Summary -
Tomas is a son of migrant workers. Every summer he and his family follow the crops north from Texas to Iowa, spending long, arduous days in the fields. At night they gather around to hear Grandfather's wonderful stories. But before long, Tomas knows all the stories by heart. "There are more stories in the library," Papa Grande tells him. The very next day, Tomas meets the library lady and a whole new world opens up for him. Based on the true story of the Mexican-American author and educator Tomas Rivera, a child of migrant workers who went on to become the first minority Chancellor in the University of California system, this inspirational story suggests what libraries--and education--can make possible. Raul Colan's warm, expressive paintings perfectly interweave the harsh realities of Tomas's life, the joyful imaginings he finds in books, and his special relationships with a wise grandfather and a caring librarian.
Reviews -
Gr 2-4--Tomas Rivera, who at his death in 1984 was the Chancellor of the University of California at Riverside, grew up in a migrant family. Here, Mora tells the fictionalized story of one summer in his childhood during which his love of books and reading is fostered by a librarian in Iowa, who takes him under her wing while his family works the harvest. She introduces him to stories about dinosaurs, horses, and American Indians and allows him to take books home where he shares them with his parents, grandfather, and brother. When it is time for the family to return to Texas, she gives Tomas the greatest gift of all--a book of his own to keep. Colon's earthy sun-warmed colors, textured with swirling lines, add life to this biographical fragment and help portray Tomas's reading adventures in appealing ways. Stack this up with Sarah Stewart and David Small's The Library (Farrar, 1995) and Suzanne Williams and Steven Kellogg's Library Lil (Dial, 1997) to demonstrate the impact librarians can have on youngsters. --Barbara Elleman
Gr 1-4-- Mora's slice-of-life account tells of the son of migrant workers (inspired by the boyhood of Hispanic author and educator Tomás Rivera) whose horizons and linguistic skills are thrown wide open by the guidance of a friendly librarian. The hardships of migrant life and the dreams that books and learning provide are carefully delineated in both text and muted illustrations. - Coop Renner
And so...
This is a feel good book all the way around. The descriptions of working hard in the heat of summer made me sweat, but the pleasant coolness of the library and the water from the fountain cooled me right down again. Tomas learns so many things about reading and people as he forms his friendship with the library lady that you wish he never had to go back to Texas.
Use this book for
A great read aloud the first of school to get the students interested in what the librarian can do to help them. There are many writing lessons that can be learned from reading this as well, with its great descriptive passages.
References
Mora, Pat. Tomas and the Library Lady. New York: Knopf, 1997.
Summary retrieved from Sendetc Solutions, Inc.; Richardson Public Library On-line Card Catolgue July 14, 2011.
Renner, Coop. School Library Journal, Jul2005, Vol. 51 Issue 7, p44-44, 1/9p
Elleman, Barbara. School Library Journal, Oct97, Vol. 43 Issue 10, p105, 1/8p
Photograph retrieved from http://hip.cor.gov/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=131310F73J64R.107559&profile=rpl&uri=full%3D3100001%7E%21196159%7E%210&ri=2&&aspect=subtab35&menu=search&ri=2&view=SUMMARY&aspect=subtab35&menu=search&source=~!horizon&enhancedcontentdata=true%0A%09%09#focus
Novels - Elijah of Buxton
Summary -
Master storyteller Christopher Paul Curtis lends his trademark humour and vibrant narrative style to the gripping tale of eleven-year-old Elijah Freeman. The first child born into freedom in Buxton, Ontario, a settlement of runaway slaves just over the border from Detroit, Elijah is best known in his hometown as the boy who threw up on Frederick Douglass. Not on purpose, of course — he was just a baby then! But things change when a former slave calling himself the Right Reverend Zephariah W. Connerly the Third steals money from ElijahÂ’s friend Mr. Leroy, who has been saving to buy his family out of captivity in the South. Elijah joins Mr. Leroy on a dangerous journey to America in pursuit of the disreputable preacher, and he discovers firsthand the unimaginable horrors of the life his parents have fled — a life from which he’ll always be free, if he can find the courage to get back home. Exciting yet evocative, heart-wrenching yet hilarious, Elijah of Buxton is Christopher Paul Curtis at his very best — and an unforgettable testament to the power of hope.
Reviews -
Elijah Freeman, 11, has two claims to fame. He was the first child "born free" to former slaves in Buxton, a (real) haven established in 1849 in Canada by an American abolitionist. The rest of his celebrity, Elijah reports in his folksy vernacular, stems from a "tragical" event. When Frederick Douglass, the "famousest, smartest man who ever escaped from slavery," visited Buxton, he held baby Elijah aloft, declaring him a "shining bacon of light and hope," tossing him up and down until the jostled baby threw up--on Douglass. The arresting historical setting and physical comedy signal classic Curtis (Bud, Not Buddy), but while Elijah's boyish voice represents the Newbery Medalist at his finest, the story unspools at so leisurely a pace that kids might easily lose interest. Readers meet Buxton's citizens, people who have known great cruelty and yet are uncommonly polite and welcoming to strangers. Humor abounds: Elijah's best friend puzzles over the phrase "familiarity breeds contempt" and decides it's about sexual reproduction. There's a rapscallion of a villain in the Right Reverend Deacon Doctor Zephariah Connerly the Third, a smart-talking preacher no one trusts, and, after 200 pages, a riveting plot: Zephariah makes off with a fortune meant to buy a family of slaves their freedom. Curtis brings the story full-circle, demonstrating how Elijah the "fra-gile" child has become sturdy, capable of stealing across the border in pursuit of the crooked preacher, and strong enough to withstand a confrontation with the horrors of slavery. The powerful ending is violent and unsettling, yet also manages to be uplifting. Ages 9-12. - Publishers Weekly
Gr 4-8 Labeled "fragile" ever since infancy, Elijah, the first child born free in a Canadian community of escaped slaves, longs to be "growned" up. When circumstances force him to cross the U.S. border, the sensitive boy comes face-to-face with the horrors of slavery and matures in ways that would have been unimaginable just days before. - School Library Journal
And so...
There are many "growing up" stories in Elijah's book, from going fishing with "Ole Flapjack" to learning lessons about tricking people with frogs and snakes. These stories give a sense of the personality of Elijah and the other members of his community, include "The Preacher" who does some interesting figuring when it comes to tithing. Many students will put the book down before they ever reach the central conflict, but the dialect and humor will reward those who perservere.
Use this book for...
History lessons about slavery, dialogue writing lessons, Black History month, and voice in compositions. A great book club selection to read and discuss, making comparisons of how character portraits are drawn between the upstanding, hard-working Mr. Leroy and The Preacher.
References -
Curtis, Christopher Paul. Elijah of Buxton. New York: Scholastic Press, 2007.
Summary retrieved from Sendetc Solutions, Inc.; Richardson Public Library On-line Card Catolgue July 14, 2011.
Publishers Weekly, 9/10/2007, Vol. 254 Issue 36, p61-62, 2p
School Library Journal, Apr2008 Curriculum Connection, Vol. 54, p54-54, 1/8p
Photograph retrieved from http://hip.cor.gov/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=YN131044635W6.108130&profile=rpl&uri=link=3100007~!321166~!3100001~!3100002&aspect=subtab35&menu=search&ri=1&source=~!horizon&term=Elijah+of+Buxton+%2F&index=PALLTI#focus
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