Birmingham, 1963 by Carole Boston Weatherford

Birmingham, 1963 by Carole Boston Weatherford

 

1.      Bibliography

Weatherford, Carole Boston. Birmingham, 1963. Honesdale, Pennsylvania: Wordsong, 2007 ISBN 1590784405

2.      Plot Summary

Birmingham, 1963 is a story told in free verse poetry and photographs.  It is a retelling of events as might be told by a 10-year-old attendee of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama on a fateful day in September of 1963. And, while the narrator may be fictional, the basic information and events of the story are not. Birmingham was a highly segregated city and the suppressed citizens were protesting their treatment. The Ku Klux Klan fought against integration by bombing churches in the neighborhood culminating in this event which brought national attention to the situation.

3.      Critical Analysis

The story, told in free verse uses long sentences giving the story a movement toward its intended course.  Each sentence fills a page with a facing photograph; telling a portion of the story in words and black-and-white pictures; setting a mood for the time period and tone of the story. The repeated use of the phrase, “The year I turned ten”, is a constant reminder that this is a day in the life of a child.  It makes the reader celebrate with the child, at first, when she is happy.  Then, makes the reader concerned as she tells of her concerns for her city.  And, finally, these words serve as a tragic reminder that this event happened to children.

The writer’s choice of song titles and words included in the poem sets the stage for the time period and for the sense of the child’s community.  Songs referenced, “We Shall Overcome”, “This Little Light of Mine”, “Jesus Loves the Little Children” and “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen” are strategically placed in the poem to give voice to the emotion the story is evoking. After the story, the author includes a memorial section, in remembrance of the children heartbreakingly taken on that day.  And, the author’s notes at the end put the story in context for anyone who does not know the history of the event.

4.      Review Excerpts

Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award

Jefferson Cup

Jane Addams Children’s Literature Honor

From Kirkus Reviews: Starred Review.  "A gorgeous memorial to the four killed on that horrible day, and to the thousands of children who braved violence to help change the world."

From School Library Journal: Starred Review. "An intimate experience. An emotional read, made even more accessible and powerful by the viewpoint of the child narrator."

From Library Media Connection: Starred Review. "Filled with emotion. This is a book that should be in every library collection.”

5.      Connections

Gather other Carole Boston Weatherford books to read, such as:

      Becoming Billie Holiday. ISBN 159078507X
      Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hammer: Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement. ISBN 0763665312
      Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom. ISBN 0786851759

Gather other books about Birmingham’s role in the civil rights movement, such as:

      Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Watson’s Go to Birmingham – 1963. ISBN 044022800X
      Mayer, Robert H. When the Children Marched: The Birmingham Civil Rights Movement. ISBN 0766029301
      Levinson, Cynthia.  We’ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children’s March. ISBN 1561458449

Gather other freestyle poet books to compare, such as:

      Lai, Thanhha.  Inside Out and Back Again. ISBN 0061962791
      Nelson, Marilyn.  How I Discovered Poetry. ISBN 0147510058
      Woodson, Jacqueline.  Brown Girl Dreaming. ISBN 0147515823

Use in a social studies segment about segregation, civil rights and/or the 1960s in America.

Use in a music lesson about civil rights music, protest songs or spirituals.