My Children's Copy of "Sounder"
When I was a little girl, I saw two motion pictures for television that had such a profound impact on me that I remember them as if I just saw them yesterday; but, it’s been decades.
Though young, I remember the characters, the settings, the plots and the emotions that stirred within me leaving life-long impressions. The first was the television series, Roots. The second was the made-for-television movie, Sounder. Sounder introduced me to Cicely Tyson, Paul Winfield, Kevin Hooks, and award-winning literature that had African-American characters. Written by William H. Armstrong, it won the prestigious John Newbery Medal in 1970 for children’s literature.
Because I enjoy all of the Newbery books and loved the movie as a child, I really wanted to expose my children to Sounder. So, I popped over to our local bookstore to buy it and my children are currently reading it. They’re at the age where they can understand the story and we can sit down and have an intelligent conversation about it. They have read many, many books written by or about African Americans this month, and Sounder is up there at the top of our list of favorites.
Reading is a priority in my home. I’m an avid reader and so are my kids, even though third grade has presented a few challenges when it comes to inferences and main idea. Not to go off on a tangent, but I encourage all autism/ADHD families who have children in 1st and 2nd grade to place a heavy emphasis on inferences and main idea because you’re going to be hit over the head with it in 3rd grade. Seriously!
Anyway, my kids are still good readers (daughter just got 100% on her quarterly benchmark test), but now they have to work at it. It’s not just about decoding words on a page, but understanding every element of comprehension because that’s what’s tested. They need to compare and contrast, to note details, understand cause and effect, and clearly state the main idea of a story. In essence, they’re now forced to go deeper into the stories and think!
These skills don’t come to you overnight. The more you read, the easier they become. So, in my household, my children read, read, read! And, we talk, talk, talk about the stories and do exercises in the areas where they’re lacking.
So, to be truthful, we’re not just reading Sounder for enjoyment. We’re going through it chapter-by-chapter and having conversations about the book because it has so much to offer not just about the African-American journey, but also about language. Yes, I’m using this wonderful story to help them build upon their language skills as well.
Sounder is about the relationship between an African-American boy, his father, and his dog…and about a child’s desire to learn to read despite having nothing – not even books. He comes from a family of sharecroppers and when I say they’re dirt poor, I mean they put the ‘irt’ in the dirt. The dog, Sounder, gives the family some relief by catching a possum when it can. They can make money off of possums.
A desperate attempt at keeping his family fed leads to the father’s arrest when he steals a ham. The sheriff comes to take the father away and shoots the dog….sending him wounded, scared, and limping into the woods. So, this leaves the family with no dog to help hunt for possums and only the children and mother to tend fields.
I won’t spoil the story for those who want to read it, but the father is sent to a hard-labor camp and the boy is determined to see him. He goes on a life-changing journey to find his father, and on the way, his desire to read is enhanced by magazines and newspapers he finds while rummaging through garbage…things he’d never be able to afford himself. Here in his hands are words…words he can practice reading on. Then, one day he passes by a schoolhouse for African-American kids and their teacher offers him another path in life.
I just love this book! I know some people have problems with it, but I don’t care. In order to appreciate this book you have to understand the context of the boy’s life and the near impossibility of an African- American learning to read. Reading was a luxury we couldn’t afford. So, despite all of the drama with his father and dog, he learned to read and that’s why I care for this book so much. His journey brought him to a place where his future would be different, perhaps a lot better than that of his father’s. I think those who view this book as simply a “boy and dog” story have missed the point. This book is so much more profound than that.
Here’s a little bit more information about the book and fyi…it is an Accelerated Reader book for kids looking to earn some extra points:
Author: William H. Armstrong
Publisher: HarperCollins Publisher
Publication date: 4/28/1972
Age range: 9 – 12 Years (my kids are 8 and read it just fine)
Accelerated Reader Quiz #84
Book Level: 5.0
Points 3.0
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