Harlem

by Walter Dean Myers

Book Overview

"They took the road in Waycross Georgia / Skipped over the tracks in East St. Louis / Took the bus from Holly Springs / Hitched a ride from Gee's Bend / Took the long way through Memphis / The third... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0590543415
• ISBN13: 9780590543415
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Length: 1 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Age Range: 4 to 8 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 3

Customer Reviews

All about Harlem By; Montel Toon

The book Harlem was about how black and white people didn't get along in the past. They celebrated their journey to Harlem, and made a way for new a beginning in life. In their old town it was a lot of racism, so they moved to Harlem and all their problems were resolved with the help of postive leaders. The story was mostly based on 125th street in Harlem, New York. I feel that the book was a good book because it taught me things about Harlem and how slaves moved from south to north just for freedom, and to get treated better.

A wrench of heart from Goree Island / A wrench of heart from Goree Island

I have a problem. I'm a children's librarian at a moderately sized branch in Greenwich Village, New York City. I have a library assistant currently going to library school. Between the two of us, we're fairly good at covering almost all the topics and age group titles required of us. There is one notable exception to this, however. Poetry. Neither of us are particularly interested in it. By extension, neither of us know much about it. So when I set out to review all the great Caldecott Honor winners out there, I knew I'd be covering a lot of poetry gaps in my general children's knowledge. Living in New York, Walter Dean Myers', "Harlem" is an especially good book to know about. I live in Harlem. I have kids coming in needing books on different New York communities all the time. You'd think, therefore, that "Harlem" would be a kind of godsend. Unfortunately, it's Walter Dean Myers at his most sophisticated. Because of the adult nature of the poems, references, and illustrations in this book, I'm afraid I just can't recommend it to the swarming hoards of five to nine-year-olds that need picture books about the uptown area. For them, I'll be handing over Brian Collier's, "Uptown". For teens needing some Harlem beauty, "Harlem" is for them. The book can be read as a bunch of little poems all talking about the history, magnificence, and glory of Harlem. It can also be read as a single continuing story that starts with a Great Migration from all over the world and ends on Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard. We see people up and people down. We meet and view famous characters from history. We see Harlem residents' faith, their religion, and their everyday activities. Checkers players are viewed alongside pallbearers. Kids and hot asphalt and lines like, "A journey on the A train / That started on the banks of the Niger / And has not ended". The book is a celebration of a place by a man who was born and raised there, but does not live there today. Something to chew on, I suppose. Kids will not get this book. Not all kids. A few will understand what it's saying, and a few who have it explained to them by talented teachers, will get it as well. By and large, however, this is a book meant for teens and adults. The kinds of people who might have read "Harlem Stomp" by Laban Carrick Hill and (as a result) now understand exactly what this book is referring to. You need a little background and history in Harlem to understand "Harlem". Myers is assuming that the casual reader is familiar enough with its past to nod sagely at such lines as, "A huddle of horns and a tinkle of glass, a note / Handed down from Marcus to Malcolm to a brother / Too bad and too cool to give his name". And while I appreciate Myers' assumption that I'm that intelligent, I can't help but wonder why this book is considered children's. Just because it has bright pretty pictures? Puh-leeze. Not that the pictures are bad. They're nice, in a cut paper/arti

A tremendous poem from a tremendous writer!

Walter Dean Myers is certainly better-known for his chapter books for children than for poetry. That being said, "Harlem" offers an insight into the place as well as the man. African-American culture has long had a close relationship with poetry and Myers cements that friendship. Kudos for a job well-done!For teachers, this is a must-read during African-American History Month in February (as well as any other time of the year).

This book is for adults.

This book is for adults, not children. There is so much deep meaning in this book. Just because it is a picuture book does not mean that it is for children. I believe that adults will get much more out of it.