Reading Commentary Five

This assignment was meant to analyze Newberry Award books that featured people from varying backgrounds and how prevalent their personal backgrounds (racial, cultural, financial, etc.) were to the overall story line. Responses were based on the following 4 categories:

—  Literature Consciously Interracial Books: A Focus on people of different backgrounds or people groups interacting with each other. Ex: Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Martin shows children of many colors in school

—  "People are People" Books: No attempts are made to reflect a distinct culture; characters could be members of any cultural group like a book about a child going to school or a family going on a trip. Ex: Ten, Nine, Eight by Bang shows a black child and her father t bedtime but does not focus on the culture; any child who's dad puts them to bed could relate.

—  Books on the Distinctive Experience of Being Within a Particular Cultural Group: Books that deal with and or share the experiences of a particular cultural group with no focus on characters of a different culture. Often times, these books help us understand that cultural group and their traditions. Ex: M.C. Higgins, the Great by Hamilton - a book about a "black experience". However, be sure to remind students that one experience of a culture group is not monolithic.

—  Books on Coping with Racism and Discrimination: These books deal directly with discrimination and racism based on cultural groups. Through My Eyes by Bridges or Less Than Half, More Than Whole by Lacapa depict two different experiences children dealt with dealing with racism.



















Out of the Dust, by Karen Hesse
This book is definitely a book on the distinctive experience of being within a particular cultural group. The story told through free verse poetry about a young girl named Billie Jo Kelby and her experience during the Dust Bowl. Told from a very particular group viewpoint, Billie tells the tale of living during the great depression, on a farm, during the dust bowl - a time of widespread drought and terrible dust storms throughout much of 1930's Americas farming communities. Although a fictionalized character and her farming family is the focus of the book, many of the experiences reference things that very well may have happened during the time.

Holes, by Louis Sachar
This one was a bit more difficult to peg, but I decided to go with people are people, as there is some description in the book, but nothing to create a concrete background for race, culture, etc. It is about a boy (Stanley Yelnats) from a poor family who is wrongly convicted of a crime and sent to a juvenile detention work camp. The relationships built between characters are more important than cultural background, though the sweet revenge/justice at the end certainly makes up for the depressing bits in between.