Historical Fiction Review: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Williams-Garcia, Rita. 2010. ONE CRAZY SUMMER. New York: Harper Collins. ISBN 9780060760908 2. PLOT SUMMARY In 1968, Delphine and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, are abruptly sent by their father to spend the summer with their estranged mother, Cecile, in Oakland, California. Their mother can’t be bothered with them and sends them to The People’s Center each day to be in the care of members of the Black Panther party. The girls receive a racial education under the care of the Black Panther Party. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS Rita Williams-Garcia fills a void in the children’s literature genre of historical fiction with One Crazy Summer, which sheds a positive light on The Black Panthers. Williams-Garcia highlights the good that The Black Panthers do for the community, including taking care of poverty stricken children and providing them breakfast and a place to be themselves. The book is set in 1968, which the author reminds readers of through little details at a time, such as Delphine and her sisters counting how many African American people they see on television. The depth of the characters is what takes this story to another level. By the end, none of the characters are the same as they were in the beginning. The mother is unlikeable,which is a stark contrast against other mother characters in children's literature. At the end, the mother opens up about her past, and although it provides Delphine with insight about why her mother acts the way she does, being the responsible and upstanding girl that Delphine is, she doesn't accept her mother's revelation as an excuse. Names are an important theme in this book. Cecile refuses to call her daughter Fern by her name, and instead calls her “little girl”. Delphine wonders about her name, and wonders if the reason her mother left them was because she was unable to choose the name she wanted for her daughter. A name, like skin color, is something you are born with, however, unlike skin color, a name is something you can choose. It is part of your identity. A name to the characters in this book is power. Delphine and her sisters receive a racial education that is introduced subtly by the author, and in a way children can understand. One Crazy Summer will surely spark important conversations amongst children and adults of today. 4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S) SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “One Crazy Summer is a book that’s going to earn itself a lot of fans. And a lot of them are going to be kids.” KIRKUS REVIEWS: “The depiction of the time is well done, and while the girls are caught up in the difficulties of adults, their resilience is celebrated and energetically told with writing that snaps off the page.” 5. CONNECTIONS Other Newbery Award Winning Books: Turtle In Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm ISBN 9780375836909 Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson ISBN 9780399252517 Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis ISBN 9780385323062