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I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SING by Maya Angelou
I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS is a 1969 autobiography describing the young and early years of American writer and poet Maya Angelou. This book is a coming-of-age story for Angelou.
The book begins when three-year-old Maya and her older brother are sent to Stamps, Arkansas, to live with their grandmother and ends when Maya becomes a mother at the age of 16. During Caged Bird, Maya transforms from a victim of racism with an inferiority complex into a self-possessed, dignified young woman capable of responding to prejudice.
NEW KID by Jerry Craft
NEW KID is a 2019 graphic novel by Jerry Craft. The novel tells the story of a 12-year-old African American boy named Jordan Banks who experiences culture shock when he enrolls at a private school.
Taking place over Jordan’s freshman year at a prestigious private school, he has to adjust to a new school, experiences and witnesses microaggressions, and makes friends with other students.
The book is semi-autobiographical for Craft, who based the book on his experiences in a private school and those of his two sons. While he wishes the book to be appreciated by a wide range of readers, Craft particularly wanted it to accurately reflect a present-day African American experience.
THE BLUEST EYE by Toni Morrison
Set in the author’s girlhood hometown of Lorain Ohio, it tells the story of black, eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove. Pecola prays for her eyes to turn blue so that she will be as beautiful as beloved as all the blond, blue-eyed children in America. In the autumn of 1941, the marigold in the Breedlove’s garden do not bloom. Pecola’s life does change—in painful, devastating ways. With its vivid evocation of the feat and loneliness at the heart of a child’s yearning, and the tragedy of its fulfillment, THE BLUEST EYE remains on of Toni Morrison’s most powerful, unforgettable novels—and a significant work of American fiction.
D/FW ASALH 