: it is the story of a child facing a difficult time sustained by the support of the adults in her life. McKissack and Pinkney strike just the right balance in a picture book for young readers and listeners: informative without being preachy; hopeful without being sentimental.

Smith, R. (2001). Goin' someplace special. (Picture Books) [Review of the book Goin’ someplace special, by P. McKissack]. The Horn Book Magazine, 77(6), 736. Retrieved from www.hbook.com.

Having Fun in the Library:

This would be a good lead-in for a class that is about to study the Jim Crow era or to be read during Black History month. Pre-reading activity: ask the students what laws or rules they have to follow that they think are unfair.  I would also ask them to think of places they like to visit and why, or a place they consider "special".    I would write their responses on the board.  After reading the book, we could compare 'Tricia Ann's special place to the students'.  

McKissack, P. C. (2001).  Goin' someplace special.  New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

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Let It Shine: Three Favorite Spirituals

by Ashley Bryan

2008 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Winner

ISBN 978-0-689-84732-5

Summary:

Using vivid construction paper artwork, Ashley Bryan shares three spirituals in this book, This Little Light of Mine, Oh, When the Saints Go Marching In, and He's Got the Whole World in His Hands.  The lyrics are at the bottom of the page, with the artwork living out the song.  Musical notations are at the end of the book, as well as a note from the author/illustrator.

My Impression:

The artwork in this book is outstanding.  It truly enhances the spirituals and makes this a fun, energetic book to read.   Having the music notes at the end of the book beg for the teacher/librarian to play the music in the class.  One of my favorite pieces in the book is a picture of hands (He's Got the Whole World in His Hands) and the layering affect it has and the way Bryan makes the hands so many different colors.

Professional Reviews:

The inspiring words of three well-known spirituals, "This Little Light of Mine," "Oh, When the Saints Go Marching In," and "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands," are matched with powerful construction-paper collage illustrations.  Each double-page spread of this oversize picture book is an explosion of shapes and bright colors.  Stocky figures, silhouetted against swirling colors are created from geometric shapes woven together.  Rather than conceive a story to accompany the lyrics, Bryan presents series of scenes to reflect each set of lyrics.  Children dance around with candles and march with saints; God holds a world of colored objects in his hands.  The musical notation and lyrics for each song appear at the end of the book, as does a brief note from Bryan about the history of the spiritual and the changes he made in some of the lyrics.  This will be hard to read without breaking into song.  
Enos, R.  (2006, November 15).  Let it shine: Three favorite spirituals [Review of the book Let it shine; Three favorite spirituals].  Booklist, 103(6).

Having Fun in the Library:
Pre-reading: Discuss what spirituals are and give brief history.  Read book.  Ask students to vote on which of the three spirituals was their favorite.  Sing (with or without music) all three spirituals.  A great way to integrate this across the curriculum would be to have the art teacher allow the students to make construction paper projects in art class.

Bryan, A. (2007).  Let it shine, three favorite spirituals.  New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.