Rosa

Title: Rosa
Author:Nikki Giovanni
Illustrator:Bryan Collier
Published:Square Fish
Date:December 26, 2007
Summary: This tells the story of when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat in a time of segregation. She was the one that started the movement for change during the 1950s and 60s.
Age Level: Upper Elementary (5-6)
Strengths: I think this book is very interesting because there were a lot of elements that made this story powerful. What was interesting was the location of the text. Some texts like to be in the middle of the page, coexisting with the picture, but the author separates the text from the picture. Each text is in its own rectangular box that is either blue, purple, green or orange. The illustrations look very interesting as well. It looks like a mixture of paint and paper. There was also a pattern in this story. It goes from talking about Rosa Parks to what she did on the bus, to how she effected the Civil Rights Movement. When people heard she got arrested, many decided to boycott the buses and they needed a voice (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.), which led to the Alambama marches.
Concerns: I think the reader would like to know more about Rosa Parks herself. She was presented at first, but soon faded into a general idea (she was the cause of the Civil Rights Movement). What happened to Rosa Parks when she was in jail? What did she do afterwards? Etc
Comments: This is also a great story to talk about history, but also a chance to talk to your students about making a difference in the world, because the tiniest things can lead to a big effect.