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Example research essay topic: Booker T Washington Learn To Read - 1,767 words

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Bradby, Marie. More Than Anything Else. Illustrated by Chris K. Soentpiet. Scholastic, 1995. More Than Anything Else is based on the childhood of Booker T.

Washington, as told through his eyes at nine-years-old. He tells of leaving his cabin before dawn to work all day shoveling salt with his father and older brother. All day long we shovel it, but it refuses to grow smaller. Despite the community poverty and hardship, theres a sense of freedom now, different then life before. All people are free to go where they want and do what they can. What Booker wants is to read.

Finally, he finds someone to teach him his letters, and its as if hes reborn. I have jumped into another world and I am saved. More Than Anything Else is intended for ages four to eight. It is appropriate for these ages for two reasons; the importance of reading & education and an introduction to a famous African American leader. Early in the school system the importance of reading is not evident. Children know they are learning to read, but this can be taken for granted.

More Than Anything Else offers a different viewpoint on education. It gives the readers a new perspective, through the eyes of another, on how reading and education wasnt accessible to many. It shows how a young boy set a goal and how he accomplished it. This book also introduces readers to Booker T. Washington, who led the way for African-Americans to get an education. More Than Anything Else tells us only a short part of Booker T.

Washingtons life but gives enough information to gain insight about the kind of boy / man he was and why he became such an important leader as an adult. This book also gives the reader a perfect starting point in which to continue to learn and read about Booker T. Washington and other famous leaders. This picture book is clearly intended for children, however can be a learning experience for adults. The verse is short and clearly written. It contains vocabulary that would need some discussion but overall it can be solved easily through context clues.

For example, We travel by lantern. My stomach rumbles, for we had no morning meal. Rumbles are understood as something the stomach does when it has no food. This story takes place in a West Virginia settlement after emancipation. Soentpiet portrays this by the landscape of rolling green meadows and tall green trees surrounding a bunch of homes all of the same build. In the middle are huge mountains of white with black men and children filling barrels for the white salt.

In one illustration the salt mine is up against a body of water and a beautifully drawn ferry is coming into port. The main theme is More Than Anything Else is Booker's need to learn to read is clearly developed in this story. The text of the book focuses on this theme - the hunger to learn to read. Bradby writes sentences like the following to help the reader understand that the most important element in Booker's life is to learn to read. My arms still ache from lifting the shovel, but I do not think about the pain there. I think about the hunger still in my head reading.

I have seen people young and old do it. I am nine years old and I know, if I had the chance, I could do it, too. It is sentences like these that define Booker and the entire theme of the picture book. Later in the story when Booker finds another that can teach him to read the final development and completeness of the character is stated like this: He tells me the song the sounds the marks make. I jump up and down singing it. I shout and laugh like when I was baptized in the creek.

I have jumped into another world and I am saved. When Booker finally accomplishes his goal in life he equates it with being baptized and being saved. Bradby's use of words and metaphors again is vital in signifying the importance of education and the true development of the story. The theme of More Than Anything Else is also developed through the looks on the faces of the men and children, specifically Booker.

The illustrations portray a hard life through the faces of the individuals. Booker's face is lit up but still solemn with dark and shadowy backgrounds. Booker's image starts grave but as the story develops his face begins to show signs of hope. When he tells his mother of his need to learn to read, she presents him with his first book. The marks the change in Booker's appearance for the remainder of the book. As Booker studies his book, his facial expression is thoughtful.

Through the text we learn that Booker realized he cannot do this alone and seeks out one that can read. When he finally learns the alphabet, he entire being is lit up and glowing with happiness even though the remaining of the illustration is still dark and shadowy. Through the last two pages the smile remains on Booker's face and he begins to learn to recognize and spell his name. This look signifying that the hunger in Booker is being satiated by the knowledge he is gaining through learning to read.

The illustrations and the text take us on this journey that they could not do without one another. The text gives us the voice and the pictures give the feelings. Chris K. Soentpiet uses watercolors for the illustrations in More Than Anything Else.

The watercolors set the mood of the story. They help create an era of calmness that one usually finds in the routines of life. Soentpiet's watercolor paintings show individual portraits lit up from the surrounding darkness. The illustrations create a sense of idealization. They do not focus on the backbreaking labor but on the childs view of himself and his world.

The illustrations show a childs dreams of literacy and the freedom he will find when he learns to read. The depth of this desire is evident in the different facial expressions of Booker throughout the story. The illustrations show what the characters are feeling. It is obvious that when they are walking to the salt mines before dawn with their minds elsewhere. They do not talk, they dream. The feeling of Booker's mother when she gives Booker his first book is obvious not by the words of the author but by her facial expression in the illustrations.

The way Soentpiet portrays Booker's mother when she hands him the book is all knowing. Again touching on the theme that reading is important even if she does not know how to herself. These feelings the illustrations create in the reader are real. In effort to even make the illustrations even larger and life like Soentpiet uses two pages for one illustration. The bind of each page is the middle of each painting. In this format, the reader is given not only the focus of the character but is also given much information about the background or the setting.

Through the larger illustrations, the reader is given insight of the village Booker lived in. The reader is provided with insight of the enormity of the salt mounds and how hard the work is and yet the Booker's focus remains on learning to read. Illustrations coupled with sentences like, shiny white crystals leave cuts on your hands, your arms, your legs, the soles of your feet. creates a real sense of the type of life Booker was living.

Knowing this about Booker the reader is left in awe that he dreams to learn to read instead of dwelling on his hardships. The illustrations provide depth to the story that is not possible in words alone. More Than Anything Else is a larger book but is a paperback. (Hardcover copies are available at bookstores. ) The size of the book enlarges the overall feeling of the book. It helps to make the characters a little larger than life. The details are enhanced by the size of the pages and illustrations. The title page illustration is of a barrel with two shovels next to it and a brightly-lit lantern on top.

This page definitely sets the story up (this may not be obvious however, until the story has been read at least once before). The barrel and the shovels represent the hard work but the prominent feature in the picture is the lantern. The lantern may symbolize the light of the future, the brightness of Booker's tomorrow when he learns to read and lead others by this light. The paper is heavy. It holds the colors of the illustrations well. They are easy to turn and do not stick together.

The binding of this book seems weak, however the hardback is available, and that is much more durable. Momma, Where Are Your From? is another book written and illustrated by Bradby and Soentpiet. This book is very similar to More Than Anything Else in many ways. This story again revolves around the history of the African American culture. Soentpiet uses watercolors and the illustrations are equal in size and quality.

This book brings in strong African American figures such as Duke Ellington and Count Basie. Soentpiet again uses light and dark to focus on the characters face and the love and dreams they have. Momma, Where Are You From? revolves around memories a mother has and uses them to tell as story.

More Than Anything Else does this when remembering Booker T. Washingtons life. Bradby again uses creative language, but this time using it more like poetry. Book reviews about More Than Anything Else include comments such as: &# 61662; An evocative text and dramatic watercolors provide a stirring, fictionalized account of the early life of Booker T. Washington. (from Booklist) &# 61662; Soentpiet's beautiful watercolor painting show individual portraits lit up front surrounding darkness. The story will hold kids and make them want to find out more about the person and the history. (from Horn Book) &# 61662; Bradby's text is eloquent, presenting phrases and spinning images that capture the intense feelings in the story All of the images, underscored by dramatic use of shadow and light, work with the words to create a moving and inspirational story. (from School Library Review) I agree with all of the reviews.

This book is truly remarkable in its message and the way in which it is presented. The book will make a contribution...


Free research essays on topics related to: booker t washington, african american, facial expression, learning to read, learn to read

Research essay sample on Booker T Washington Learn To Read

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