The First Part Last.THE FIRST PART LAST. Angela Johnson Please note: this is not the same Angela Johnson who won a MacArthur Fellowship in 2003. Angela Johnson is the first woman sentenced to death by a United States Federal jury since Bonnie Brown Heady was executed by the gas chamber in 1953. . 2003/2004. Read by Khalipa Oldjohn & Kole Kristi. 2 cds. 1.75 hrs. Random House Audio. 1-4000-9115-2. $18.95. Vinyl vinyl /vi·nyl/ (vi´nil) the univalent group CH2dbondCH—. vinyl chloride a vinyl group to which an atom of chlorine is attached; the monomer which polymerizes to polyvinyl chloride; it is toxic ; plot, author, readers notes. JS* Older middle-school teens and those in high school will readily identify with Bobby, whose girlfriend Nia gives him an unexpected 16th birthday present--she's pregnant with his child. Their story, told mostly from Bobby's point of view, swings from then (the pregnancy) to now (the baby is here). Bobby must decide what to do: should they keep the baby or put it up for adoption? Should they still plan on college? Should he pick up the baby from the sitter or cut school and tag a wall? Fortunately both Bobby and Nia's parents are intelligent, relatively wealthy, and supportive. Tragedy strikes Nia when the baby, Feather, arrives, so Bobby is left a single parent, a 16-year-old with a baby to raise and a brain-damaged girlfriend. Johnson creates sympathetic characters A sympathetic character is a fictional character in a story with whom the writer expects to reader to identify with and care about, if not necessarily admire. Protagonists, almost by definition, fit into the category of sympathetic character, however so do many minor characters and in a realistic situation with no easy solution. Khalipa Oldjohn narrates Bobby's story with professional poise. Listeners really get a sense of Bobby's pain and confusion. Kristi, as Nia, gets only about two minutes of narrative time. The story is for listeners who can handle the serious plot and the obscenities. It is recommended for ages 13 and up. Johnson won the Coretta Scott King Award The Coretta Scott King Award is an annual award presented by the American Library Association. Named for Coretta Scott King, wife of Martin Luther King, Jr., this award recognizes outstanding African American authors and illustrators. for Heaven and Toning the Sweep as well as for this book, which also received the Michal Printz Award. Janet Janet: see Clouet, Jean. JANET - Joint Academic NETwork Julian, English Teacher, Grafton, MA J--Recommended for junior high school students. The contents are of particular interest to young adolescents and their teachers. S--Recommended for senior high school students. *--The asterisk (1) See Asterisk PBX. (2) In programming, the asterisk or "star" symbol (*) means multiplication. For example, 10 * 7 means 10 multiplied by 7. The * is also a key on computer keypads for entering expressions using multiplication. highlights exceptional books. |
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