ROSA

Rosa

Written by: Nikki Giovanni

Illustrated by: Bryan Collier

Henry Holt and Company, 2005

28 pages

Non-Fiction 

           I love reading inspirational stories and when I saw this book I knew I had to read it. Rosa is the true story about the life of Rosa Parks. The setting for the story takes place in the 1950's when blacks were separate from whites. The story begins by talking about Rosa's home life and job as a seamstress. Then one day as Rosa is heading home from work she finds a seat in the middle of the bus. Blacks, however,  are only allowed to set in the back of the bus. So, a white man demands that Rosa  give up her seat. Being strong willed and tired of the racism,  Rosa refuses to give up her seat. Why should she have to just because of the color of her skin?  Rosa was arrested, but due to her refusal she created supporters who began a boycott over the bus rules.  Eventually, this event lead to an inspirational speech by Martin Luther King, the formation of the NAACP, and several other groups that fought for the rights of blacks.  

       The Caldecott winning illustrations in this story are remarkable for they bring out the emotion and power of the story. The illustrator, Collier, even made a trip to Montgomery to capture the realness of the story. Collier used watercolors and collage for this story and the text it placed informally. The story also contains a fordable page illustrating the intensity of the boycott. 

      I personally love this book and even was inspired to research this topic further. I would use this book for students in grades second and up. I would use this story to teach students about Rosa Parks, black history, and the NAACP.  For upper grade students, I would have them research another African American who, like Rosa, made an impact for black history. I definitely plan to include this story in my future classroom as part of my non-fiction section.