Bird in a Box
Written by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Narrated by Bahni Turpin, S'Von Ringo and JB Adkins
3.5/5
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Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
Each of them is looking for hope, and they all find it in the thrilling boxing matches of young Joe Louis. They know Joe has a good chance of becoming the country's next heavyweight champion. What they don't know is that during this unforgettable year, the three of them will become friends.
Award-winning and bestselling author Andrea Davis Pinkney masterfully tells a story of friendship and determination, set against the backdrop of America's golden age of radio
Andrea Davis Pinkney
Andrea Davis Pinkney is the New York Times best-selling author of several books for young readers, including the novel Bird in a Box, a Today Show Al Roker Book Club for Kids pick, and Hand in Hand: Ten Black Men Who Changed America, winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award. Additional works include the Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Honor book Duke Ellington, illustrated by her husband, Brian Pinkney; and Let It Shine: Stories of Black Women Freedom Fighters, a Coretta Scott King Honor book and winner of the Carter G. Woodson Award. Andrea Davis Pinkney lives in New York City.
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Reviews for Bird in a Box
34 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lively, engaging, atmospheric historical fiction.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is yet another instance when words won't flow to describe the feeling of this wonderful book.This is a marvelous story of chaos and hope, about abuse and redemption, about surviving amid insurmountable odds, about friendship that lasts and about emotional and physical scars that are painful and long to be healed.Set in 1937 when mighty Joe Lewis (Brown Bomber) gained the world heavyweight boxing championship, the author showed the miraculous ability of Lewis to be a springboard of hope, not only for a nation, but particularly for the black community.As the philco radio announced each fight, three children, destined to come together, listened carefully as time and time again Mighty Joe refused to stay down and consistently fought his way from the ground to the heights of fame.This book is charming, insightful, poignant heart breaking and hopeful.Hiberina Lee Tyson's mother took off to follow her dream of singing at the great Savoy Ballroom in Harlelm. She left behind a spunky, smart, determined child raised by a minister father. Hiberina has a dream...she wants to sing just like her momma.Before landing in The Mercy Home For Negro Orphans, Willie had a dream. He wanted to be a boxer. His dream was scattered when in one cruel abusive act, his alcoholic father destroyed his hope.Otis dreams of his mother and father before they were killed in a car accident. He finds life tolerable in the Mercy Home For Negro Orphans because Willie is his friend. When he meets Hibernia, he has a dream that she will notice him.One of my top reads for 2011, this is a must read!five stars
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Children's fiction; historical fiction. Aside from the really bad cover design (WHY do publishers have to resist black faces on a cover, anyway?) and the bad jacket summary (oh really? The three kids "become friends" at the end of an unforgettable year? Gee, I really want to read about that), the story isn't bad, but it's not super great either (especially if you don't care for boxing), and certain dialogues and characters (particularly Lila and Mr. Sneed) seem especially contrived and even somewhat one-dimensional. References to reading and libraries, accompanied with the varied backgrounds of the "orphans" seem to indicate that this book was written with the Newbery in mind, but it's no Bud, Not Buddy.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Narrated by Bahni Turpin, S'von Ringo and JB Adkins. This production just didn't pull me in or I was distracted by other things. Turpin is the stronger narrator, giving Hibernia life as an ambitious and saucy little girl. Hibernia, Otis and Willie have very different backgrounds (Hibernia is daughter of a preacher; Otis and Willie live at Mercy Home for orphans and children whose parents can't care for them) but all three are rooting for boxer Joe Louis and all he represents for the black community.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5From March 2011 SLJ:
Gr 4-7–It is 1936, and the country is struggling in the midst of the Great Depression. As Joe Louis inches closer to becoming the American heavyweight boxing champion, his victories spark hope in a nation starved for good news. Against this backdrop, Pinkney introduces three narrators whose lives are about to intersect. Hibernia chafes at her father’s overprotectiveness: since her mother left them with dreams of singing at the Savoy, the reverend limits Hibernia’s singing to the church choir. Otis misses his parents terribly: the three of them never had much, but they had laughter, which came to an end in a fiery car crash. Willie tries to ignore his alcoholic father until the night that the abusive man disfigures Willie’s hands and his mother convinces him to flee for safety. The two boys meet at the Mercy Home for Negro Orphans and slowly learn to trust one another. When Hibernia’s youth choir performs a Christmas concert there, Otis is smitten. With the help of a caring orphanage worker, the three youngsters are able to navigate the complex waters of adolescence, learning that using one’s wits can be more powerful than beating against the walls of a box. Pinkney weaves quite a bit of 1930s history into her story and succeeds admirably in showing how Louis came to represent so much more than his sport. Her detailed notes make this an accessible and inspiring piece of historical fiction that belongs in most collections.–Kim Dare, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5“Let’s go mighty Joe/Battle like the Alamo.” Joe Louis was an inspiration to people around the world, and especially to three black twelve year olds in Elmira, New York in Andrea Pinkney’s Bird in a Box. Hibernia, Otis, and Willie lead very different lives. Hibernia is the daughter of a preacher and dreams of becoming a famous singer, Otis lives in an orphanage because his parents were killed, and Willie lives in the orphanage because of his abusive father. When Miss Lila asks the church choir to come sing at the orphanage, their paths cross, and a tentative friendship between the three slowly evolves throughout the novel, with events that are spurred by Joe Louis fights. This historical tale, told from the alternating perspective of Hibernia, Otis, and Willie in the late 1930’s, illustrates the power of believing in dreams. While the friendships that form in the novel are believable and even admirable, the true strength of this story lies in the growth of each of the individual characters. Hibernia, Otis, and Willie all have individual hurdles to overcome, and they do so with love, determination, and sometimes heartbreak. The events surrounding Joe Louis during this time serve as a larger backdrop that echoes the more individual turmoils highlighted in the novel. Actual radio transcripts and boxing names and events are used in the book, adding authenticity to the story. While this is a heartwarming book of self-discovery and acceptance, there are also a couple of passages that are hauntingly disturbing, such as the scene where Willie’s hands are burned in hominy by his father. Scenes like this fit in the storyline, but may be disturbing for younger readers. For that reason, this prize-fighting book is recommended for grades 6 and up.