Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree

Add to Wishlist

Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree

Hardcover

$20.75

View All Available Formats & Editions

Hardcover
$20.75

View All Available Formats & Editions

SHIP THIS ITEM

Temporarily Out of Stock Online
PICK UP IN STORE

Your local store may have stock of this item.

Available within 2 business hours

Want it Today?
Check Store Availability

Related collections and offers

Overview

Based on autobiographical writings of Zora Neale Hurston, this is the true story of the famous writer who, as a young girl, learned about hope and strength from her mother.

Product Details

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780780761834
Publisher:	Lee & Low Books, Inc.
Publication date:	05/28/2002
Series:	Reading Rainbow Book
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.25(d)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

From the B&N Reads Blog

Page 1 of

Editorial Reviews

Van Wright and Hu "neatly capture the emotions in this lucidly told story," said PW of this retelling of an episode from the childhood of the well-known African American author. Ages 4-up. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

The author focuses on Hurston's early life and the division of her home. Zora's father sought to limit her because of her sex, while her mother helped her dream, question, and see the vitality of the world. The book ends with Hurston's response to her mother's death. With great determination Zora climbs the Chinaberry tree to view the world her mother showed her, and she utters a promise "she would never stop climbing, would always reach for the newborn sky, always jump at the morning sun!" Illustrations highlight the beauty of the relationship between mother and child and their connection to the natural world.

Children's Literature - Susie Wilde

Miller shows us a young Zora Hurston, curious and dreaming dreams of the world outside her community. The tree symbolizes Zora's dreams and it is the place that is a sanctuary when her mother dies. Her mother's influence led Zora to her career as a folklorist and writer. Beautiful illustrations evoke scenes of a past time and bring to life the rich community life that Zora knew.

Children's Literature - Jan Lieberman

K-Gr 3-Hurston's difficult childhood is a challenging subject for a picture book, and Miller is not entirely successful in his treatment. The story is framed by scenes of the child in a chinaberry tree, imagining what lies beyond the horizon. The blurry edges of the watercolor images work well to suggest the worldview of a young girl prone to dreaming. The problem lies with what is left unsaid in the brief narrative. With only three sentences to characterize her father, children may be confused to learn that ``Zora only listened to her mother.'' However, it is the treatment of her mother's death that is most problematic. As the child spies on the men and boys telling stories around the campfire, she hears about ``...Death, the great square-toed one...who sat on a platform made of palm leaves and ruled with a sword in his hands.'' Two pages later, her mother dies. No explanation of the reference to death or of the family's funereal customs is given in the text or in the author's note. More importantly, the impact of the girl's beloved relative's death is not satisfactorily resolved by showing Zora climbing her chinaberry tree. More narrative is needed to help readers understand the unique setting and dynamics surrounding this character and to cushion the effect of this traumatic event. Stick with Patricia and Fredrick McKissack's Zora Neale Hurston (Enslow, 1992) and A.P. Porter's Jump at de Sun (Carolrhoda, 1992) for a more developed sense of the subject and her milieu.-Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA

School Library Journal

Zora Neale Hurston, African American author and folklorist, wrote movingly about her strong bond with her mother and the trauma of her mother's death when Zora was nine years old. Miller's picture-book biography tells the story of the child's sorrow. Though he dramatizes Zora's clash with her father, who tried to subdue her spirit, the focus here is on the inspiration her mother gave Zora to go everywhere and give everything a voice and listen to the people's stories. When her mother dies, Zora climbs high in the chinaberry tree as her mother taught her; she reaches for the newborn sky and jumps at the sun. No source is given for this particular episode, but it's lyrically told, and children will get the metaphor. Handsome, light-filled watercolor paintings show the sturdy girl in overalls confronting her father, listening to the townspeople's stories, grieving for her mother, and surveying the wide, beckoning world her mother has given her.

Hazel Rochman

Related collections and offers

Overview

Product Details

Related Subjects

Customer Reviews