Barbara A. Sasso
Historical and economic data can enrich many students’ understanding of novels that deal with poverty and race. Rather than leaving poverty-stricken students feeling bleak and overcome by negative statistics, economic data can reveal that individually, they can have a path to success. After teaching in a poverty-stricken urban school for twenty years, I have seen many examples of students who break the odds and succeed.
Here are some suggestions for books commonly taught in high schools:
Not without Laughter
, by Langston Hughes.
The Color Purple
, by Alice Walker.
The Women of Brewster Place
, by Gloria Naylor.
A Lesson before Dying
, by Ernest J. Gaines.
Under the Feet of Jesus
, by Helena Maria Viramontes.
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
, by Sherman Alexis.
The Glass Castle
, by Jeannette Walls.
When I Was Puerto Rican
by Esmeralda Santiago, and
Fences
, by August Wilson.