Gone Crazy in Alabama - Hardcover

Williams-Garcia, Rita

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062215876 ISBN 13: 9780062215871

Publisher: Quill Tree Books, 2015

Synopsis

Coretta Scott King Award winner * ALA Notable Book * School Library Journal Best Book of the Year * Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year * ALA Booklist Editors' Choice * Shelf Awareness Best Book of the Year * Washington Post Best Books of the Year * The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Blue Ribbon Book * Three starred reviews * CCBC Choice * New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing * Amazon Best Book of the YearThe Coretta Scott King Award-winning Gone Crazy in Alabama by Newbery Honor and New York Times bestselling author Rita Williams-Garcia tells the story of the Gaither sisters as they travel from the streets of Brooklyn to the rural South for the summer of a lifetime.Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are off to Alabama to visit their grandmother Big Ma and her mother, Ma Charles. Across the way lives Ma Charles's half sister, Miss Trotter. The two half sisters haven't spoken in years. As Delphine hears about her family history, she uncovers the surprising truth that's been keeping the sisters apart. But when tragedy strikes, Delphine discovers that the bonds of family run deeper than she ever knew possible.Powerful and humorous, this companion to the award-winning One Crazy Summer and P.S. Be Eleven will be enjoyed by fans of the first two books, as well as by readers meeting these memorable sisters for the first time.

About this title

Review:

Praise for P.S. BE ELEVEN: .".the Gaither sisters are an irresistible trio. Williams-Garcia excels at conveying defining moments of American society from their point of view--this is historical fiction that's as full of heart as it is of heartbreak."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for P.S. BE ELEVEN: "This thoughtful story, told with humor and heart, rings with the rhythms and the dilemmas of the '60s through characters real enough to touch."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

PRAISE FOR ONE CRAZY SUMMER: "Delphine's growing awareness of injustice on a personal and universal level is smoothly woven into the story in poetic language that will stimulate and move readers."--Publishers Weekly

"Williams-Garcia's novel has the feeling of a saga, an American story of several generations, related effectively from Delphine's first-person point of view-and with help from some feisty elders."--Horn Book Magazine

This well-crafted depiction of a close-knit community in rural Alabama works beautifully, with language that captures its humor, sorrow and resilience. Rich in all areas, Delphine and her sisters third outing will fully satisfy the many fans of their first two. --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"

Williams-Garcia s novel has the feeling of a saga, an American story of several generations, related effectively from Delphine s first-person point of view-and with help from some feisty elders. --Horn Book Magazine"

There are similarities here with Woodson s Brown Girl Dreaming, which would make an excellent next step and consolation for readers wistful for the apparent end of the series. But if readers do have to say goodbye to the Gaither sisters and their crew, this is a warm and spirited valedictory.--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books"

it s reward enough just to spend more time with this feisty, close-knit family, whose loyalty to and love for each other trump everything else.--Publishers Weekly (starred review)"

Praise for P.S. BE ELEVEN: Funny, wise, poignant, and thought-provoking, this will leave readers wanting more about Delphine and her sisters. --Horn Book (starred review)"

Praise for P.S. BE ELEVEN: P.S. Be Eleven is a must-read for fans of the first book, but it can also stand alone as an engrossing novel that will leave readers pondering important issues of race, gender, and identity. --School Library Journal (starred review)"

From the Back Cover:

It's the summer of 1969, and Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are off to Alabama to visit Big Ma and her eighty-two-year-old mother, Ma Charles. Pa can't remind them enough that the South's not like Brooklyn, and that you can't get more southern than Alabama.

Across the field, through the pines, and over the creek is the Trotter home, where Ma Charles's half sister, Miss Trotter, lives. The two half sisters haven't spoken in years, each determined to hold on to her version of the truth. Dramatic Vonetta plays middleman to the two warring, elderly sisters, while Delphine struggles against her to bring the family together. As Delphine hears about family history that she never knew existed, she learns of a hurt that happened many years ago--which maybe can't be mended. But when a tragedy comes to the farm in Alabama, Delphine discovers that the bonds of family run deeper than she ever knew possible.

Powerful and humorous, this companion to the award-winning One Crazy Summer and P.S. Be Eleven stands on its own as a story that brilliantly reveals the history of an African-American family in all its richness and complexity, superbly written by master storyteller Rita Williams-Garcia.

About this edition

• Publisher: Quill Tree Books
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0062215876
• ISBN 13: 9780062215871
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 304