You Can Fly: The Tuskegee Airman by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Jeffery Boston Weatherford

What is it like to be a black man and to want something so badly you are willing to put up with racial discrimination, willing to buck the system and prove those who think you lack the intelligence to fly a plane wrong, so very wrong?  What was it like to become a Tuskegee Airman?

In a series of thirty-three poems, Carole Boston Weatherford answers these questions, writing the history of this distinguished band of brothers, the African American pilots who fought for victory on two fronts, one in Europe against Nazism and one at home against racism.

Using a composite "you" that not only addresses the Tuskegee airmen as a whole, but also and immediately invites the reader into their midst, Weatherford begins her history-in-verse, capturing the big and small personal and shared moments and events that mark this period in America.

Weatherford skillfully orchestrates this complex history, beginning with a young boy's desire to fly to becoming one of 2,000 black pilots in the 1938 newly formed Civilian Pilot Training Program - 2,000 out of a total of 400,00 - sent to Tuskegee Institute. Training is rigorous, cadets knowing that

"The eyes of your country are on you;
the hopes of your people
rest on your shoulder."  (pg 10-11)

She then takes the reader along as the men learn and practice their new skills, even as they must still deal with racism and Jim Crow laws at every turn, knowing

"In this war, the enemy is you.
In 1941 and 1942, eleven black men -
if you count the three boys -
were lynched in the United States."  (pg 19)

Weatherford deftly goes beyond the Tuskegee program to include the ways in which other black Americans did what they could to counter the racism of the home front, acts that give impetus to their own training. There is a poem dedicated to Dorie Miller, the Navy cook who was awarded the Navy Cross for his heroic actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor; another recounts boxer Joe Louis's victories in the ring, his benefit matches to raise money for army and navy relief funds, and his convincing the War Department to admit him and Jackie Robinson to Officer Candidate School

"along with thirteen other men
whom racist policies had barred."  (pg 30)

In another poem, readers learn that singer Lena Horne refused to go on USO tours that barred black servicemen.  And refusing to perform in white-only establishments, too,

"Now Lena pays her own way
to perform for the troops.  When she visits Tuskegee,
she sings, perches on planes, and poses for photos.
How could you not fall for Lena?"  (pg 50)

As the child of a WWII nurse, I personally love that Weatherford even offers up a poem paying homage to the Tuskegee Army Airfield Nurses, finally giving this most unsung group of military nurses some of their due: "it really takes a good nurse to KEEP 'EM FLYING."  (pg 13)

This free verse history is probably one of the best books I have read about the Tuskegee Airmen, simply because there is so much meaning and information to be culled from each poem, yet they are rather sparely written, making each word used important and expressive.  And it all works.

The black and white illustrations were done in collaboration with Weatherford's son, Jeffery Boston Weatherford, an artist in his own right.  For You Can Fly, Jeffery used a technique called scratchboard, which results a much more dramatic illustration than just using, for example, black and white paint/india ink or charcoal on white paper.  Scratchboard results in a textured illustration and these compliment the poems so beautifully, as you can see

I have to admit I am a big fan of Carole Boston Weatherford's free verse histories.  When she came to Bank Street this year, to accept the 2016 Flora Stieglitz Straus Award for nonfiction for her amazing book Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement, I'm afraid I may have shamelessly fangirled.  So naturally, I was really looking forward to reading this new history-in-verse and let me say, it does not disappoint and I highly recommend it.

Do not miss the Epilogue or the interesting back matter that includes an Author's Note, an extensive Timeline, and a variety of Resources for Further Reading.

This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was sent to me by the publisher, Atheneum BFYR

American Ace by Marilyn Nelson

For Connor Bianchini, 16, much of his life has always revolved around his family and the family's restaurant, Mama Lucia's Home Cooking.  And he has always known exactly who is - half Irish on his mother's side of the family, half Italian on his father's.  But just before Nonna Lucia passed away, she gave Connor's father Tony a ring, some pilot's wings, and a letter explaining the her Italian husband was not his father.  His father was an American pilot named Ace, with whom she had an great love affair.

After his father gives him the gold ring, Connor begins thinking about the man who loved his grandmother so much.  The ring becomes a reminder for Connor to wonder who he is and it doesn't take long for him to start researching it to try to find his real grandfather's identity.  Engraved on the ring are the words The Forcean 1940 and the initials MS, providing a good place to start.

The rest of the Bianchini rally around Tony, providing family support and acceptance of his new half-brother status, but Tony has been thrown quite a loop.  With the help of a librarian at the local college, a book called The Forcean, which he thought might be related to the ring, was borrowed through inter-library loan.  When the book arrives, it turns out to be a college yearbook from Wilberforce University - one of the historically black colleges and universities (HBCU).

Already depressed over losing his mother and the family's matriarch, Tony has a stroke after finding out that his real father was African American.  While he is in the hospital recovering, Connor continues his investigations into his mysterious African American grandfather, and his grandmother great love.

Connor, unlike his half-brother Carlo, immediately embraces his new heritage and decides to write his senior honors paper on the Tuskegee Airmen after discovering that his grandfather had most likely been one, stationed in Italy at one point.

Nonna Lucia left quite a legacy for her family and it is interesting to see how the rest of the family handled it.  How would you have handled news that you are not who you think you are?

I have always loved Marilyn Nelson's stories in verse, but this one just didn't do it for me.  I would have much preferred a novel about the grandfather, and his experiences both before and after his time as a Tuskegee Airman in Italy and his affair with Nonna Lucia, how he might have dealt with issues around race and prejudice.  And while books about biracial families are so needed right now, the Bianchini's just felt too unreal for me, even Connor.

Much of the story revolves around Connor's driving lessons, first with his father and later his mother. Driving is, of course, a nice coming-of-age-entering-adulthood trope.  It is Connor who now becomes the caretaker, caring for his father much of the time after his stroke, helping him heal both physically and emotionally and enabling him to come to terms with his new identity with the information he has learned about Tuskegee Airmen for his honors paper.

The part of the book I really did like was the last sections in which we get to read Connor's paper, complete with photographs of actual Tuskegee Airmen, and the only indication of what Connor and his dad are doing in in the chapter heading and yet, it all worked.

Despite my objections, I still think this is a book that should be read by all.  And do read the Author's Note at the back of the novel, where Nelson explains how she came to write a novel from the perspective of a white teenage boy.  

This book is recommended for readers age 12+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

Wind Flyers by Angela Johnson

Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream.

Today we honor him and his dream.

Wing Flyers is the story of another man who also had a dream. His dream was to fly and his story is told by his young and very proud nephew, who now shares his love of flying. It is interesting that we never learn the names of uncle and nephew, making it feel like a collective honor for all the men who were part of the original Tuskegee Airmen.

His uncle had wanted to fly from the time he was a little boy. He tried to fly at the age of 7 by jumping off the barn and flapping his arms like a bird.

At 11, he paid 75¢ to a barnstormer for a ride. Eventually, his uncle became a Tuskegee Airmen. In 1941, the US Air Force created the 99th Pursuit Squadron. This was their first squadron made up entirely of African-America men. In 1942, the 332nd Fighter Group was formed (three squadrons form a group.) Training these men t become pilots took place in Tuskegee, Alabama, where everything had to be built from scratch or brought in because segregation was still in effect in the south.

This is a beautiful book. There is minimal text, yet so much is conveyed. Much of that is in conjunction with the outstanding artwork by Loren Long. It is also an excellent book to use as a springboard for introducing younger readers to the Tuskegee Airmen and their outstanding history.

The story of the Wind Flyers is proof that dreams can come true.

This book is recommended for readers age 5-8
This book was borrowed from the 97th Street Branch of the NYPL

Wind Flyers received the follow well-deserved awards
Bank Street Best Books of the Year
Delaware Diamonds Award Program Master List
Emphasis on Reading Program Master List (AL)

More information on Wind Flyers may be found at Wind Flyers
and at Wind Flyers (yes, they are different sites)

An excellent source for more information on the Tuskegee Airmen may be found on their website at Tuskegee Airmen, Inc.

The Tuskegee Airmen served as escort planes, escorting bombers and as the narrator’s uncle tells him, they never lost a plane they were escorting. That is the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen. The Tuskegee Airmen flew over 3,000 missions in Europe and destroyed hundreds of enemy aircraft.

The Tuskegee Airmen were give the following awards for the achievements in World War II
150 Distinguished Flying Crosses earned
744 Air Medals
8 Purple Hearts
14 Bronze Stars

More information on Martin Luther King, Jr. may be found at Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University

Dr, King’s complete “I Have a Dream Speech” may be seen and heard at YouTube: I Have a Dream Speech

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Activities may be found at Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Activities