Jerry Pinkney

McKissaack, P.C. (2001). Goin' someplace special. New York, NY: Scholastic.
(Picture from Amazon.com)

Tricia Ann is getting ready to go "someplace special" and convinces her grandmother, Mama Frances, to let her go, for the first time, alone to this place. The story is set during the time of the Jim Crow laws, which relegated the blacks to the back of the bus among other civil rights infringements. There are some parks, buildings and restaurants in which African-Americans were not even allowed. Tricia Ann offers her seat in the "colored section" of the bus to her grandmother's friend, Mrs. Grannell and notices that there are plenty of open seats in the "white" section, but Tricia Ann continues her ride standing. Once she arrives at her destination, she visits the Peace Fountain only to discover that she is not allowed to sit on the bench to enjoy looking at the fountain.

Later, Tricia Ann gets caught in a crowd of people in front of the Southland Hotel and accidentally gets swept into the lobby. The hotel manager pushes through the crowd toward her demanding to know why she thinks she can come in the hotel. She runs to the Mission Church ruins where her grandmother always stopped to rest. Tricia Ann has decided that getting to someplace special by herself is too hard and she wants to go home. While in the ruins, she meets Blooming Mary who cares for the flowers growing within the ruins. Blooming Mary tells her the same thing every one has been telling Tricia Ann through out the book: "You're somebody...no better, no worse then anybody else.... Gettin' someplace special is not an easy route. But don't study on quittin', just keep walking straight ahead...." Tricia Ann finds her determination and proceeds boldly to her special place. Mama Frances called it "a doorway to freedom" and Tricia Ann called it "someplace special," but we call it the public library. One of the few places that did not discriminate based on race.

The events of this story were taken from Patricia McKissack's own life in Nashville, Tennessee, where segregation created separate schools, separate water fountains, riding in the back of the bus or sitting in the last two rows of the balcony. Yet, "in the 1950's, Nashville's public library board of directors quietly voted to integrate all their facilities."

Jerry Pinkney's illustrations communicate the differences of the country and the city. Tricia Ann's house is reminiscent of the country house of this decade and the details in the kitchen show that Mama Frances is an excellent cook and there is most likely a garden in the yard during the summer. The house reminds me of my aunt's house that I spent a lot of time at as a child. The clothing is also an indication of the time and place of the story; the hats, dresses and accessories are representative of the decade. The facial expressions of the characters follow the plot as the story progresses. The final picture of Tricia Ann staring up at the public library captures the hope and promise she sees in her "special place," her "doorway to freedom."

This would be such a great story to share as a way to promote both the public and school libraries. Demonstrating that freedom is connected to knowledge, to literacy, to learning about the past, present and future through the exchange of ideas and beliefs.

Teacher Resources:

Goin' Someplace Special Unit Study
BYU Lesson Plan