Book Review: Uptown

Title: Uptown

Author: Bryan Collier

Illustrator: Bryan Collier

Publisher: Henry Holt and Company, LLC

Date of Publication: 2000

Uptown is the winner of the Coretta Scott King Award and the Ezra Jack Keats Book Award.  Uptown is the story of a young African American boy who gives the reader a tour of Harlem through his eyes.  Bryan Collier creates a vivid picture of the city through his unique and beautiful illustrations.  The city of Harlem is described by what it means to this young boy, he is telling the reader what his home is like.  Each page of the story begins with “Uptown is...” followed by a different characteristic.  Through the descriptions of Harlem, it is apparent that this young man takes pride in his city and each description has special meaning to him.  This story takes a positive look at a city that is usually made out to be less than extraordinary.  To this young boy Harlem is a stage, a song, a weekend shopping, jazz and so much more.  Collier backs his words with vibrant and detailed pictures.  The text portrays a calm and collected view of the city, but through the illustrations one can see many different directions and fast pace of a busy city.  Children can relate to this story and the main character because he is sharing what Harlem is to him, just like children describe their hometown as it is to them.  Children like to share where they come from and where they grew up and in doing so are showing their sense of pride and knowledge in the community that they know.  Readers can also see how their hometown is similar and different from that of the character in this book.  Collier creates a dynamic short story full of character and bright colors.  He finds the positive in a city that is usually referred to as a place of violence, gangs, and drugs through the eyes of the city’s youth. 

 

This book is a great piece of multicultural literature.  The culture of a city is shown through the description of the streets, the people, the food, and the illustrations.  Collier has created a main character that is likeable and easy to relate to.  He has also created pictures that give a realistic and authentic feel for the city of Harlem.  

Language in Literature

Throughout this course we have discussed how the language can affect how the book is read.  I think that language is such an important and powerful tool in life.  Language should be valued and appreciated.  I am currently taking an African American Language class and have learned so much about language but also about AAL (African American Language).  I have noticed that in some books that use AAL people say that the characters are talking "ghetto" or certain slang is used that they don't know what it means.  AAL is not to be looked down upon or disregarded, it is just as much a language as Standard English.  There is grammatical structure and rules in AAL.  When AAL is used correctly in literature it gives the book authenticity.  I plan to use literature with AAL in my classroom and I think that it is important for my students to understand the history behind the language so that they can gain an appreciation for it and be proud to speak the language.  I want to make sure that the students understand the vocabulary and look at comparisons between AAL and Standard English.  A colleague of mine recently wrote a lesson in which the students take phrases and translate them from one language to the next, this can also incorporate code-switching.  In today's society is important for students to know when it is appropriate to use Standard English and AAL, for instance society expects that test essays and legal documents, etc be written in Standard English.  

In the field I work in a 6th grade classroom.  The majority of the students in the class speak and write in AAL (African American Language).  When my colleague and I had to edit some papers that our CT asked us to edit, she never gave us a rubric, which created some dilemmas when editing.  My colleague and I were puzzled as to how to correct some of the sentences in which AAL was used, because the work made sense, but we didn’t know if our CT wanted the students writing in Standard English.  How do you correct someone on something that is correct in one form but not in another?  How do you show the students why they got it wrong when in actuality it was right?

I think it is important to introduce speakers of AAL to literature that incorporates the language, so that they can see a positive representation of the language.

Confessions of a Closet Catholic

The main focus of this book was on religion, but during our book talk groups we talked about another underlying theme in the story.  Our group focused on body image and the significance of chocolate in the story.  The main character just wants to be like the rest of her family but she knows she will never be able to look like her mom.  When we were researching to try and find out if the author was an insider, we came about some relevant information in regards to some of the details in the book.  The author’s favorite food is chocolate and she at one point battled with bulimia.  The author’s second book is called Purge and its focus is on a young girl who is battling with eating disorders and body image.  Finding out this information led our group to wonder if the first book was a platform to set up the second book or if in writing the first book she came up with the idea of writing the second book.  This book is about self-discovery and through the research of various religions she is finding out who she wants to become and what lies within her.  Our group was the only group that varied off of the path (religion) when talking about the book.  This just proves that multicultural literature can reach different audiences, people can connect with different parts of the story, and that the reader’s perceptions of the content can determine what they take from the text.

It was also talked about how the author’s research influenced her take on the Catholic religion.  We were unable to find out the religious background of the author, but we figured since she interviewed a priest and attended confessional for the first time in a church that she was not a Catholic herself.  

Project Mulberry

When reading this book, I tried something different.  I purchased the audio version of the book and uploaded it to my iPod, so that could listen to it while reading it or just listen to it on its own.  The reason I decided to do this was because I had just completed a new literacies project in another class.  My focus was on how iPods can be beneficial in the classroom and how they offer different mediums for different learners.  I enjoyed listening to the book because I was able to do other things while listening.  One of the concerns I had with the audio was that the reader read at a slower pace than I would have read the book, so it took longer for me to finish the book by listening to it and when I would read along as the audio was going I caught myself reading ahead and realizing that I couldn’t do that and listen at the same time.  Another thing I noticed about the audio was that the person who was telling the story had a very stereotypical Asian accent when speaking the mother’s voice.  It was surprising to me that this would happen since the book tries to fight stereotypes.  I understand that authenticity of the character may have been the goal, but it was still interesting to me that this was the case.  

Personal Philosophy on Multicultural Literature

I chose to take this class because I think having multiculturalism present in the classroom is very important.  I had also heard rave reviews of the class from my friends.  Throughout my journey in becoming an elementary school teacher, one of the biggest questions I have had is "how do I determine what literature to have in my classroom?"  TE348 gave me a good introduction into what quality literature is and I enrolled in this class to help me look further into literature and its quality.  

Multicultural literature presents a great opportunity for children.  Literature in general is a bridge for students to learn and to be enlightened on new experiences.  Multicultural literature gives students the chance to explore cultures, and all that they encompass, different from their own.  Culture represents, race, gender, language, abilities, religion, food, clothing, education, etc.  The best way to eliminate prejudice and misunderstandings is through education.  Literature of a multicultural base can be a great tool in helping students gain an understanding and respect for something that is different from what they know.  As a teacher I hope to establish a strong community in my classroom where the students respect each other for their differences and similarities, and through this have the students realize that they can learn many things from their classmates.

The United States is so diverse in itself that it would be detrimental to the students' future for them not to learn about all the differences and cultures within their town, state, country and around the world.  Each student that comes into the classroom is unique and I hope that I will be able to have a quality piece of literature in my classroom that they can relate to in some way.  Creating a quality library of multicultural literature will be a task that will take time and lots of thought, but it is something that I know I will be continually working on and building for my classroom.  

Al Capone Does My Shirts

Talking about disabilities most people just look at the physical, forgetting about mental, learning, and emotional impairments.  I am very fortunate to have known and know people who have a disability.  My best friend in elementary school was bound to a wheelchair, he was able to use a walker for short periods of time, and an aide dog assisted him.  My uncle lost his vision in his later years, eventually going blind.  I have a friend who has downs syndrome and have babysat for a young boy who has autism.  Both of my brothers suffer from A.D.D., one more severe than the other and both of them of struggled in school because of this.  Through learning about disabilities, I have come to appreciate the fact even more that we should give credit to people for their abilities and realize that they are not defined by a disability.  Moose sees Natalie’s ability to work with numbers and when people try to talk about her like she is a spectacle, Moose puts a stop to it right away, saying that she doesn’t do tricks.  Because disabilities vary so much in form and intensity, the people first –disability second mentality is even more important.  Stereotypes and lack of knowledge on disabilities can lead people to make judgments on a person with a disability, for instance saying “they’re autistic” can have someone thinking that this person suffers from the most severe form of autism, when in actuality they do not.  Regardless of a person’s disability they should be looked at for the person they are and valued because of that.

What are you?

Habibi was a book I really enjoyed reading and found many connections between the text and myself.  During our small group discussion many things arose in regards to the insider-outsider debate and personal struggles with finding a way to identify.  I was able to share a story that had happened to me while in the field.  While talking with my 6^th grade students, the girls were talking about hair.  I had recently straightened my hair and they were shocked in the transformation from my usually poofy, frizzy, curly hair.  One of the girls asked me why I don’t have “white girl hair like Ms.H” and I said because our hair is just different.  This student then looked at me with a puzzled look and said, “what are you?”  I said “what do you mean?” and they answered with “like what race, are you white or black?”  It was interesting to me that the girls were making a connection with hair texture and race, because by looking at me I am pasty white.  The girls referred to my hair as nappy and more like one of their fellow students who is African American.  When responding to the question of “what are you?” I started to say I was white and then corrected myself by saying I was Caucasian, because I don’t look like the white board, and that I was French and Irish, and I am a female, etc.  I did my best to show them that who I was wasn’t a label but that I was I, Allison.