The Chronicles of Mrs. Major

  1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Mbalia, K. (2021). BLACK BOY JOY . Delacorte Press.  ISBN: 978-1-51604-520-4 2.  PLOT SUMMARY This collection of stories focuses on the joy of being a black boy. From fantasy to relatable stories, Black Boy Joy gives readers a sense of happiness.  3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS The characters in Black Boy Joy are all unique. Their commonality is that they have strong family bonds and show the positive experiences of growing up black. They showcase tight-knit families. The boys that are the main characters in each short story are described as unique individuals from athletes, to bakers, to nerds.  There are multiple settings in this book. Some examples are: neighborhoods, churches, homes, outer space, and other realms. The more familial ones depict common places identifiable to the African American community.  References to African American culture are woven throughout the book in thoughtful ways. First is the tight knit communities in many of the st...

  1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Woodgate, H. (2021). GRANDAD’S CAMPER.  Little Bee Books.  ISBN: 978-1-49981-193-3 2.  PLOT SUMMARY This picture book tells the story of the grandchild who hears stories about Grandad and Gramp’s adventures in the camper. She convinces her grandad to fix up the camper to continue adventures together.    3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS In Grandad’s Camper, the story is a recount from Grandad about how he met Gramps and their adventures in their camper when they were younger. The characters are multicultural, showing many skin tones and hair textures and colors as well.  The setting is twofold: the landscape of traveling in the van internationally, and then Grandad’s house. Grandad and Gramps are shown visiting beaches, cities, towns, and countryside. At Grandad’s house, there is a large garden and shed where the van is kept. At the end of the story the van is seen heading to the beach for more adventures.  There are numerous references to t...

  1. BIBLIOGRAPHY LeZotte, A. (2020). SHOW ME A SIGN . Scholastic Inc. ISBN: 978-1-338-25582-9 2.  PLOT SUMMARY Show Me a Sign is a novel about early 1800’s Martha Vineyard and its inhabitants. Mary and many others are deaf but not isolated in communication. A scientist comes to the island to determine why there is a concentration of deaf people in this community. He takes Mary to Boston as a “specimen” against her will. Will Mary be able to make it back to her family? 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS In Show Me a Sign, the characters are very authentic and culturally accurate. The main character, Mary, was born deaf. There are many like her on the island, including her father. One in four inhabitants of the island is deaf. The hearing and the deaf all communicate through sign language. The setting is on the island of Martha’s Vineyard and in Boston. Mary’s great-great-grandfather immigrated from England.  In this novel, there are many cultural markers for the deaf community. One of ...

  1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Lin, G. (2009). WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON . Little, Brown and Company.  ISBN: 978-0-316-03863-8 2.  PLOT SUMMARY Where the Mountain Meets the Moon is a novel about Minli and her parents Ma and Ba, who live in China long ago. Ba loves to tell tales about dragons and the Old Man of the Moon. Minli decides that the Fruitless Mountain that they live by can be changed if she is able to ask for help from the Old Man of the Moon. Throughout her adventure, she meets magical creatures that come to life from Ba’s stories.    3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS The characters in Where the Mountain Meets the Moon are authentic and representative of the Asian Pacific culture in several ways. Minli and her family live in the Valley of the Fruitless Mountain in China. They are poor and work from sun up to sun down. Ba tells stories of the Old Man in the Moon, dragons, and the Goldfish Man. The talking creatures are from Chinese folk tales and are commonly used in su...