Customer Reviews

From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

For as long as thirteen-year-old Melanin Sun can remember, it's been just him and his mom. His father walked off before he was born. His mother never dated much. Usually after just two or three dates with a man she'd lose interest. Melanin Sun was happy with his life and family situation...until his mom discovered the pretty white lawyer named Kristin.

Melanin Sun was horrified. His mother! His very own mother was a dyke! Did this mean Melanin Sun would grow up gay? Kissing Angie from down the street gave him a rush of butterflies in his stomach, but still. What if his friends found out? He'd be the
laughingstock of his block.

Through diary exerpts and straightforward narrative, Melanin Sun bears his soul to the reader with painful clarity. Angry and confused about sex and love and racial issues, he tried to punish his mother by shutting her out of his life and refusing to even talk to Kristin. When his friends found out, one of them did indeed make fun of his mother and it became clear that they would not be friends anymore. However Melanin Sun's other friend accepted the situation, so things were not as bad as he originally thought.

Over the course of summer, Melanin Sun had to confront many issues he had about racism, sexuality, and tolerance. Shortly before school started he finally began to accept his mother's new lifestyle by accompanying her to the beach with her lover. The winner of the Coretta Scott King award, From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun is a very readable book that treats heavy issues in a gentle way.

From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun

By:Jacquuelin Woodson

This book is about a boy. Melanin Sun and his mama have always been a whole family with a special kind of love and care. Soon Melanin is finding out that his mom is shutting doors that were always open.And now?,they have been having problems. Mel has been finding out that his mama is keeping secrets since he was a child. I think that this is a good book because it makes you laugh and cry. This book is interesting because it's in racial times.

Melanin Sun--a sensitive, thirteen-year-old African American living in Brooklyn, New York--finds himself struggling one summer with the conflicting emotions caused by his mother's revelation that she is a lesbian. In anger, Melanin withdraws from his mother and turns to his notebooks for comfort, journaling about the insecurities, doubts, and confusion generated by his mother's disclosure. Melanin's journal entries reveal a young man endeavoring to come to terms with his own adolescence, fears of peer rejection, and the pain caused by his self-imposed isolation. Through his writing, Melanin experiences profound and positive personal growth. As summer wanes, he is drawn inexorably toward acceptance of his mother's homosexuality. In NOTEBOOKS, Woodson treats a highly emotional issue with acute sensitivity. She provides readers with a painfully realistic view of the complex emotional crisis experienced by an adolescent plunged into turmoil by his mother's homosexuality. Despite the fact that Woodson's characterizations succumb to stereotypes at times, and her plot appears to capitulate to the need for an affirmative resolution, NOTEBOOKS delivers an intelligent and discriminating treatment of the controversial topic of homosexuality. The novel, moreover, proves a welcome addition to the body of adolescent novels treating relevant social issues and concerns. NOTEBOOKS will appeal particularly to adolescents in grades seven through twelve who possess a special interest in the topic of homosexuality. Woodson's sensitive and age-appropriate treatment of the issue, however, makes it accessible reading for all individuals in this age group. Highly recommended for adolescents struggling with conflicting emotions related to parental homosexuality.

There are not many books for young adults on the topic of queer parents. This book is a rare jem. It was doubly good because it also tackled the topic of bi-cultural relations. The book is written in the boy's voice. I could not put it down. I cried.

I'm a new reader to Jacquelina Wodson and I already praise her.
I've started reading a few of her books but this one I enjoy the
most. It's one of the best books i've ever red. Its about a young boy and his mother who live alone without a father or anything. His farther left and started a new family so the mother and son had to live together with not much money in an appartment. But then he finds out that his mother is a lesbain which is very shocking to him. He has always thought that "dykes" and "fags" ( how he refered to them) were wrong and bad. So in this book he has to learn to except his mother and her girl friend even thou at first he doesnt like it all. This book is really great because not a lot of books are about sexuality. And I think writing about sexuality is very important because I dont think there is a wrong or right way in sexuality like some people do. I think that from reading her books I can speak for Miss Woodson too when I say that people shouldnt be judged as "wrong", "right" or "good" and "bad" when it comes to your sexuality. You cant assume you know everything about a person just becasue of who they love. We all are free to think and feel however we want. And as much as some people disagree with it, no one should have to stop or try and hide how they feel. This is excataly what Jacqueline explains in the notebooks of Melanin Sun and thats why I have gained and whole new respect for her and how open she is and to write books about things like this. So READ THE BOOK, ha ha ha, its the best!

I read this book in 1997. Unfourtantely, I lost my copy years ago, so I can't make specific references to what I loved about this book. But I did love this book very much. I have put it up there with some of the greatest books I've ever read, such as A Wrinkle In Time and Watership Down. I think Jackie did something really fantastic with this book, and I thank her for the experience.

I read this book for my class, Reading and Responding to Children's Literature. I really enjoyed the book, as it is written from a 13 year old boy's point of view. He writes in his 'notebooks'which makes the reader feel as though you are inside his thoughts. The only problem I had with the book was that because I'm in the education program, I don't feel that I could teach the book to children. I think it had some unnecessary parts about the coming of age of a young boy.

This was the first Woodson book I've read and I am interested in reading more from her. She developed the characters well and I enjoyed how the story moved along. On the downside, I felt the ending was rushed, underdeveloped, and somewhat unrealistic (I would go into detail but I don't want to spoil it). Though I was less than impressed with the ending, the book was a great read and I'm waiting for my next Woodson book as I type.

I received the book within five days and it was in great condition for it to have been a used book. Kudos to the seller.

I thought this book was wonderful. The development of the character made me really feel for Melanin during his struggles and the story line broke my heart. The ending of the book was a little vague and I am unsure of it was done intentionally by the author or not, but I like I need to know what happened next!

The author, Jacqueline Woodson stated that if she had a single message to share with readers, it's that "no matter who you are in the world, it's okay to be who you are." What an excellent quote that articulates everything this book stands for.

Although this book didn't primarily focus on aspects of race, but rather aspects of homosexuality I think that it showcased some wonderful topics for readers to consider. However, I am concerned about the use of language within the book, which made me question what age range this was written for. For me, personally I would not want my child learning the words portrayed in the book, especially the ones used with a negative sense.