Book Review: One Crazy Summer

 

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Williams-Garcia, R. (2011). One crazy summer. Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

ISBN: 0060760907

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

This Historical Non-Fiction novel tells the story of three sisters, Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern, who travel across the country from Brooklyn to Oakland, California to spend time with their mother who left them. Taking place in 1968, during a tough time in history, the girls come to realize their mother is nothing like what they expected.

3.CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Although this book is written at a 4th grade level, I thought this book was more appropriate for middle school aged students.  Taking place in 1968, this book touches on different historical events in US history that were relevant during this time period. In this heartwarming story, Rita Williams-Garcia, does an amazing job of showcasing the relationship between all three sisters. Broken down into different chapters, each chapter title is engaging and is sure to catch any reader’s attention.  My favorite part of this book was reading and visualizing the relationship between the three sisters.  It reminded me of my relationship with my sisters and how important that relationship is to me. This book in my opinion was well written with language appropriate for the time period and each of the character’s voices were well represented. I was also surprised to read about the Black Panther Movement, which if I’m honest, I was unaware of up until reading this novel.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Newbery Honor Novel

National Book Award Finalist

Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction Award

Coretta Scott King Award

Starred review in Booklist: “Regimented, responsible, strong-willed Delphine narrates in an unforgettable voice”

Starred review in Kirkus: ““Delphine is the pitch-perfect older sister, wise beyond her years, an expert at handling her siblings...”

Starred review in School Library Journal: “Emotionally challenging and beautifully written…with memorable characters”

5. CONNECTIONS

*Lead students in a discussion about the Black Panther Movement. Have students research this group and their effect in US history.   

*Have students research different historical events during 1968. Have students create a timeline that explains the different events. When done, students should present to class.

*Other books with a historical setting:

Curtis, C. P. (1997). The Watsons go to birmingham--1963. Yearling, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books.

ISBN: 9780440414124

Johnson, V. (2019). The parker inheritance. Scholastic Inc.

ISBN: 0545952786

Review written for SHSU MLA course.

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