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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
I thought the first of this series, One Crazy Summer, would be my favorite until I read this last one! Pulls at the heartstrings! I will miss the Gaither Sisters! Fingers crossed that Rita Williams-Garcia will consider writing more in this series.
The following is excerpted from a slightly longer post about GONE CRAZY IN ALABAMA that appears on my booksploitation blog--
Gone Crazy in Alabama is the last book in a trilogy from Rita Williams-Garcia about Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern Gaither, three African American sisters growing up in the 1960s. Each book touches on events and cultural issues from that decade. The stories are told from the point of view of Delphine, the oldest. (I’ve already reviewed the first two books—One Crazy Summer and P.S. Be Eleven.)
The Gaither Girls of Herkimer Street in Brooklyn spent one crazy summer in Oakland with the mother they barely knew and learned about the Black Panthers. They returned to the East Coast after that summer to changes at home—their father married, their uncle was changed by the war in Vietnam, and they had to grow up even more.
The girls are going to spend the summer in a place they’ve been before with at least one person they know—Big Mama. After leaving because their father married, the girls’ paternal grandmother, Big Mama, went back home to Alabama. These Brooklyn girls have to temper their enthusiasm for Black Panther rhetoric and other ideas that don’t fly when they go down South. They also have to get eggs, iron sheets, and do without some of the things they are used to in the city.
In this book, Williams-Garcia focuses on tangled family relationships on several levels. Big Mama lives with her mother, Ma Charles, and her son, the girls’ Uncle Darnell, who is doing better than he was in the previous book. What the girls somehow missed on earlier visits when they were younger was the family feud between Ma Charles and her half sister who lives within walking distance. Sadly, Ma Charles and her sister shamefully use attention-seeking Vonetta to fan the flames of their fight.
The book also gives an overview of the tangled web of interconnectedness among African Americans, whites, and Native Americans in the South. This is something I didn’t learn about until I was older than the audience for this book and I wonder how I would have digested this knowledge as a young reader. The girls learn that their African American family is related to white folks in town (some of whom are Klan members). Even the family dog has kin among the pets of whites in town. They also learn that some Native Americans kept and sold African American slaves (I’ve also reviewed Citizens Creek, a more detailed, adult fiction book about this issue). Astute young readers will also understand notice that Williams-Garcia includes commentary on the N word and questions about human use of animals.
This last installment did not have the charm of the other two. The story dragged and the pivotal event that brings the entire family (including the feuding elderly sisters) together was a long time in coming. Still, it is also great to see the complexities of African American life in children’s fiction. At one point Delphine realizes that she has quite a mix of relations just on her father’s side alone. She also reflects on the differences between the expectations for children living in Brooklyn with those for children in Alabama.
Gone Crazy in Alabama is the last book in a trilogy from Rita Williams-Garcia about Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern Gaither, three African American sisters growing up in the 1960s. Each book touches on events and cultural issues from that decade. The stories are told from the point of view of Delphine, the oldest. (I’ve already reviewed the first two books—One Crazy Summer and P.S. Be Eleven.)
The Gaither Girls of Herkimer Street in Brooklyn spent one crazy summer in Oakland with the mother they barely knew and learned about the Black Panthers. They returned to the East Coast after that summer to changes at home—their father married, their uncle was changed by the war in Vietnam, and they had to grow up even more.
The girls are going to spend the summer in a place they’ve been before with at least one person they know—Big Mama. After leaving because their father married, the girls’ paternal grandmother, Big Mama, went back home to Alabama. These Brooklyn girls have to temper their enthusiasm for Black Panther rhetoric and other ideas that don’t fly when they go down South. They also have to get eggs, iron sheets, and do without some of the things they are used to in the city.
In this book, Williams-Garcia focuses on tangled family relationships on several levels. Big Mama lives with her mother, Ma Charles, and her son, the girls’ Uncle Darnell, who is doing better than he was in the previous book. What the girls somehow missed on earlier visits when they were younger was the family feud between Ma Charles and her half sister who lives within walking distance. Sadly, Ma Charles and her sister shamefully use attention-seeking Vonetta to fan the flames of their fight.
The book also gives an overview of the tangled web of interconnectedness among African Americans, whites, and Native Americans in the South. This is something I didn’t learn about until I was older than the audience for this book and I wonder how I would have digested this knowledge as a young reader. The girls learn that their African American family is related to white folks in town (some of whom are Klan members). Even the family dog has kin among the pets of whites in town. They also learn that some Native Americans kept and sold African American slaves (I’ve also reviewed Citizens Creek, a more detailed, adult fiction book about this issue). Astute young readers will also understand notice that Williams-Garcia includes commentary on the N word and questions about human use of animals.
This last installment did not have the charm of the other two. The story dragged and the pivotal event that brings the entire family (including the feuding elderly sisters) together was a long time in coming. Still, it is also great to see the complexities of African American life in children’s fiction. At one point Delphine realizes that she has quite a mix of relations just on her father’s side alone. She also reflects on the differences between the expectations for children living in Brooklyn with those for children in Alabama.
I loved reading all about the Gaither Sisters, One Crazy Summer, P.S. be eleven and Gone Crazy in Alabama. Challenge all my OG Readers to read all 3!
A familys love
This was a good one. Dealing with issues from the south during this time period while also learning that family, and especially sisters are not something to take for granted.
This was a good one. Dealing with issues from the south during this time period while also learning that family, and especially sisters are not something to take for granted.
Just as good as the others. Read them all. Rita write more.
This was an enjoyable story that got better as I read further into the book. The author creates some characters that one can't help but grow to like. She also includes insights into the different cultures that the various characters come from. This helps explain why the characters behave the way they do. I think this story has a lot to offer a variety of readers. I think a young reader over ten could read this book by themselves otherwise it would be a good read aloud to even younger readers.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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:
Yes
I read this with my 10 1/2 year old son and we both enjoyed it very much. As with the previous two books in the series, there was a lot to talk about: pop culture in the 60s and 70s but this time we also had to talk about the Ku Klux Klan which was an uncomfortable but important thing to discuss especially since we are living in 2022 and there is still so much awful rascism.
This book has plenty of humor and a good amount of drama. I am impressed with the writing.
My favorite character voice: Fern!
This book has plenty of humor and a good amount of drama. I am impressed with the writing.
My favorite character voice: Fern!