One Crazy Summer

By: Rita Williams-Garcia

          One Crazy Summer is a historical fiction novel that has been recognized as a Newbery Honor Book, the Scott O'Dell Award Winner for Historical Fiction, the Coretta Scott King Award Winner for Non-Violent Social Change, and a National Book Award Finalist.

          Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are three young girls from Brooklyn, New York who live with their Pa and Big Ma (grandmother) because their mother, Cecile, abandoned them when seven years before the story takes place.  Through Delphine's 11-year-old voice, we see that she often feels pressured to step up and care for her younger sisters.  Their pa eventually decides that it is time for the girls to go and see Cecile (who is NOT excited to see them), so they head to Oakland, California in 1968 for the summer.  Once there, the girls begin attending a Black Panther summer camp where they get free food, grapple with racial tensions, and work to develop a relationship with Cecile (or Sister NZila as the Black Panthers call her).  Through this experience, Delphine and her sisters learn to be increasingly independent and enter the radical world of Black Panther territory in 1968 through their re-education and growth with one another.

          One of Rita Williams-Garcia's main strength is her characterization of each of the girls, because all three sisters are depicted with strong and distinct personalities.  In addition to their individual characteristics, the portrayal of their sibling dynamic as one filled with endless teasing and love is relatable to readers.  This style works to keep the novel's focus on family, identity, and self-discovery, even as the radical time period provides a rich context for the story.

          By choosing Delphine to narrate the story, Williams-Garcia creates a relatable tale in which readers experience Delphine's emotions and struggles alongside her.  Delphine is smart, outspoken, and (in her opinion) "plain," yet she is the clear leader of her sisters.  She is constantly solving conflicts and keeping her sisters out of trouble; this skill becomes especially important as the girls navigate their new Oakland environment without any parental guidance.  Delphine is very attuned to her sisters, as evidenced when she states, "Just like I know how to lift my sisters up, I also know how to needle them just right" (143).  We also get a good idea of Delphine's character quirks through her repeated phrases and  ideas, such as how she often monitors herself so she doesn't "spin too much straw" or get caught lying (13).

           Poetry plays an important role throughout the text in various ways.  First, Cecile is a poet who sees writing as her only true outlet in life.  When describing her childhood to Delphine, Cecile claims that poems "comforted [her]. Their rhymes. Their beats. They made a place for [her]. They kept [her] strong" (208).  I think this quotation succinctly highlights the power of poetry throughout this text and many people's lives.  In addition to Cecile's poetry, Fern has a strong moment at the end of the book, in which she finds her own voice in reciting her own poem that many people rally behind.

           The portrayal of race and racism plays a large role in this story through social commentary.  Some of the most painful instances begin she Fern is mercilessly teased for loving her white doll and the sisters are often viewed as a spectacle of "colored girls" when in public, that is, if they are not being accused of being thieves.  While readers witness the sisters struggling with racism, they are not immune from racializing others in the story.  For example, when conversing with Hirohito (a character that had many admirable qualities and I really like), Delphine refers to him as "China boy," despite his half Japanese make-up (114).  These racial issues also tie into social incongruences between life in Oakland and life with Big Ma in Brooklyn, so the girls learn to develop their own opinions regardless of what is is expected of them in different environments.

           Williams-Garcia also works to weave a rich historical context into the novel, while still emphasizing the family dynamics and play.  She provides descriptions of significant historical figures (Ex: Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali), historical events (ex: MLK's assassination), while also presenting the Black Panther Party through Delphine's young eyes.  I was excited to read about this, because I do not have a deep understanding of the Black Panther history, with figures like Huey Newton and Little Bobby Hutton and repeated phrases like "all power to all the people," so I was wrapped up in learning the history to increase my understanding of the story.  The rich historical context present within this book would make this especially accessible for students in 6th grade and above, and would make a great addition to any study on the 1960s Civil Rights Movements, and more specifically any focus on the Black Panthers.

To learn a little more about the Black Panthers: http://www.pbs.org/hueypnewton/actions/actions_formation.html

There is a sequel to this book (which I have not read) that you can find here:  https://www.worldcat.org/title/one-crazy-summer/oclc/319320797&referer=brief_results