Review Book Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney GOIN' SOMEPLACE SPECIAL (African-American Literature)

Bibliography: McKissack, Patricia. 2001. Ill. Pinkney, Jerry. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0689818858


Plot Summary:

The story tells a fictionalized version of events taken from the author’s childhood as she grew up in Nashville, Tennessee during the segregated 1950’s. ‘Tricia Ann asks her grandmother for permission to “go somewhere special” by herself. After her grandmother agrees, ‘Tricia Ann begins her adventure out of her neighborhood alone. She faces many of the obstacles of the Jim Crow era in Southern American life. She finds “her place” on the back of the bus, visits the park and finds the benches “for whites only” and after being caught in a crowd she found herself in the lobby of a grand hotel. She was quickly shooed away when the indignant crowd noticed her. Her trip finally takes her to the public library where the welcoming sign “Public Library: All Are Welcome” warmly greets her.


Critical Analysis:

Jerry Pinkney’s illustrations in pencil and watercolors won him the prestigious Corretta Scott King Award for illustrators in 2002.The illustrations along with the text of the story vividly portray the life of the African American community during the segregated times of the 1950’s. His representations are modern in that they show the African-American people with a variety of skin-tones, facial features and hairstyles that were typical of the times. His illustrations do not show any of the insulting cultural markers found in many books of earlier times. ‘Tricia Ann is softly illustrated in her colorful traditional dress typical of the young girls in the 1950’s. The text identification is specific to the culture of the times with the dialect and language patterns of the African American adults being somewhat less correct than that of ‘Tricia Ann. Mama Frances reminding her to “hold yo’ head up and act like you b’long to somebody” and Mrs. Grannell reminding her to “carry yo’self proud”. The general environment of both the text and illustrations addressed the segregated times in the urban south with segregated seats on the public bus as well as segregated seating in the movie theater with the young girl relating to her brother “Colored people can’t come in the front door. They got to go ‘round and sit up in the Buzzard’s Roost.” ‘Tricia Ann reveals the feelings of many African-Americans and others who questioned the Jim Crow laws when she says “Jim Crow makes me so mad! My grandfather was a stonemason on Peace Fountain. Why can’t I sit down and enjoy it?” and the young vendor she is visiting with points out that his brother cooks the food that is served in the restaurant, but the sign entering the restaurant reads “whites only”.

Reviews:

From Publishers Weekly: McKissack draws from her childhood in Nashville for this instructive picture book. "I don't know if I'm ready to turn you loose in the world," Mama Frances tells her granddaughter when she asks if she can go by herself to "Someplace Special" (the destination remains unidentified until the end of the story). 'Tricia Ann does obtain permission, and begins a bittersweet journey downtown, her pride battered by the indignities of Jim Crow laws. Pinkney's luminescent watercolors evoke the '50s, from fashions to finned cars, and he captures every ounce of 'Tricia Ann's eagerness, humiliation and quiet triumph at the end.



School Library Journal: Tricia Ann's first solo trip out of her neighborhood reveals the segregation of 1950s' Nashville and the pride a young African-American girl takes in her heritage and her sense of self-worth. In an eye-opening journey, McKissack takes the child through an experience based upon her own personal history and the multiple indignities of the period. Dialogue illustrates her confidence and intelligence as she bravely searches for truth in a city of Jim Crow signs. Pinkney re-creates the city in detailed pencil-and-watercolor art angled over full-page spreads, highlighting the young girl with vibrant color in each illustration.

Connections:

Poem: “AT THE LIBRARY” from IT’S RAINING LAUGHTER: Poems by Nikki Grimes ISBN 9781590780770, New York: Dial, 1997.

I flip the pages of a book and slip inside,
Where crystal seas await and pirates hide.
I find a paradise where birds can talk,
Where children fly and trees prefer to walk.
Sometimes I end up on a city street.
I recognize the brownskin girl I meet.
She’s skinny, but she’s strong, and brave, and wise.
I smile because I see me in her eyes.



The following book is a nonfiction book of the life of Ruby Bridges and her place in history as a six year old child entering a federally mandated integrated school during the Civil Rights movement of the the 1960's.

Book: THROUGH MY EYES by Ruby Bridges ISBN 0590189239