LITR 5731:
Seminar in American Multicultural Literature: Minority
Sample
Student Research Project
Gordon Lewis
Journal: Minority Literature for Young Adults
The purpose of this journal is closely related to both Objective five of this course and my personal objective to expand my knowledge base of minority authors and titles for use in the high school courses I teach and for the community college courses I plan to teach in the future. One of the purposes of this Minority Literature course is contained in the Objective Five statement, “To study the influence of minority writers and speakers on literature, literacy and language.” Of particular interest to me are the sub objective 5b which states, “To assess the status of minority writers in the canon of what is read and taught in school,” and the sub objective 5a which states, “To discover the power of poetry and fiction to help others hear the minority voice and vicariously share the minority experience.”
In my high school teaching experiences, I notice that students who are members of particular minority groups respond very positively to the inclusion in the curriculum of authors or titles that represent their ethnicity. In addition, other students, because of a general respect for published authors, have an increased respect for the minority group represented by the study. Objective two of the course, “To observe representations and narratives of ethnicity, gender, and class as a means of defining minority categories,” is certainly a pertinent objective for the inclusion of minority writers in the curriculum. The difficulty that exists is that, for the most part, minority writers are underrepresented in the textbooks that are available and utilized in the curriculum of most high schools. Thus, for teachers to incorporate the subject into their curriculum, they must rely on knowledge gained in minority or multicultural literature courses and on information gleaned from a variety of resources available that recommend authors or titles for young adult readers. This journal is an effort on my part to identify authors and titles that are appropriate for young adult readers that can readily be incorporated into the courses I teach either as recommended reading or for inclusion in the curriculum. In addition to the reasons stated above for this inclusion, an additional important objective for this inclusion is stated in the course Objective Six statement, “to observe images of the individual, the family, and alternative families in the writings and experience of minority groups.” The observations of these images enhance understanding of minority groups which hopefully increases tolerance and acceptance and reduces prejudices. The school system in which I teach has an enrollment of 36,000 students and there are 61 language groups represented among the students. In the City of Houston, there are 91 language groups in the school system. Time limitations are such that for the present project, I have looked primarily at Black and Hispanic literature, but plan in the future to expand my journal to other groups.
Of the minority groups studied in this course, Black authors have the largest canon of literature dating from the poetry of Phillis Wheatley, 1753-1784, to the present day (Baym 367). Henry Gates, Harvard University’s Department Chair of Afro-American Literature, writes of a black literary inheritance that exists because black writers now have a large enough canon that they read and respond to other black authors (Gates 2429). The teacher also has ready access to recommended Black authors through the work of the American Library Association’s Ethnic Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table who have established the Coretta Scott King Award for Authors and Illustrators and the John Steptoe Award for New Talent. Both of these awards are designed, “To encourage the artistic expression of the African American experience via literature and the graphic arts by African American authors and illustrators” (ALA). These lists of award books and authors provide an excellent starting point for a teacher seeking to incorporate minority literature within their curriculum. In that I have a very practical view for this project in that I plan to use the information contained in this journal for my own classes, I have a preference for authors and titles that are frequently available in school and public libraries so that students will have the materials readily available. In that most libraries carry the Coretta Scott King award books, I begin my journal with some authors located there.
Toni Morrison
The 2005 Coretta Scott King award was given to the award winning author, Toni Morrison, winner of the 1993 Nobel prize for Literature, The National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters in 1966, and the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for fiction for Beloved, which has been identified by the New York Times Book Review as the best American novel published in the last twenty five years (“Toni Morrison”).
Morrison received the King award for the book, Remember, the Journey to School Integration, 2004. 2004 was the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education case that led to the end of segregated education in the United States. Morrison’s book is a collection of historical photographs from the 50’s through the civil rights era and she informs the young reader that before 1954, segregated education was legal and widely practiced in the United States (7). In her introduction, Morrison tells us: “I have imagined the thoughts and feelings of some of the people in the photographs chosen to help tell the story.” Through these imagined thoughts and conversations and historical photographs, Morrison introduces the young reader to recent historical events that are unknown to many young adults today. This title lends itself to a discussion of these issues and also serves as an introduction to Morrison.
Toni Morrison’s first book, The Bluest Eye, 1970, is set in Lorain, Ohio, Morrison’s home town. Pecola, the protagonist, prays each night for blue eyes. She believes if “those eyes of hers were different, that is to say, beautiful, she herself would be different” (46). This concept of beautiful is related to “whiteness,” which is an aspect of the “The Color Code” discussed in the course wherein light and dark have inherent values in western civilization. Toni Morrison discussed this subject of being beautiful on the Oprah Winfrey television show in April of 2000 when this powerful novel was an Oprah Winfrey Book Club selection. Morrison believes that the pressure to be beautiful is an issue that cuts across the color code. She stated, "I think a lot has changed since the '60s in terms of self-image. But there's still a lot of pain young girls feel . . . .” (Oprah Winfrey Show). Morrison use of language is unforgettable. She writes,
There were no marigolds in the fall of 1941. We thought, at the time, that it was because Pecola was having her father’s baby that the marigolds did not grow . . . . What is clear now is that of all of that hope, fear, lust, love, and grief, nothing remains but Pecola and the unyielding earth. Cholly Breedlove is dead; our innocence too. The seeds shriveled and died; her baby too (5-6).
At the end of the story Pecola has descended into madness, but believes that she has attained her prize of blue eyes, but still seeks the bluest eyes (204).
Morrison is also the author of six other novels, including Sula, 1973, and Song of Solomon, 1977, and a half dozen children’s books. Her other writing includes non fiction works and numerous professional writings.
Sheila P. Moses
In 2005, the year Morrison was recognized with the King award, the runner up was the Coretta Scott King Honor Book, The Legend of Buddy Bush by
Sheila P. Moses. The “Legend” is based on an historical event in which Buddy Bush was falsely accused of an attempted attack on a white woman. This grew into a rumor that he had raped a white woman and seven white men took him from his cell with an apparent plan to lynch him. Ultimately, both the white lynchers and Buddy Bush were found innocent. However, the legend has a much bigger life than the facts and Moses has combined it with a beautiful coming of age story of her heroine, Pattie Mae. Moses captures the culture of this community and is able to transport the reader into this story that occurred in the very recent past. The recent incidents with lynching ropes displayed demonstrate how close to the surface these issues remain in parts of the country. Moses is also the author of I, Dred Scott, 2005, The Return of Buddy Bush, 2006, and The Baptism, 2007. In addition to the King award, Moses was named a National Book Award finalist for Young People's Literature, 2004.
Rita Williams-Garcia
Few authors have received the award recognition accorded to Rita Williams-Garcia. She has been awarded:
Like Sister on the Homefront, 1995
American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults, 1995
Coretta Scott King Honor Book, 1996
1995 Best Books by School Library Journal; Publisher Weekly; Booklist; The Horn Book; The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s
Books; and Books Recommended for Reluctant Readers;
Fast Talk on a Slow Track, 1991
American Library Association Best Books for Young Adults, 1991
Recommended List for the National Conference of Christians and Jews
Books Recommended for Reluctant Readers
Rita Williams-Garcia has also written Every Time a Rainbow Dies, 2001, Blue Tights, 1987, and numerous short stories. Her most recent title is No Laughter Here, 2004, which was placed on Booklist’s Top Ten Black History Titles for Youth List. The book is a no holds barred story of a young girl who was taken from Queens by her family for a summer vacation in Nigeria where female genital mutilation was performed. Unfortunately, although this practice is little known in this country, throughout the world large numbers of young women are subjected to this practice. This difficult topic is effectively introduced to the young reader by Garcia-Williams.
Janet McDonald
A companion award to the Coretta Scott King award is the John Steptoe New Talent Award. This award has been established to affirm new talent and to offer visibility to excellence in writing and/or illustration which otherwise might be unacknowledged by the two awards given annually by the Coretta Scott King Task Force. Ms McDonald received the John Steptoe New Talent Award for her novel Chill Wind, 2002, which was preceded by the ALA Best Books for Young Adults Award in 2001 for Spellbound. She has written six other novels, and Spellbound and Chill Wind have both been translated into French. The novel, Twists and Turns, 2003, was an ALA Quick Pick for Young Adults. This novel is set in the Washington Projects and captures the inner city dialect.
“Why you gotta scream in my ear?” Snapped Shaniqua. “I ain’t deaf!”
“. . . Ain’t no song playin. That’s rap.” . . .
“Hell no, I ain’t from these punk-ass projects. I’m from the Fort.”
“The Fort?”
“Sho’nuff! Fort Crest lays ‘em and slays ‘em, we yokes ‘em and smokes ‘em!” (9).
Janet McDonald grew up in the projects in Brooklyn, New York, one of seven children. She recently died of cancer in April of 2007 in France and an important minority voice has been lost, but much remains in her completed work.
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou has authored twelve best selling books and her book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is a 1971 Coretta Scott King Honor book. This well known title is the first of six autobiographical novels by Angelou and deals with difficult issues including childhood rape, racism, and sexism. Angelou, one of the best known Black American author and poet, has been involved in the film industry as well. Other than to list the title here to note its importance for the Young Adult reader, the author and title are so well known that I elect not to restate the accolades that have rightly been awarded to this author and this title.
Nancy Rawles
In addition to the Coretta Scott King Award and the Best Books for Young Adults Award, another important award presented by the American Library Association is the ALEX award, which is given each year to ten adult books with particular appeal to Young Adults. A 2006 award winner was My Jim by Nancy Rawles. This story revisits Jim of the classic Huck Finn, but this time tells the story of Jim from the perspective of his wife, a story that mirrors the true stories of countless slave women who are forcibly separated from their spouses and other family members. This story of the enduring power of love overcoming forced separation with its themes about freedom will appeal to the young adult reader and introduce them to an author they might otherwise miss.
Nancy Rawles is also the author of Love Like Gumbo, which was recognized by the American Book Award and Crawfish Dreams, which was recognized by the Barnes and Noble “Discover Great New Writers” program. In addition to her novels, Rawles is also a playwright.
Viola Canales
The Pura Belpre award is presented to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. The award is the equivalent of the Coretta Scott King award for Black authors and illustrators. The award is presented biennially by the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish-Speaking and the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association. In 2006 the award was presented to Viola Canales for her novel, The Tequila Worm, which has the feel of an autobiographical novel of Viola’s life in McAllen, Texas. This charming novel is in the tradition of Sandra Cisneros’s The House on Mango Street. In her dedication, she thanks the many members of her family who have been the sources for her stories. Viola grew up in a family where only Spanish was spoken and attended public schools where only English was spoken. Eventually, she overcame these barriers and was selected to receive a scholarship to a private Episcopal school. Although Viola, through her private school education became successful in the white world with a degree from both Harvard and Harvard Law school, it is obvious in her writing that her heart remains in the barrio of McAllen, Texas. Her protagonist, Sophia, her best friend and cousin, Berta, her comadre, (godmother) Tia Petra and other family members populate her novel with their vignettes. The author obviously loves her characters and the reader is also charmed by the members of this family who battle poverty and prejudice but still are able to build loving relationships and a family with traditions.
Pam Munoz Ryan
Ryan is the Author of twenty five children’s and young adult books. Her book, Becoming Naomi Leon, is a 2006 Pura Belpre Honor book, an ALA Notable Book, and the book has been chosen as a recommended title for an additional ten prestigious reading lists. An earlier book, Esperanz Rising, 2000, was a Pura Belpre Award winner, ALA Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults, Publisher’s Weekly Best Book of the year, Smithsonian Best Books for 2000, and an addition ten inclusions on recommended reading lists. Ryan’s novels give a voice to the poor Mexican migrant workers, a culture that is rich in traditions on both sides of the border and that celebrates color, pageantry, religion, mysticism, and festival. But most of all, it is a culture of relationships and Ryan, in the tradition of Canales and Cisneros, writes about these relationships and that is what makes her work both very real and readable. The reader comes to like these people. For example, she relates this conversation with Gram,
Gram said that when you thought positive, you could make things
happen, and when it did happen, it was called a self-prophecy. If you wanted to be the best speller in the class, you said to yourself over and over, “I am the best speller in the class,” and then before you knew it, you were practicing and becoming it. It was sort of like magic, and Gram believed it to her bones (6).
The reader can picture this scene and embrace the warmth between the characters. This ability to make the reader care about the characters in the story is what makes for great writing and gives voice to a culture.
Julia Alvarez
Alvarez’s Before We Were Free, 2002, is one of those titles that captures numerous awards. Alvarez is an important author and I would recommend her to you as an addition to the course. Before We Were Free was awarded the Pura Belpre award for 2004, ALA Notable Books and Best Books for Young Adults, 2002, the Hispanic Heritage Award in Literature, 2002, the Amercias Award for Young Adult Literature, 2002, and various other best book awards. Alvarez has written over twenty books and is a professor of creative writing at Middlebury College in Vermont. Many of her titles have received awards and recognition, and I have listed a few as follows. How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accent, was chosen by the NY Librarians as one of the 21 classics for the 21st century, an ALA Notable Book for 1992 and a Notable Book by the New York Times, 1991. In the Time of the Butterflies was selected a Notable Book, 1994, by the American Library Association; a Book of the Month Club choice for 1994; a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in fiction, 1995; and was chosen as one of the ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 1995.
This author’s style is so engaging that even a visit to her website captures the reader. To illustrate this point, I have included some of her comments about one of her books, A Gift of Gracias: the Legend of Altagracia, 2005.
Often in bookstores and libraries, I've searched the shelves for a book about the Dominican "protector of the people," La Virgen de la Altagracia. I came across many books about La Virgen de Guadalupe. I also found books and entries in books about Our Lady of Fatima or Our Lady of Lourdes, and many of the myriad virgencitas worshipped throughout Latin America and Europe. But I found nothing on our own protectora. And so, I made a promesa to La Virgencita de la Altagracia, after whom I am named (Julia Altagracia) that I would write a book about her.
This description of her book comes across as so culturally Hispanic that it is difficult to see her in her American status as a college professor. Everything she writes feels Hispanic. Alvarez, and her family are from the Dominican Republic where her father was involved in the underground. The family had to flee the country for political reasons. The book Before We Were Free is based on this theme and the young heroine, Anita, is an Anne Frank type of character who also keeps a diary. It has the language of a Young Adult title. She writes,
The door opens again, and Mrs. Brown steps back in, smiling that phony smile grown-ups smile when they are keeping bad news from you (3).
In addition to her fiction titles, Alvarez has written two non-fiction books. One looks particularly interesting, although I have not seen the book, just the description. Once Upon A Quinceañera: Coming of Age in the U.S.A., 2007. Alvarez describes the book as a perfect lens through which to view what is happening to Lationas as they come of age in the U.S. In addition to her novels, Alvarez has also had her poetry published.
Gary Soto
I did not want to leave the arena of Hispanic authors without paying tribute to one of my favorite Hispanic authors, Gary Soto, who is an award winning poet and novelist. His first Young Adult novel, Baseball in April, 1990, was an ALA Best Books for Young Adults selection. He has been awarded the Literature Award from the Hispanic Heritage Foundation, 1999, and his poetry books have received numerous accolades. Soto writes for adults, children, and young adults. He is a prolific author and his recent young adult title is Accidental Love, 2006, a light comic coming of age love story. Regardless of what age you teach, teachers can find Gary Soto poems and novels that will appeal to your students.
Other
As I indicated in my introduction, time limitations are such that the focus of this paper was on Black and Hispanic authors. However, I came across a number of other authors whom I will add in the future and may be of interest to some, even though they are not annotated.
Tony Hillerman, from Oklahoma and New Mexico has written a dozen Navajo Mysteries. Sherman Alexie, who grew up on an Spokane Indian reservation, has a novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, which is a National Book Award for Young People’s Literature Award Winner, 2007, and has been selected by Publisher Weekly as one of the Best Books of the Year.
Paula Jolin, who has a master’s degree in Islamic Studies and has spent a decade living in the Middle East, has written a Young Adult book, In the Name of God, 2007, about a young Syrian girl, Nadia. Born Confused, 2002, is a novel about bringing two cultures together written by an Indian-American who was born in the United States. She takes the name of her titles from an acronym, ABCD, or American Born Confused Desi, a slightly derogatory term that first generation South Asians in the States and elsewhere use to describe these second generation Americans who are supposedly "confused" about their South Asian background. (Desi is Hindi for "from my country.") (“Tanuja Desai Hidier in the Postcolonial Web”).
The multicultural nature of American literature because of the contributions of minority to the body of literature is an ever changing landscape. In recent time, Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner was an international best seller that is soon to be released in a movie. Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan and moved to the United States in 1980. Each one of these nationalities, by virtue of their contribution to the literature of the country, becomes part of the tapestry that is the literature of the country. It is no wonder that America is hard to define for those outside of the country. It is difficult for those of us who live here to describe the unity that evolves from such disparities in culture, heritage, point of view, religion, and yet, somehow it works.
Works Cited
Alvarez, Julia. Before We Were Free. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002.
Alvarez, Julia. “Julia Alvarez’s Website.” 17 Nov 2008<http:// www.
juliaalvarez.com/>
American Library Association. Ethnic Multicultural Information Exchange Round
Table. “The Coretta Scott King Book Awards for Authors and Illustrators.”
Chicago:ALA, 2007. 17 Nov 2007<http://www.ala.org/ala/emiert/
corettascottkingbookaward/abouttheawarda/cskabout.cfm>
American Library Association. Association for Library Service to Children.
“2006 Pura Belpré Award Winners.” Chicago:ALA, 2007. 17 Nov 2007
http://www.ala.org/ala/alsc/awardsscholarships/literaryawds/belpremedal/
belprecurrent/belprmedalcurrent.htm
Baym, Nina, ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Shorter 6th ed.
New York: W. W. Norton, 2003.
Gates, Henry Louis Jr. “Talking Black: Critical Signs of the Times.” Loose
Canons: Notes on the Culture Wars. Henry Louis Gates Jr. Voice
Literary Supplement, 1998. Rpt. In The Norton Anthology of Theory
and Criticism. Ed. Vincent B. Leitch. New York: W. W. Norton, 2001.
2424-2432.
McDonald, Janet. Twists and Turns. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2003.
“Toni Morrison.” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 17 Nov 2008< http: //en.
wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Toni_Morrison&oldid=171921450>
Morrison, Toni. The Bluest Eye. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1970.
Morrison, Toni. Remember the Journey to School Integration. New York:
Houghton Mifflin Co., 2004.
Ryan, Pam Munoz. Becoming Naomi Leon. New York: Scholastic Press,
2004.“Tanuja Desai Hidier in the Postcolonial Web.” 17 Nov 2008
<http://www.usp.nus.edu.sg/post/india/desaihidier/bio.html>
“Why Everyone Should Read The Bluest Eye.” Oprah’s Book Club.” The Oprah Winfrey Show, 2000< http://www.oprah.com/tows/pastshows/tows_2000/tows_past_20000526_b.jhtml>
