GATORS, SNAKES, AND QUICKSAND

In Molinari’s Early Readers novel, a young girl encounters segregation and learns to stand up for human rights.

In the early 1950s, 10-year-old Lena Hopkins (nicknamed “Sister”) and her family move to Dreamer’s Rest, Georgia, where her father trains military pilots. In their new locale, Sister and her brother, 6-year-old Bud, seek out the forbidden, wandering off the path to school, spewing foul words, and exploring the swamp (Lena’s father counsels, “Since we do not want the critters in our home, we do not trespass on their territory unless invited. By the way, if an alligator invites you to dinner, do not accept the invitation.”). When Sister and Bud are mandated to transfer from Robert E. Lee Elementary to a country school, they experience segregation firsthand. Walking miles to school every day, getting to know their neighbors, and exploring the swamp, they learn lessons about diversity, prejudice, and discrimination.  Sister, with her Cherokee ancestry and status as a military brat, learns that she must also battle discrimination to become the scientist she aspires to be. However, many of her Black neighbors cannot even attend school at all and experience overt hate crimes until the neighborhood children rally to build a safe neighborhood for all residents. Written in an appealing, anecdotal style, the author’s debut novel presents an authentic, kind, and engaging female protagonist. Molinari portrays Sister’s emotional and cognitive development in a believable manner, and the swamp setting is vividly realized. While there are moments when the story seems to take on too many issues, including feminism and bullying, the presentation of us-versus-them social dynamics feels accurate. The novel is a fine contribution to children’s literature and bookshelves that highlight diversity.

An engaging story steeped in history and Southern lore.