The Watsons go to Birmingham - 1963, by Christopher Paul Curtis - Historical Fiction

This is the second time in my life that I have read this book to myself and it makes me laugh anew each time. Last time I read it I was an undergraduate in college, again taking a Children’s Literature class, and laughed with hilarity at the beginning with Byron getting stuck to the frozen mirror because he was trying to practice kissing himself. The interesting part to that was that the reader was never really introduced to any girls that Byron was really “kissing” except that time that Bryon’s mom was telling him about staying in Alabama for a while and she mentioned the “problem with Mary Ann Hill” as one in the list of things that Byron had been doing wrong in Flint. I guess that the cold mirror really did teach Bryon a lesson for a little while. 

The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 is a powerful book that highlights a particularly sad and confusing time in American history, but adds some humor and irony in, as well. Curtis seems to be a master at this, taking a sad time in history, showing that time from a different perspective than history books probably did, but adding touches of the human spirit and laughter into the sullenness and sorrow of the events. The reader sees a family, the Watsons (or the Weird Watsons, as the neighbors say) that is just like the picture of any family in America back in the 60s. Mr. Watson works hard to provide for his family, but manages to spend important time with them, as well, joking, laughing, and watching cartoons with them on Saturday mornings. Mrs. Watson is a stay at home mom who raises the children, takes care of the finances in the household, and makes sure there is a good dinner on the table each night. Byron is the rebellious oldest child, constantly pushing the limits and bullying his younger brother (except when the situation really is bad or life threatening). Kenny is the “Peter” character from the Brady Bunch in the Watson household, really not fitting in, because he is not tough like his older brother and enjoys learning and playing make-believe. Then there is Joetta; the precious little girl who everyone loves. Your “typical, Leave-it-to-Beaver, American” family, except….they’re not white, they are African-Americans. I love the irony that Curtis plays with this, because at that time (and unfortunately, sometimes even now) people thought that only a certain race acted decent and typical. How wrong that is! Who wouldn’t want to be a part of the Watson family? I know that I would.

As a reader, I had a hard time determining who the African American people were and who the Caucasian people in Flint, Michigan were. There seemed to be no boundaries between the races and everyone seemed to get along perfectly fine. The only time that that issue was brought up was when Mrs. Davidson, a neighbor, came to give Joey an angel miniature before the family left to go to Birmingham. The angel was a white figure and that obviously bothered Joey, but she handled the situation in a very lady-like manner that made me as the reader proud of her. However, with the downward drive into Alabama and the rest of the South, things began getting very segregated and the reader could tell that there was a difference in safety and feelings between the two parts of the country at that time. Kenny said that he couldn’t understand why adults didn’t want a little girl to go to school (Ruby Bridges) and I can’t either. To be honest, I would have felt afraid sending my “delinquent teenager” into Alabama for the summer, much less the school year, with all the hatred being shown towards children and people of the African American race. Once again, a very sad time in our country.

Flint, Michigan had changed a lot in the time frame between the book Bud, Not Buddy and The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963. When Bud was around, people were still showing racism and hatred due to skin tones and now, with the Watson’s, it is difficult to detect even a bit of hatred and difference. There is also a mention of Uncle Bud several times in the story, which lead me to fantasize that Bud made it into manhood, began a family, and was living life well. Still, there was not a mention of Herman E. Calloway and the Dusty Devastators of the Depression, which you would expect if someone was very important in your family.

Curtis’ craft is to draw a reader in with laughter and humorous situations, and then to “hit them” with the seriousness of the time period. That allows reader’s emotions to be on the raw and to really get the point across. It is almost like sitting in church and listening to a great preacher deliver a funny sermon, to get the congregation focused and listening, and then driving the point home about a more serious issue. Before you know it, you are analyzing and searching your soul about something that moments before you weren’t really thinking about or even near to pondering. I like how Curtis works his craft in this way.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 is a strong story that probably would have been banned decades ago, but is opening the eyes of adults and children alike in today’s day and time about the disease of hatred that racism can cause. Our country has come a long way and I hope that it continues to move in a more progressive direction.