The Watson's Go To Birmingham

The Watson's Go to Birmingham

By: Christopher Paul Curtis

Grade 5

HISTORICAL FICTION

NOVEL

This book is a wonderful book that they cover in the fifth grade. This book is about Kenny and his family who lived during the time of the Civil Rights Movement. Kenny lives with his parents, older brother, and younger sister. At their home in their neighborhood they never really experienced negative results of being black in the 60s. Kenny's older brother had been getting into lots of trouble so that spawned the family into taking a trip to to Birmingham, Alabama to take Byron to live with his grandmother. When the the family went to Alabama they experienced a lot of racism that they were not use to! There were two major events in the story. The first major event was Kenny almost drowned and Byron had to save him. The other major event that occurred in the book was the bombing of the church. Joetta, Kenny's sister, went to church one day and Kenny heard that the church had been bombed. He thought that his sister was dead and had been killed in the bombing. It took some time for them to realize that she wasn't killed. Byron had to help console Kenny to make him realize it is okay. The family then heads back to Flint, Michigan along with Byron. Kenny is helped by Byron to realize the unfairness of the horrible tragedy of racism and the bombing! This book is incredible and very touching. I will have this in my classroom if I teach fifth grade in the future. I will go over the Civil Rights Movement with my students and what life was like living during this time. I think this is an incredible example of what life was like for the African Americans during the 60s in the south. It will truly represent to the students the horrible mistreatment and injustice that occurred.