the people could fly by virginia hamilton

Perhaps there wasn’t a moral lesson to be found and these tales were more a, sort of, fictional wish-fulfillment for plantation slaves who saw no way out but still shared a sharp wit and a strong imagination.

I failed to grasp the moral lessons presumably present in these stories, or the characteristics shared between the animals and the plantation residents that they were inspired by. The first is, essentially, tales of animal trickery and mischief. The stories are divided into 4 distinctly themed “Chapters”. For Historical and Cultural significance of folktales, a resounding 5 stars, hence, the settling on 4. ’The People Could Fly – American Black Folktales’, told by Virginia Hamilton, is an illustrated collection of 24 folktales representing the foundational material of a storytelling tradition belonging to the Africans who were bought to America against their will, forcibly suppressed by their white slaveowners and condemned to a life of slavery.įor personal enjoyment and takeaway, I give this 3 stars. But no amount of hard labour and suffering could suppress their powers of imagination”. As slaves, they were forced to live without citizenship, without rights, as property – like horses and cows – belonging to someone else. Secondly, Hamilton writes to entertain, to inspire in people the desire to read on and on good books made especially for them.”It is amazing that the former Africans could ever smile and laugh, let alone make up riddles and songs and jokes and tell tales. Virginia writes first for the pleasure of using words and language to evoke characters and their world, and in historical accounts such as Anthony Burns, the lives of real people. In 1992, Virginia was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal, which is presented every two years by the International Board on Books for Young People, in recognition of her entire body of work. Since then, she has won three Newbery Honors and three Coretta Scott King Awards. Virginia was the first African American woman to win the Newbery Award, for M.C.

She was educated at Antioch College and Ohio State University and did further study in literature and the novel at the New School for Social Research. Her grandfather settled in the village after escaping slavery in Virginia. Virginia Hamilton, storyteller, lecturer, and biographer, was born and raised in Yellow Springs, OH, which is said to be a station on the Underground Railroad.

The people could fly by virginia hamilton