Scan barcode
vtsarahd's review against another edition
5.0
Enjoyed this book as an adult reader, but not sure if I would have enjoyed it as a child (some of the characters, such as the grandmother, speak with southern dialects). I think it would only be suitable for middle school age and higher, as the buildup of racial tensions in the text are due to an editorial published in a newspaper about interracial sexual relationships. I thought that it would be great to use in a classroom to give historical perspective about life for African Americans after slavery ended. The reader can easily see how events in the story would lead to tensions and other events in the Civil Rights movement. The characters were very interesting and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about them, especially Boo Nanny. Great book, just use caution with younger readers.
gmamartha's review against another edition
3.0
Wilmington, NC, historical fiction.
The reader can be in the shoes of young Moses as he grows up in this environment... it's almost like we are learning the hard facts of life along with him.
The reader can be in the shoes of young Moses as he grows up in this environment... it's almost like we are learning the hard facts of life along with him.
librarydosebykristy's review against another edition
3.0
I didn't love this book as much I'd hoped to. I felt like the author was writing a story about adults for adults but decided for some reason to stick a child protagonist in the middle of it. There were lots of details and implied storylines that went over the main character's head. I found this distracting and annoying.
pacifickle's review against another edition
5.0
Beautifully written, perfectly detailed with lots of historically-accurate action but themes are too serious for my elementary aged students, unfortunately. Reminds me if a 1898 version of To Kill a Mockingbird in some ways. Gorgeous book!
brandypainter's review against another edition
5.0
Originally posted here.
Who out there knew there was a race riot in Wilmington, NC in 1898? If you did not know this and you have never set foot in NC then that is understandable. I however lived in NC for 10 years and didn't know. I took a class on NC history in college and IT NEVER CAME UP. I want my money back. My husband was born and raised in NC and he didn't know either. Thankfully Barbara Writght wrote Crow so hopefully more people will be aware of this interesting event in the history of our country. It also has the bonus of being all around awesome.
Yes, this book is about important things and I will get to that, but for me what made it were the characters. Some might think this book starts out slow. If plot is what drives a story for you the episodic nature of the beginning could be frustrating. Character is what drives a story for me and all those episodes were brilliantly revealing all the layers of the main characters. Moses is such an 11 year old boy. His thoughts, the things he says, the things he does all demonstrate this. I loved the way he wanted to be all his family wanted him to be, but also struggled with remorse when he thought he wasn't. I loved that he made some terrible decisions that are realistically reflective of the mindset of someone his age. Boo-Nanny is oh so wonderful too. Wright wrote everything about her pitch perfect from the way she spoke to her cynicism about the white community to her love for her family. Moses's parents, Jack and Sadie, are also fully realized characters. Jack is college educated, a writer, and in politics. He is idealistic and wants the world for his son. Sadie is a housekeeper for a wealthy white family. She was born into slavery, loves to play the piano, and desires to learn as much as she can. The dynamics in this family are as much a story as the historical context. My favorite scenes in the book are when they are interacting over the dinner table, whether they are talking about music or the threatening times. Wright made me love them all which made the historical events that much more real and threatening.
The episodic nature of the beginning also did an incredible job of giving the story a specific sense of time and place. The Wilmington I was once so familiar with was overtaken by the Wilmington of 1898. Wright's descriptions and the scenes playing out from the story put the reader right there where everything is happening.
We don't get a whole lot of African American historical fiction that doesn't focus on Civil War era slavery or the Civil Rights movement. That Crow focuses on Reconstruction and Jim Crow make it unique enough, however this also stands out as being historical fiction the way it should always be done. Wright depicts the time period realistically and no one acts or thinks anachronistically. The realism of the book is what sucks the reader into the story and holds them until the end. Unfortunately there are probably some people who aren't going to appreciate that aspect. Wright didn't pull any punches and tells it like it is. The vocabulary is exceedingly accurate and wince inducing. Yes, the "n" word is used, as are other derogatory terms. Lynching is talked about and allusions to rape are made (though neither is fully explained-much to Moses's frustration). I take my hat off to all the people involved in the creation of the book, Wright and her editors, for having the courage to tell it like it was. The events depicted in the last half of the book blew me away. That synopsis exaggerates not at all when it says there was a coup d'etat, and that every law this nation holds sacred and dear was toppled over in the name of white supremacy. This is something that all Americans should know about. Barbara Wright has posted some interesting photographs of the time on her website.
Here is a scene that encompasses all I loved about this book. the history, the family dynamics, Moses himself (he thinks exactly like a kid in the scene):
Daddy took a deep breath. "Well, Mrs Felton thought that white men needed to do a better job of protecting their women in the countryside from the, um, unwanted attentions of black men."
"That doesn't sound so bad," I said.
"She was talking about violent attentions."
"You mean rape?" I asked.
Mama gasped
"Do you know what that word means?" Daddy asked.
I shook my head no.
"Well, it involves unwanted sex..."
"Hush up. That ain't no thing for young ears," Mama said.
"He deserves to have his questions answered." Daddy said.
"Jackson..." When Mama gave Daddy that dark look and drew out the syllables in his name I knew she would not be refused. She turned to me and said, "Run along now, Moses. You be excused."
There was no reason to treat me like a child. I knew about sex; Lewis had told me. Men and women got together and had sex and made babies. Lewis's next-door neighbor, a white woman named Mrs. Roberts was a sex maniac, because she had six children and had done it six times.
I do think it fits best in a middle school due to the maturity of the humor and the prose. I am ecstatic that I have found the perfect book to help teach this time period when my kids are studying it as 6th graders.
Who out there knew there was a race riot in Wilmington, NC in 1898? If you did not know this and you have never set foot in NC then that is understandable. I however lived in NC for 10 years and didn't know. I took a class on NC history in college and IT NEVER CAME UP. I want my money back. My husband was born and raised in NC and he didn't know either. Thankfully Barbara Writght wrote Crow so hopefully more people will be aware of this interesting event in the history of our country. It also has the bonus of being all around awesome.
Yes, this book is about important things and I will get to that, but for me what made it were the characters. Some might think this book starts out slow. If plot is what drives a story for you the episodic nature of the beginning could be frustrating. Character is what drives a story for me and all those episodes were brilliantly revealing all the layers of the main characters. Moses is such an 11 year old boy. His thoughts, the things he says, the things he does all demonstrate this. I loved the way he wanted to be all his family wanted him to be, but also struggled with remorse when he thought he wasn't. I loved that he made some terrible decisions that are realistically reflective of the mindset of someone his age. Boo-Nanny is oh so wonderful too. Wright wrote everything about her pitch perfect from the way she spoke to her cynicism about the white community to her love for her family. Moses's parents, Jack and Sadie, are also fully realized characters. Jack is college educated, a writer, and in politics. He is idealistic and wants the world for his son. Sadie is a housekeeper for a wealthy white family. She was born into slavery, loves to play the piano, and desires to learn as much as she can. The dynamics in this family are as much a story as the historical context. My favorite scenes in the book are when they are interacting over the dinner table, whether they are talking about music or the threatening times. Wright made me love them all which made the historical events that much more real and threatening.
The episodic nature of the beginning also did an incredible job of giving the story a specific sense of time and place. The Wilmington I was once so familiar with was overtaken by the Wilmington of 1898. Wright's descriptions and the scenes playing out from the story put the reader right there where everything is happening.
We don't get a whole lot of African American historical fiction that doesn't focus on Civil War era slavery or the Civil Rights movement. That Crow focuses on Reconstruction and Jim Crow make it unique enough, however this also stands out as being historical fiction the way it should always be done. Wright depicts the time period realistically and no one acts or thinks anachronistically. The realism of the book is what sucks the reader into the story and holds them until the end. Unfortunately there are probably some people who aren't going to appreciate that aspect. Wright didn't pull any punches and tells it like it is. The vocabulary is exceedingly accurate and wince inducing. Yes, the "n" word is used, as are other derogatory terms. Lynching is talked about and allusions to rape are made (though neither is fully explained-much to Moses's frustration). I take my hat off to all the people involved in the creation of the book, Wright and her editors, for having the courage to tell it like it was. The events depicted in the last half of the book blew me away. That synopsis exaggerates not at all when it says there was a coup d'etat, and that every law this nation holds sacred and dear was toppled over in the name of white supremacy. This is something that all Americans should know about. Barbara Wright has posted some interesting photographs of the time on her website.
Here is a scene that encompasses all I loved about this book. the history, the family dynamics, Moses himself (he thinks exactly like a kid in the scene):
Daddy took a deep breath. "Well, Mrs Felton thought that white men needed to do a better job of protecting their women in the countryside from the, um, unwanted attentions of black men."
"That doesn't sound so bad," I said.
"She was talking about violent attentions."
"You mean rape?" I asked.
Mama gasped
"Do you know what that word means?" Daddy asked.
I shook my head no.
"Well, it involves unwanted sex..."
"Hush up. That ain't no thing for young ears," Mama said.
"He deserves to have his questions answered." Daddy said.
"Jackson..." When Mama gave Daddy that dark look and drew out the syllables in his name I knew she would not be refused. She turned to me and said, "Run along now, Moses. You be excused."
There was no reason to treat me like a child. I knew about sex; Lewis had told me. Men and women got together and had sex and made babies. Lewis's next-door neighbor, a white woman named Mrs. Roberts was a sex maniac, because she had six children and had done it six times.
I do think it fits best in a middle school due to the maturity of the humor and the prose. I am ecstatic that I have found the perfect book to help teach this time period when my kids are studying it as 6th graders.
dude_watchin_with_the_brontes's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting to read at the same time as The New Jim Crow.
A reminder that social justice has not, does not, always move forward.
Faun / Pan's Labyrinth) - ending on a note of hopefulness and beauty, that a reader / viewer might take as foreshadowing a better future, if they didn't know what was coming next, historically.
A reminder that social justice has not, does not, always move forward.
Spoiler
The ending reminded me of El Laborinto del Fauno (Labyrinth of theFaun / Pan's Labyrinth) - ending on a note of hopefulness and beauty, that a reader / viewer might take as foreshadowing a better future, if they didn't know what was coming next, historically.
beatniksafari's review against another edition
4.0
I never knew that the beautiful town of Wilmington, North Carolina housed a truly ugly incident of American history: a race riot that claimed lives and chased out most of the middle-class black population in 1898. This book builds the background of the event through the eyes of inquisitive, sensitive Moses, the son of an African-American alderman who pushes Moses to value education and the power of words. I enjoyed the well-developed characters and strongly described sense of place, though I felt an overly heavy hand in the plot. How could Moses have possibly witnessed ALL the important historical events of the time period?
librariandest's review against another edition
3.0
I'm 40% done with this book and so far there is zero plot. The same thing keeps happening over and over again. Well-meaning Moses gets in trouble and his too-perfect dad has all the right things to say. Boo Nanny says something wise and folksy. Rinse and repeat.
The book is well-written and the historical setting is intriguing (particularly for readers who know that Jim Crow and segregation are coming), but it's taking so long to get to the, you know, story that I'm losing interest and feeling exasperated.
UPDATE
I finally finished and I will say that the final third of the book is much more gripping than the rest of it. I'm giving it three stars because it's not a bad book. Still, I can't get behind it. It's overly didactic. It takes too long to get interesting. And I would rather read an interesting nonfiction book about the 1898 Wilmington coup d'etat.
The book is well-written and the historical setting is intriguing (particularly for readers who know that Jim Crow and segregation are coming), but it's taking so long to get to the, you know, story that I'm losing interest and feeling exasperated.
UPDATE
I finally finished and I will say that the final third of the book is much more gripping than the rest of it. I'm giving it three stars because it's not a bad book. Still, I can't get behind it. It's overly didactic. It takes too long to get interesting. And I would rather read an interesting nonfiction book about the 1898 Wilmington coup d'etat.
greenvillemelissa's review against another edition
5.0
Book #66 Read in 2012
Crow (YA) by Barbara Wright
This was a great young adult historical fiction read. Moses is a young African-American boy. He has been taught by his value that education is valuable. He is taught legends and superstitions by Boo Nanny, his grandmother, who was a former slave. Along with these influences, it is a time of strained race relations, white supremacy and lynchings. Moses is forced to grow up quickly in this environment.
This book is disturbing to read, as it is a harsh reminder of a horrible time in our past. Wright vividly describes the tension and violence of this time period. She has created wonderful characters in Moses, Boo Nanny, Jack and Sadie. Readers will feel a connection with them immediately. Wright has a wonderful writing style that will draw readers into the book. This was a quick read. I enjoyed it.
http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com
Crow (YA) by Barbara Wright
This was a great young adult historical fiction read. Moses is a young African-American boy. He has been taught by his value that education is valuable. He is taught legends and superstitions by Boo Nanny, his grandmother, who was a former slave. Along with these influences, it is a time of strained race relations, white supremacy and lynchings. Moses is forced to grow up quickly in this environment.
This book is disturbing to read, as it is a harsh reminder of a horrible time in our past. Wright vividly describes the tension and violence of this time period. She has created wonderful characters in Moses, Boo Nanny, Jack and Sadie. Readers will feel a connection with them immediately. Wright has a wonderful writing style that will draw readers into the book. This was a quick read. I enjoyed it.
http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com