Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson

Feathers

by Jacqueline Woodson

Image Credit: Feathers at https://www.jacquelinewoodson.com

1. Bibliography

Woodson, Jacqueline.  Feathers. New York: G.P. Putnam and Sons, 2007. ISBN 0142415502

2. Plot Summary

"Hope is the thing with feathers..." starts the poem Frannie is reading in school. Frannie hasn't thought much about hope. There are so many other things to think about. Each day, her friend Samantha seems a bit more holy. There is a new boy in class everyone is calling the Jesus Boy. And although the new boy looks like a white kid, he says he's not white. Who is he? During a winter full of surprises, good and bad, Frannie starts seeing a lot of things in a new light — her brother Sean's deafness, her mother's fear, the class bully's anger, her best friend's faith and her own desire for the thing with feathers. In this Newbery Honor book, Jacqueline Woodson once again takes readers on a journey into a young girl's heart and reveals the pain and the joy of learning to look beneath the surface. (Summary Credit: Feathers at scholastic.com)

3. Critical Analysis

            The main character, Frannie, is in 6^th grade.  She worries about things that happen, changes and life in general.  However, she stands up for herself and her friends. She stands up for her brother, people being picked on by the class bully and the new kid.  She is the baby of the family and worries that things will change when the new baby comes along.  Her brother, Sean, is deaf.  Sean is good looking and therefore always is attracting girls.  Unfortunately, they always shut him down once they find out he is deaf.  His hearing closes down his interaction with the rest of the world so he longs to get out and see more of what the wide world has to offer.  The character only known as “Jesus Boy” is the primary antagonist whom the story revolves around.  He is new to all all-black school however he is white with long hair.  And, while at first, he appears to be different from the rest of his class, it is discovered that the children have more similarities than differences.

            All that is known of the setting is that it is a city or town in the United States in the 1970s.  Frannie’s family and her school are on “this” side of the highway.  And, the white families live on the other side.  Frannie loves her side of the highway and doesn’t understand why her brother and her friends would ever want to go to the other side of the highway or out in the rest of the world.  However, you can feel that “this” side of the highway is figuratively felt to be a prison by some of the characters who feel it unfair that they are expected to stay on their side.

            Because the book takes place in the 70s, it covers the time of the “Black Power” movement.  The children wear shirts that say Black Power and/or have the symbol of the raised fist.  The hairstyle for the older kids are afros with afro picks with the African American colors (red, black and green) tucked into their back pockets.  The language is consistent with a black community in the 70s.  Children say things like “don’t know palefaces go to this school”, “soul brother”, “jive turkey”, “right on, my brother man”, and “that cat’s saying”.  The children live in an economically depressed neighborhood.  There is cardboard on windows, graffiti on the buildings and most kids get free school lunch.  There is a rich tradition of going to church.  Frannie’s friend carries a bible and her father is the preacher of a storefront‘fire and brimstone’ church, Frannie’s parents go to church regularly and her grandmother goes to two churches on Sunday and keeps a bible where she can strike the children when they misbehave.  Other indicators of the culture include some of the children’s name (RayRay), the games they play (Down, Baby, Down – jump rope) and the music they listen to.

This is a valuable read and could spark a lot of good conversation about the primary themes of Hope, Understanding and Disability.  It is a great book in the African American genre and could also be used in a section about disability.

4. Review Experts

~Newbery Honor Book (2008)

~Kirkus Review: The theme of “hope” recurs in the description of the Black Power movement, and in Frannie’s musings on the Emily Dickinson poem, “Hope is the thing with feathers.” Developing this metaphor, Woodson captures perfectly the questions and yearnings of a girl perched on the edge of adolescence, a girl who readers will take into their hearts and be glad to call their friend.

~Publishers Weekly: Woodson’s novel skillfully weaves in the music and events surrounding the rising opposition to the Vietnam War, giving this timeless story depth. She raises important questions about God, racial segregation, and issues surrounding the hearing impaired with a light and thoughtful touch.

5. Connections

~Use in a literature section with other books by Jacqueline Woodson

            After Tupac and D Foster. ISBN 9780142413999

            Miracles Boys. ISBN 0142415537

            Locomotion. ISBN 0142415529

            Show Way. ISBN 0399237496

            Hush. ISBN 0142415510

~Use in a unit about the 1970s in America

~Use in a unit on Prejudice and Racism

            Woodson, Jacqueline Woodson.  Brown Girl Dreaming.  ISBN 0147515823

            Rhodes, Jewell Parker.  Ghost Boy. ISBN 9780316262286

Tonatiuh, Duncan.  Separate is Never Equal.  ISBN 1419710540

Williams-Garcia, Rita.  One Crazy Summer. ISBN 0060760907