Author: Rita Williams-Garcia
Illustrator: na
Genre: fiction
Sub genre: Historical Fiction
Theme: Abandonment, family, racism, the Black Panthers
Primary and secondary characters: Delphine and her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern
Awards: Coretta Scott King
Publication Date: 2010
Publishing Company: Harper Collins
Summer or 1968, Delphine has a big job for an eleven year old girl. Since her mother abandoned them when she was very young, she has taken charge of taking care of her two little sisters Voetta and Fern. Their Pa still takes care of them, but Delphine has been the mother that her two younger sisters never had and certainly cannot remember. Although their Pa is reluctant, he knows that the girls must meet their mother and try to form a relationship with her while they are still young. He puts them on a plane across America to stay with her over the summer. The girls can hardly contain their excitement about the possibilities of going to Disney World and meeting movie stars while they are with their mom, but things that the girls could have never dreamed of happen instead. The girls get thrown into a whirlwind of events including having to deal with their mother who is constantly ignoring them and meeting the Black Panthers. The girls end up experiencing more than they ever thought possible, which makes for one crazy summer.
Because of all of the historical references, from something as small as a Timex watch to the Blank Panthers and racism, this book is an excellent classroom read. This book tells of historical events from a child's view, therefor it would be easier for a child to relate to than a history text over the same issues. This book would be perfect for when racism is being covered in a class. Some children in a class might even be able to relate to Dalphine in that they have been forced to take care of younger siblings when their parents were not around. A teacher could develop so many good essay topics and discussions for this book and I highly recommend it.
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