One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

 

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

         Williams-Garcia, R. (2011). One crazy summer. ISBN 9780060760908

Delphine Gaither is 11 years old, an 11-year-old who has taken care of herself and her two younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, ever since her mother walked out of their lives seven years ago.  In the summer of 1968, Delphine and her sisters set off to California to visit their mother, expecting to be greeted with open arms and taken to Disney.  Image their surprise when their mother Cecilia could care less about her daughter's return, and rather than being taken to Disney World, are now shoved into the world of the Black Panthers!

Delphine and her sister's arrival in California was nothing like they ever expected.  Rather than being overjoyed by the arrival of her daughters, the girl's mother, Cecilia, automatically dismisses the presence.  Instead of spending the summer having the time of their lives, the girls are thrust into the life of cheap take-out food and nothing to do, that is, until Cecelia receives a knock on the door one day, and the girls are automatically shooed away.  To Delphine's surprise, who does she see?  Black Panther Members.  Automatically, Delphine knows everything is not what it seems, and that suspicion is confirmed once her mother sends her and her sisters off to the People's Center every day, a camp run by the Black Panther party.

Delphine was shoved into a mother figure role at a young age, automatically taking care of her and her younger sisters. As a result, her biggest priority in California is keeping her sisters safe, and that is seen multiple times in the book, going as far as cooking fresh meals for everyone, planning trips for her sisters, and, of course, voicing her opinions when she believes her sisters may be in danger.  One prominent example of this is when the People Center is prepping for a rally, and Delphine is strongly against it, knowing that a young man was shot because he was a Black Panter.  Delphine has the right to worry, as her sisters are her life and world.  

One Crazy Summer does not shy away from educating readers about the Black Panthers and the hardships African Americans had to face.  One Crazy Summer talks of police brutality, racism, Black Panthers, shootings, and parental arrests.  Through the summer, Delphine learns much more than she expected.  She learned more about her mother, a poet whose pen name is Nzila.  She learns that the Black Panthers are not what she expected; rather, at camp, the girls learn critical life skills such as self-defense and their rights as African Americans.  While it was not the Disneyland experience she and her sisters were expecting, Delphine and her sisters learned life-long lessons about standing up for themselves and what they believe in while creating a lifelong bond and memories with each other and their mother.  One thing is certain: Delphine and her sister remain forever changed for the better!

What do readers think?  Kirkus Reviews calls One Crazy Summer a novel where "the deception of time is well done, and while the girls are caught up in the difficulties of adults, their resilience is celebrated and energetically told with writing that snaps off the page." After reading One Crazy Summer, encourage younger readers to learn more about the Black Panthers and what the organization stood for!  For older readers, you should encourage them to choose an active Panther member and create a presentation about them to educate others. If One Crazy Summer got you curious about the Black Panther movement, consider checking out the book Black Panther for Beginners by Herb Boyd to learn more about the movement!

Awards for One Crazy Summer:

• National Book Award Finalist
• ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults
• ALA Notable Children's Book
• Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction
• Newbery Honor Book

Citations

One crazy summer. HarperCollins. (n.d.). https://www.harpercollins.com/products/one-crazy-summer-rita-williams-garcia?variant=32117146877986

Williams-Garcia, R. (2010, February 1). One crazy summer. Kirkus Reviews. https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/rita-williams-garcia/one-crazy-summer/

Williams-Garcia, R. (2011). One crazy summer.