Hold Fast to Dreams

by Andrea Davis Pinkney

Book Overview

Twelve-year-old Deirdre, whose passion for photography has earned her the nickname "Camera Dee," feels uncomfortable being the only black student at her new school. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0688128327
• ISBN13: 9780688128326
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Morrow Junior Books
• Length: 106 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.2" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Wonderful book!

As a future teacher in an ethnically diverse society, I am very concerned about presenting positive views of other cultures. I stress "positive" because too many books present a negative, stereotyped view of others who fill our world. My search for the perfect "good" book to present a positive message about a black child who did not speak English incorrectly was not easy. I finally did find a book which turned out to be better than I expected. Hold Fast to Dreams, by Andrea Pinkney, is about a 12-year-old black girl and her family; her sister, mother and father. The family moves from an all black neighborhood in Baltimore, Maryland, to an all white neighborhood in Wexford, Connecticut. Deirdre, the main character, is very nervous about going to a school where she will be the only black person in the entire school. She is a very smart girl and loves photography and the poetry of Langston Hughes, a poet whom no white student knows anything about. The book focuses on the dreams of each character and how those dreams were affected by changes in life's situations. The book touches on racism, blind prejudices, and stereotyping while teaching acceptance, friendship, trust, and recognition. Here is a brief synopsis of the book, Hold Fast to Dreams. Deirdre Willis, the main character, seems to want to remain resistant to the strangeness of her new situation. Her sister, Lindsay, chooses to force her acceptance by the white students by "acting white." She is a good athlete and so tries to prove herself the best at the new game of lacrosse, which neither of the girls knew how to play; in fact, they had never heard of lacrosse. The girls' father's dream was to provide the very best for his family. His promotion to vice president of the new company was the beginning of his dream. Their mother actually gave up her dream of being a second grade teacher in support of her husband's dream. Deirdre, Lindsay and their father all come up against some serious racism issues. Everyone at Deirdre's school is afraid of Deirdre because she is black. One very popular girl, Stacy Sneed, is especially afraid of her. One girl, whose nickname is Web, however, sought out Deirdre's friendship. Web always felt different from the other girls in her school because she is a redhead. Lindsay, because of trying to "act white," came up against a group of girls who challenged her in an unfriendly manner. This challenge, in which Lindsay was completely embarrassed, forced her to lie to her mother. She did not want to go back to school and she lied and pretended to be "sick." Mr. Willis had to deal with a racist guard at his company who forced Mr. Willis into a corner and demanded to see his company id. The guard knew that Mr. Willis worked for the company. He was simply showing his racism. Mr. Willis told his daughters that it felt like that guard had taken a piece of his integrity. (This is an obvious deep rupture of emotion that a thoughtless act of prej