Harbor Me

The overall message about kids being there for each other is great. Too bad the author felt the need to indoctrinate them with her opinions.There was plenty of white guilt, cop hating and citizenship issues that didn’t need to be in there except to push her agenda.I wouldn’t recommend it with so many other great books out there for kids. Guess they figure get to them while they’re young.I was frustrated reading a good deal of the book! Fortunately our daughter didn’t pick up on most things - but the little seeds were planted.

Wow. WOW. It is not very often that I finish a book and want nothing more then to pick it right back up again, flip back to page 1, and read it cover to cover just one more time. But that’s exactly how I felt when I put down Harbor Me, a stunning new novel by Jacqueline Woodson. If I have said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: Woodson is a gift to literature. Her words resonate deeply, and she possesses an extraordinary ability to tap into timely, almost desperate situations in a manner appropriate and gentle enough for young kids to grasp.In Harbor Me, six children are taken to their school’s old art room and told it’s a place for them to have a weekly chat— without teachers, thus making it totally unmonitored. The six kids, from varying walks of life, are hesitant at first. They each have their stories, but is it safe? Can they open up to one another? The room becomes dubbed the ARTT room, an acronym for “a room to talk,” and soon enough, their stories begin. As their connections develop and their words bridge divides, the students realize that sharing their stories could be the very thing they needed to give them the strength to handle circumstances that once made them feel so desperately alone.Harbor Me is stunning. At once both a coming of age story and an exploration of how America’s political and social challenges affect children daily, Woodson’s words ground us firmly in the ARTT room as the kids struggle to comprehend both their identities as individuals as well as their places in society. These children are America’s children. They are OUR children- children affected by the headlines pervasive in our country today including immigration, deportation, incarcerated parents, and the black lives matter movement. These children are in our homes and schools, and their confidence and self worth is being shaken regularly due to government regulations, racial profiling and harmful ignorance. Through Woodson’s evocative prose and magical storytelling, we watch the children become safe harbors for one another, their initial apprehension slowly turning into compassion, connection and perhaps most importantly, courage.

This book is a masterpiece of how to not teach kids about right and wrong. Trying to gain friendships with emotional problems from home, this book tries to show how kids can bond and move forward to a better life. What is missing is the value of sober living and legal citizenship. The message to the reader is the kids are in a free country but have no understanding of the people who fought for that freedom. Maybe by adding some background about economic migration it would be a more honest book.

I wish I could live in one of Jacqueline Woodson's books because they are so full of beauty. Even when she is writing about heartbreaking events, she finds a way to paint the most desperate situation with her magical lyrical brush. Harbor Me is a short quick powerful read, which will leave you believing that Woodson could find a way to solve all of our country's problems. This novel explores the way we view and treat each other in this country. She manages to explore all the hot-button political issues through the lens of fifth and sixth grade "special" students. These topics include racism, immigration, rich vs. poor, the separation of families, and having an incarcerated parent. How she managed to pack so much depth in such a small book is beyond me, but let me tell you, folks, she did!What I love most about this novel is how Woodson tackles these important topics; six students spend an hour every Friday afternoon in a classroom talking to each other without any adults present. While one might think kids this age would talk about trivial things, these students truly open up to one another and talk about their preconceived notions of one another based on race, appearance, accent, etc. They find a way to break down the imaginary walls between them simply by honestly discussing their feelings. If only all adults could be so honest with one another, we would probably have a lot less stress in our lives. This book is a perfect spring broad into discussions about equal rights or the lack thereof in this country. Teachers should feel comfortable sharing this book with students in 4th grade and up; however, it would be an excellent tie-in to the fifth-grade curriculum (in South Carolina).#BookPosse

ok

Book is good but it's for young children

Good reading.