Author: Rose Blue and Corinne J. Naden
Illustrator: Don Tate
Publisher and Year: Dutton Books for Young Readers, 2009
Number of pages: 32
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Analysis: This book’s setting takes place in South Caroline in the 1959. The main character is Ron who is a nine-year old African American boy. Ron enjoyed going to the Lake City Public Library. He loved to read books. Ron looked for books that showed children like him, but that was difficult because there weren’t many books about black children on the shelves. Instead Ron, found books about airplanes. In a segregated time, Ron was not allowed to check out books for himself because of the color of his skin. He had to rely on either reading the books at the library or the kindness of others to check them out on his behalf. Ron went on a mission to obtain the right to check out books. He demanded the right to check out his own books. He took a stand and despite others telling him to just let it go, his persistence enabled the librarian to give in and Ron got his own library card. The story is a fictionalized account of a real incident of Ron McNair who grew up to be an astronaut.
This book can serve as window to understand some of the difficulties that aroused during times of segregation. This is also an inspirational story of standing up for what you believe in. Although Ron was only nine years old, he made a big difference. At his young age, Ron knew it was not fair that he did not have the opportunity to check out books and did something about it. This book can also serve as a mirror for children who are of color or for children who have an issue about which they hold strong opinions about. This book does a good job illustrating how a young boy can make a difference. This book can also be a door to teach children that they can stand up for what they believe in and make a difference.
The ideology this book explores is persistence during the time of segregation. This book is based on an event of Ron McNair’s life. He grew up to be an astronaut. Ron was a hero in his neighborhood in Lake City for being the boy who stood up for his rights. When he grew up, he was a national hero, serving as a US astronaut. Mr. McNeir lost his life in the space shuttle Challenger.
The illustrations used in this book use an open frame, so our view is from the outside. The images add to the words. The cover shows Ron taking up most of the page. This indicates that he is strong, since he goes on a mission that makes a difference in the world. In many of the pages Ron is on the right side. This is indicating that he less secure and moving forward. He is on the move. When Ron is demanding to be able to get his own card he is higher on the page than the rest of the characters, indicating higher status. The colors are darker which indicate more confinement