Ruth and the Green Book

Ramsey, C., & Strauss, G. (2010). Ruth and the Green Book. Minneapolis, MN: Carolrhoda Books.

Readability lexile: 810L

Summary:

Ruth was so excited to take a trip in her family's new car! In the early 1950s, a few African American could afford to buy cars, so this would be an adventure. But she soon found out that black travelers weren't treated very well in some towns. Many hotels and gas stations refused service to black people because of the Jim Crow laws.

Finally, a friendly attendant at a gas station showed Ruth's family The Green Book. It listed all of the places that would welcome black travelers. With this guidebook and the kindness of strangers, Ruth could finally make a safe journey from Chicago to her grandma's house in Alabama. Ruth's story is fiction, but The Green Book and its role in helping a generation of African American travelers avoid some of the indignities of Jim Crow are historical fact.

Evaluation of the text based on Donna Norton's characteristics of high quality literature (Norton, D. (2011):

This book could be used as high quality literature, because it serves for multiple avenues of learning. For example, this book could be used to teach about stories like Ruth's. Rosa Parks would be a good individual of study, because she took part in The Civil Rights Movement. Parks was treated unfairly when she took a seat at the front of a bus.

In the Ten Steps for Reviewing Children's Literature by Norton, I think this book addresses the story line the best. Even though Ruth's story was fiction, The Green Book does have significant history. 

Literary Elements:

1. Setting: A journey from Chicago to Ruth's grandma's house in Alabama. 

2. Conflict: The unruly treatment of African Americans at various public places, such as hotels and gas stations. 

3. Characters: Ruth, her Mama, her Daddy, her grandma, Eddy, Brown Bear, and various people Ruth meets during her journey. 

Mini-Lesson:

The lesson I would teach would be about Jim Crow laws and about The Green Book. I liked that at the end of the book, there is a page on the history of The Negro Motorist Green Book. 

Target Audience: Grades 1-4

My personal reaction to this book was that I enjoyed it. I knew about the unjust treatment of African Americans and about Jim Crow laws, but I did not know that The Green Book had been created. I learned something new by reading this book.