Ordinary Resurrections: Children in the Years of Hope, by Jonathan Kozol. Published by Crown Publishers, 2000. 375 pages
This book is the culmination of Jonathan Kozol's thirty year attack on the inequities of education.
In this living laboratory of sorts, housed in a dismal South Bronx neighborhood, struggles with poverty imprisoned fathers, AIDS and asthma cannot dim the hope and resilience of his young subjects. They come to life on his pages in an unforgettable way.
Having taken issue with educational systems across the country and the resulting legacy of illiteracy, Kozol spends the pages of this book on the actual lives of all too real children and their marvelous abilities to find goodness in an environment which most would consider anything but good. According to Kozol, the children prevail because of such qualities as ingenuity, courage, love and especially spiritual faith.
How the children of the neighborhood of Moot Haven are "resurrected" each day is the heartwarming and encouraging part of this book. As Kozol points out, "why not give these kids the best...they're children and deserve to have some fun while they're still less than four feet high?"
Bill Early
