  | Goin' someplace special Author: McKissack, Pat | |
| Price: $23.28 | ||
Summary:
In segregated 1950s Nashville, a young African American girl braves a series of indignities and obstacles to get to the public library.
| Illustrator: | Pinkney, Jerry |
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| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: LG Reading Level: 4.30 Points: .5 Quiz: 53934 | Reading Counts Information: Interest Level: K-2 Reading Level: 3.30 Points: 2.0 Quiz: 26589 | |
Awards:
Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award, 2002
Coretta Scott King/Virginia Hamilton Lifetime Achievement Award, 2014
Common Core Standards
CC Maps Recommended Works Gde K-5
Grade K → Reading → RL Literature → K.RL Key Ideas & Details
Grade 1 → Reading → RL Reading Literature → 1.RL Key Ideas & Details
Grade K → Reading → RL Literature → K.RL Craft & Structure
Grade K → Reading → RL Literature → K.RL Integration of Knowledge & Ideas
Grade 1 → Reading → RL Reading Literature → 1.RL Integration of Knowledge & Ideas
Grade 1 → Reading → RL Reading Literature → 1.RL Range of Reading & Level of Text Complexity
Grade 2 → Reading → RL Reading Literature → 2.RL Key Ideas & Details
Grade 2 → Reading → RL Reading Literature → 2.RL Range of Reading & Level of Text Complexity
Grade 2 → Reading → CCR College & Career Readiness Anchor Standards fo
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (09/15/01)
School Library Journal (09/01)
Booklist (+) (08/01/01)
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (09/01)
The Hornbook (11/01)
Full Text Reviews:
School Library Journal - 09/01/2001 Gr 3-5-'Tricia Ann's first solo trip out of her neighborhood reveals the segregation of 1950s' Nashville and the pride a young African-American girl takes in her heritage and her sense of self-worth. In an eye-opening journey, McKissack takes the child through an experience based upon her own personal history and the multiple indignities of the period. She experiences a city bus ride and segregated parks, restaurants, hotels, and theaters and travels toward "Someplace Special." In the end, readers see that 'Tricia Ann's destination is the integrated public library, a haven for all in a historical era of courage and change. Dialogue illustrates her confidence and intelligence as she bravely searches for truth in a city of Jim Crow signs. Pinkney re-creates the city in detailed pencil-and-watercolor art angled over full-page spreads, highlighting the young girl with vibrant color in each illustration. A thought-provoking story for group sharing and independent readers.-Mary Elam, Forman Elementary School, Plano, TX Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information. - Copyright 2001 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
Bulletin for the Center... - 09/01/2001 ’Tricia Ann—an African-American preteen—feels she’s ready to go across town all by herself, but Mama Frances knows that her granddaughter’s journey through 1950s Nashville is likely to challenge ’Tricia Ann’s moral compass as much as her navigational ability. However, she lets the girl go with one last reminder—“hold yo’ head up and act like you b’long to somebody”—and with that ’Tricia Ann skips out of the idealized verdure of Jerry Pinkney’s impressionistic landscape into the sober reality of back-of-the-bus seating and whites-only park benches. The reader follows her turquoise yellow-flowered dress all the way to the mysterious “Someplace Special,” the increasing drabness of the people and surroundings thrown into relief by ’Tricia Ann’s vitality. The expressive narration and soft-focus illustrations of this forthrightly purposive picture book sometimes become oversweet, but there is a solid core of experiential detail in both the pencil sketches that underpin Pinkney’s watercolors and the social (and personal) history that undergirds McKissack’s story. And you’ll be especially glad to know that ’Tricia Ann’s “favorite spot in the world” turns out to be . . . the public library, which a brief afterword by McKissack says “was one of the few places where there were no Jim Crow signs and blacks were treated with some respect.” While a little lengthy for the youngest listeners, this shows the pervasiveness of segregation and celebrates the strength of mind of those who said to African-American children, “Don’t let those signs steal yo’ happiness.” - Copyright 2001 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.
Booklist - 08/01/2001 *Starred Review* Tricia Ann excitedly gets her grandmother's permission to go out by herself to Someplace Special --a place far enough away to take the bus and to have to walk a bit. But this isn't just any trip. Tricia's trip takes place in the segregated South of the 1950s. That means Tricia faces sitting at the back of the bus, not being allowed to sit on a whites-only park bench, and being escorted out of a hotel lobby. She almost gives up, but a local woman who some say is addled, but whom Tricia Ann knows to be gentle and wise, shows her how to listen to the voice inside herself that allows her to go on. She arrives at her special destination--the public library, whose sign reads All Are Welcome. Pinkney's watercolor paintings are lush and sprawling as they evoke southern city streets and sidewalks as well as Tricia Ann's inner glow. In an author's note, McKissack lays out the autobiographical roots of the story and what she faced as a child growing up in Nashville. This book carries a strong message of pride and self-confidence as well as a pointed history lesson. It is also a beautiful tribute to the libraries that were ahead of their time. - Copyright 2001 Booklist.
