Review Detail

The Watsons go to Birmingham—1963, by Christopher Paul Curtis, is a profound story told from a captivating 11 year old boy’s perspective. There are many aspects of this book that I would enjoy exploring with children. The poetic prose leaves a lot up to the reader to visualize and interpret which lends itself to being enjoyed by a wide age range. I should note that because of violence and traumatic events the book would be difficult to process with young children. I would not use it in a classroom before 5th grade and only then if I was sure the students were up to it.
The story is narrated by Kenny Watson, an African-American boy with a lazy eye, an older brother, Byron-- an angsty adolescent who picks on Kenny constantly, and a younger sister Joetta—Joey. These three play off of each other and their parents in a series of adventures and misadventures, involving school, friends, status, family, and race that show Kenny how terrible people can treat each other (himself included). In the end, Kenny learns that siblings take care of each other even if they don’t always treat each other well, and that nobody will be able to protect him from the hurt he will experience in the world.