Do you have an idol - someone you admire and respect; someone you want very much to be like? Our idols often have a lot to do with our ideals, the things we consider most important in life. Elizabeth's idol is named Zeely Tayber. Elizabeth is convinced that Zeely is really a queen. Is she?
Zeely
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More About the Author
Virginia Esther Hamilton was born, as she said, "on the outer edge of the Great Depression," on March 12, 1934. The youngest of five children of Kenneth James and Etta Belle Perry Hamilton, Virginia grew up amid a large extended family in Yellow Springs, Ohio. The farmlands of southwestern Ohio had been home to her mother's family since the late 1850s, when Virginia's grandfather, Levi Perry, was brought into the state as an infant via the Underground Railroad.
Virginia graduated at the top of her high-school class and received a full scholarship to Antioch College in Yellow Springs. In 1956, she transferred to the Ohio State University in Columbus and majored in literature and creative writing. She moved to New York City in 1958, working as a museum receptionist, cost accountant, and nightclub singer, while she pursued her dream of being a published writer. She studied fiction writing at the New School for Social Research under Hiram Haydn, one of the founders of Atheneum Press.
It was also in New York that Virginia met poet Arnold Adoff. They were married in 1960. Arnold worked as a teacher, and Virginia was able to devote her full attention to writing, at least until daughter Leigh was born in 1963 and son Jaime in 1967. In 1969, Virginia and Arnold built their "dream home" in Yellow Springs, on the last remaining acres of the old Hamilton/Perry family farm, and settled into a life of serious literary work and achievement.
In her lifetime, Virginia wrote and published 41 books in multiple genres that spanned picture books and folktales, mysteries and science fiction, realistic novels and biography. Woven into her books is a deep concern with memory, tradition, and generational legacy, especially as they helped define the lives of African Americans. Virginia described her work as "Liberation Literature." She won every major award in youth literature.
Virginia graduated at the top of her high-school class and received a full scholarship to Antioch College in Yellow Springs. In 1956, she transferred to the Ohio State University in Columbus and majored in literature and creative writing. She moved to New York City in 1958, working as a museum receptionist, cost accountant, and nightclub singer, while she pursued her dream of being a published writer. She studied fiction writing at the New School for Social Research under Hiram Haydn, one of the founders of Atheneum Press.
It was also in New York that Virginia met poet Arnold Adoff. They were married in 1960. Arnold worked as a teacher, and Virginia was able to devote her full attention to writing, at least until daughter Leigh was born in 1963 and son Jaime in 1967. In 1969, Virginia and Arnold built their "dream home" in Yellow Springs, on the last remaining acres of the old Hamilton/Perry family farm, and settled into a life of serious literary work and achievement.
In her lifetime, Virginia wrote and published 41 books in multiple genres that spanned picture books and folktales, mysteries and science fiction, realistic novels and biography. Woven into her books is a deep concern with memory, tradition, and generational legacy, especially as they helped define the lives of African Americans. Virginia described her work as "Liberation Literature." She won every major award in youth literature.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just finished teaching this book...again,
This review is from: Zeely (Hardcover)
I expect this book, like all great books, means different things to different people. A "different strokes" book - you think? Anyway, I just finished teaching a lesson to my sixth grade class from this book for about the zillionth time over a six year period. Each time, I see more in the book than before. I'm not sure where Mrs. Hamilton was going with this book, but I explained to the class that the more you read it and the more you grow, the more you will see. I never cease to be amazed at Zeely's serenity in the brutal scene of the hog drive (chapter 11) - her compassion and inner strength. In this scene, Mrs Hamilton shows us all something inside ourselves that we are seeking: inner peace in the maelstrom. Thanks for reminding us.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
To look at yourself and make a wish...,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Zeely (Hardcover)
As a young African-American teenager going through major surgery, this book was a such a gift that helped me to take my mind out of a semi-private room in a children's hospital, and to exercise my fantasy of being Geeder. Virginia Hamiliton's writing is simple, but powerful; the emotions very realistic and can be taken to heart. Most important, it speaks of differences among the "same"; the acceptance of the diversity.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An exploration of identity, wishes, and family connection,
By A Customer
This review is from: Zeely: An Eve Diamond Novel (Hardcover)
When I first read this book, I was puzzled and a bit put off by the heroine. But I find, like Mike Johnson, that the more you read it, the more you find. Like Geeder I am mesmerized by Zeely, her beauty, serenity, and her mystery. I am also inspired by the book's emphasis on reality--not realism--that it's good to dream, but you shouldn't lose hold of reality--those pigs. I'm also inspired by the idea that we need to know the truth about our families and our history before we're ready to make up stories. The book is a reminder that we can all be queens if we do our work with dignity and grace.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
There was an awful racket and swoosh as the books John Perry carried slipped out of his arms and scattered over the floor. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Uncle Ross, Zeely Tayber, Miss Zeely, Nat Tayber, Leadback Road, Bennie Green, John Perry, Red Barn, The Voice High Above New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
There was an awful racket and swoosh as the books John Perry carried slipped out of his arms and scattered over the floor. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Uncle Ross, Zeely Tayber, Miss Zeely, Nat Tayber, Leadback Road, Bennie Green, John Perry, Red Barn, The Voice High Above New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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