Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold

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Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold.jpg

Tar Beach was written by Faith Ringgold and it won critical acclaim as well as a Caldecott Honor and a Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration, and it continues to be a favorite among children and adults alike. The message here is welcome and fresh and allows the book to endure–freedom is available to anyone who dares to dream–and Ringgold’s writing is superb and bolstered by the floral patches of fabric and delightful paintings. [1]

Summary

The book is set in New York in 1939. Tar Beach is the roof of Cassie's Harlem apartment building. Cassie's dearest dream is to be free to go wherever she wants, and one day it comes true when the stars help her to fly across the city.[2]

Pros

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The book is a little memoir set in 1930's Harlem. The theme of flying as a metaphor for freedom and being free was used to wonderful effect here. It was an African American tradition that can be learned from this book. Faith had written this story out of her own days of laying on the rooftop and looking at the stars on summer nights and flying over the city. It was also made into a quilt, it was a quilt first and then Faith developed it into this story. The readers could see the quilt squares around the edges of the page. The artwork of the book was beautiful. The story about flying and freedom was loveable. It’s also the answer to the age-old question, ‘what superpower would you want if you could have powers?’[3]

The same opinion came from Evan who had the same thought that this book was amazing. He mentioned that book has a very positive message about the need to dream and flourish while still containing undertones of some problematic social situations such as unemployment and racism. He thoroughly enjoyed reading this short story because of its unique viewpoint, and beautiful artwork. This book can be read out to students from grades K to second and features amazingly detailed painted illustrations while remaining in a quilt like format. He would recommend this picture book to any parent or teacher who likes to read out loud to their students or children. This book also features many elements of African American culture which can be teaching point in where it may be a non-dominant culture. Some of the social issues present are expertly worded and provide insight into what it was really like to live in that time period. The book can also bring about inspiration in young writers who can imagine flying over their own hometown and creating an illustrated recount of their adventure.[3]

References

  1. Sweeney, Mallory.Faith Ringgold’s Tar Beach, A Literary Review. Jan 31, 2007. literarytraveler.com. Retrieved Jan 23, 2021.
  2. Tar Beach. wikipedia.com. Retrieved January 23rd, 2021.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Tar Beach. goodreads.com. Retrieved January 23rd, 2021