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A review by book_concierge
The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis
4.0
From the book jacket: Enter the hilarious world of ten-year-old Kenny and his family, the Weird Watsons of Flint, Michigan. There’s Momma, Dad, little sister Joetta, and brother Byron, who’s thirteen and an “official juvenile delinquent.” When Momma and Dad decide it’s time for a visit to Grandma, the Watsons set out on a trip like no other. They’re heading south to Birmingham, Alabama, toward one of the darkest moments in America’s history.
My Reactions
I love the way Curtis writes. I totally believe in Kenny as a narrator, and was charmed by his irrepressible spirit, his love of reading, his efforts to hang with his brother and protect his little sister.
I am all too familiar with the events in Birmingham during this period in America’s history, so that plot twist was not a surprise. For me, it served to heighten the suspense of the novel. And the horrific events were no less horrific for my knowing what was coming. Children who are not so aware of those happenings may not have that same sense of suspense from the beginning, but I think they will definitely feel the impact of the story.
My Reactions
I love the way Curtis writes. I totally believe in Kenny as a narrator, and was charmed by his irrepressible spirit, his love of reading, his efforts to hang with his brother and protect his little sister.
I am all too familiar with the events in Birmingham during this period in America’s history, so that plot twist was not a surprise. For me, it served to heighten the suspense of the novel. And the horrific events were no less horrific for my knowing what was coming. Children who are not so aware of those happenings may not have that same sense of suspense from the beginning, but I think they will definitely feel the impact of the story.