The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 facts for kids
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| Author | Christopher Paul Curtis |
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| Country | United States |
| Genre | Realistic fiction, Juvenile fiction |
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Publication date
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1995/1997/2000 |
| OCLC | 32133739 |
| LC Class | PZ7.C94137 Wat 1995 |
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 is a historical fiction novel. It was written by Christopher Paul Curtis. The book first came out in 1995. It tells the story of an African-American family. They live in Flint, Michigan, in 1963.
The oldest son, Byron, starts getting into trouble. His parents decide he should spend the summer with his Grandma Sands. She lives in Birmingham, Alabama. The whole family drives there together. While they are visiting, some very sad things happen.
This book was made into a TV movie in 2013 for the Hallmark Channel.
Contents
About the Story's Time and Place
The story happens from early to late 1963. This was a very important time in the Civil Rights Movement. This movement worked to end unfair treatment and segregation for African Americans.
The Watson family is made up. But the characters are based on people the author knew. Many early events in the book come from the author's own childhood.
Later in the story, a real event takes place. This is the 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham. This happened after civil rights protests. These protests had helped leaders agree to integration. On September 15, 1963, members of the KKK bombed the church. Four young girls were killed. Many others were hurt. In the book, this event happens a little earlier. This allows the Watson family to still be in Birmingham.
The bombing made the Civil Rights Movement even stronger. It led to more work on voter registration. This happened in Mississippi during Freedom Summer in 1964.
What Happens in the Story
The story is told by Kenneth Watson. He is called Kenny. He lives in Flint, Michigan. He lives with his parents, Daniel and Wilona Watson. He also lives with his older brother Byron and younger sister Joetta.
Kenny is a very smart and shy 4th grader. He finds it hard to make friends. Then Rufus Fry moves to town from Arkansas. Rufus is also picked on for his "country" clothes and accent. Kenny is not sure about being friends at first. But soon, they become best friends.
Kenny is sometimes picked on by his 13-year-old brother Byron. But Byron also protects him. Byron's friend, Buphead, is also around. Kenny calls Byron "an official teenage juvenile delinquent." Byron has failed two grades. He is still in 6th grade. He often skips school. Byron likes to get into trouble. He plays with matches and sets things on fire. He uses his parents' store credit to buy candy. He even gets a special "conk" hairstyle. This is against his parents' rules.
Daniel and Wilona get very upset with Byron. They decide to send him to Birmingham, Alabama. He will live with Grandma Gloria Sands. She is Wilona's mother. He might stay for the summer or even a whole year.
After school ends, the Watsons get their car ready. They call it "the Brown Bomber." They start a road trip from Flint to Birmingham. They are taking Byron to his grandma. Kenny thought Byron and Grandma would fight a lot. But he is surprised. Just a few sharp words from Grandma make Byron behave. He starts speaking respectfully. Kenny then looks for his own "adventures."
Grandma Sands tells the children to stay away from a certain swimming hole. She says it has a dangerous whirlpool. Kenny hears it as "Wool Pooh." This is because of her strong Alabama accent. Kenny wants to swim there anyway. He is upset when Byron and Joetta refuse to go. Kenny ignores the warnings. He jumps into the calm-looking pool. He goes deeper and deeper. The whirlpool catches him. It almost pulls him under. But Byron saves him.
Kenny remembers his grandma's words. He imagines a strange monster. He thinks it is the mysterious Wool Pooh. He believes it swam up and grabbed his ankle. Byron later says nothing else was in the water. But Kenny is sure the Wool Pooh is real.
Soon after, a bomb goes off at a nearby church. Joetta is there for Sunday school. Kenny walks into the smoking church. He is looking for his sister. Instead, he sees the Wool Pooh in the smoke. It is holding a torn girl's shoe. It looks like Joetta's shoe. In shock, he walks back to Grandma Sands' house. No one sees that he was at the church. He is shocked again to find Joetta already there. She says Kenny called her away from the church. She says he led her home. She does not even know a bombing happened. It happened right after she left Sunday school.
Once they know Joetta is safe, the Watsons decide to go home. They return to Flint right away. They try not to explain everything to the children. Kenny cannot understand what happened in Birmingham. He avoids his family and friends for weeks. He spends many hours hiding behind the sofa.
Byron finally gets Kenny to come out. He gets Kenny to talk about what happened. This makes Kenny cry a lot. Byron tells his little brother to "keep on stepping." He explains that the world is not perfect. But Kenny has to keep moving forward.
Meet the Characters
- Kenneth Bernard "Kenny" Watson - He is the main character and tells the story. He is the younger of the two Watson sons. Kenny is ten years old. He is very smart. This makes him a target for bullies at Clark Elementary School.
- Wilona Sands Watson - She is usually called "Momma." She is Daniel's wife and the mother of the three children. She is from Birmingham. She speaks with a strong Southern accent when she is mad or excited. She complains about Flint's cold winters. She is strict but loves her kids very much.
- Daniel Watson - He is Wilona's husband and the father of the three children. He is known for his good sense of humor. He is called "Dad."
- Byron "Daddy Cool" Watson - He is Kenny and Joey's older brother. He is seen as a "God" at Clark Elementary School. He bullies smaller kids with his best friend Buphead. He is known for being a bad student. He also breaks rules and is a rebel. Byron is thirteen.
- Joetta "Joey" Watson - She is Byron and Kenny's younger sister. She follows rules and is very religious. Joey has a special bond with Byron. She is five.
- Buphead - He is Byron's best friend. He is also an "official delinquent." He helps Byron bully many kids, including Kenny. But Byron and Buphead do stand up for Kenny and Rufus when Larry bullies them.
- Grandma Sands - She is Kenny, Byron, and Joey's grandmother. She is Wilona's mother. She is Daniel's mother-in-law. She is supposed to be very strict. The Watsons see her when they arrive in Birmingham. Grandma Sands uses a cane because she had a stroke. Her husband died before the book begins.
- Rufus Fry - He is Kenny's new best friend. He is Cody's older brother. His family moves to Flint from the South. He and his little brother Cody become friends with Kenny.
- Cody Fry - He is Rufus's little brother. Rufus and Cody come from a poor African-American family from the South.
- Lawrence "Larry" Dunn - He is the school bully in Kenny and Rufus's class. Byron teaches him a lesson for stealing Kenny's winter gloves.
- Mr. Robert - He is a good friend of Grandma Sands. Mr. Robert started helping Grandma Sands around the house after her husband died. It is hinted that Grandma Sands likes Mr. Robert.
- Mrs. Davidson - She is the Watsons' religious next-door neighbor. Joey goes to church with Mrs. Davidson three times a week. Sometimes Wilona makes Kenny go to Sunday School with Joey.
- LJ Jones - He used to play with Kenny. He stole many of Kenny's toy dinosaurs.
About the Author
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 was Christopher Paul Curtis's first novel. It won him a Newbery Honor. It also won a Coretta Scott King Honor. Coretta Scott King was the wife of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He also won the Golden Kite Award. Curtis also wrote other award-winning novels. These include Bud, Not Buddy, Elijah of Buxton, and The Mighty Miss Malone.
The Story on Screen
In 2013, a TV movie was made based on the book. Walden Media produced it. It first showed on the Hallmark Channel. The movie starred Anika Noni Rose, Wood Harris, Latanya Richardson, Skai Jackson, and David Alan Grier. The movie changed the story a bit. It made some parts shorter. It also added new scenes. These scenes showed Kenny and Byron helping young people organize Civil Rights events in Birmingham.
