Reviews

I read this years ago when I was a kid, and rereading it now was so nice. Clearly, I didn’t remember much of it, which made me even more glad that I got to read it once more. Kenny is such a humorous narrator, and the escapades he and Byron get into are so, so hilarious…until they become hugely serious. The amount of growth that the Watsons go through is incredible, and it’s done in a way that lends a lot of humor to the harsh reality of the time. Even today, it’s still fresh, genuine, and utterly heartbreaking.

And now to get a little grad school on y’all…this book offers SO many opportunities in the children’s lit field, from ethnic studies, to gender and masculinity studies, to humor studies…it appears to have it all, and not many books can say that. I mean, in comparison to The Watsons, how can other books hold up in representing a family so rooted in love and hilarity?

Review cross-listed here!

leahswanson's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

brittanyhoffman11's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Content Warnings

janelleleigh12's review against another edition

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4.0

Christopher Paul Curtis' The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 is such an entertaining read. Not to spoil the ending too much, but the shocking inclusion of dramatic American history into the ending took me by complete surprise. When the bombing happened, I felt as if I just went over the top of the hill on a roller coaster and there is no where to go but down. Whereas the first five chapters are full of laughter and tears from laughing so hard, the last four are full of fear and anxiety. Thankfully, at the end, the reader is left with a feeling of peace regarding the characters and their growth within the novel, but not about the social situations going on in America in the 1960s. This book is a wonderful book to assign students in an English class because it is entertaining and thoughtful; also, I would highly recommend using this book in a History/Social Studies class covering the Civil Rights Movement or 1960s America.

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