Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Ruth and the Green Book

Written by Calvin Alexander Ramsey and Gwen Strauss
Illustrated by Floyd Cooper
Carolrhoda Books 2010
32 pages
Historical Fiction
 
                                 
                                 This is a story about a young African American girl named Ruth and the journey she and her family take as they travel from their home in Chicago to see her grandmother in Alabama.  It is set in the early 1950's during the time of the Jim Crow Laws. Ruth is excited about traveling in the car since not many black families had cars during that time. Their journey is not an easy one since many motels and gas stations did not serve African Americans. Ruth and her family finally meet a kind and helpful attendant at a gas station and gives them The Green Book which contains all the places that welcome black travelers. This helps them have a safe trip as they make their way to Alabama.
                           I do not know what medium the illustrator used to create his pictures but I believe that they are watercolors. Cooper is a very good illustrator and uses very warm colors in this story. He is also good with details in his work. The expressions on the characters' faces in the story depict the different situations very well. This book has not received any awards.
                       
     One way to incorporate this story with your class would be during math time. You could have your students go through the story and identify how many different places the family went for younger students. Older students could calculate how many miles the family traveled from Chicago to Alabama. Another connection that could be made would be for your students to research Jim Crow laws and write down reasons these might effect black travelers during this time, have them write responses on a sticky note and post them on a poster board.


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