Ludell

Ludell

by Brenda Wilkinson

A National Book Award nominee in 1975, Ludell is the first book in a groundbreaking trilogy about a young African American girl growing up during the 1950s in a small Georgia town. Ludell Wilson is a bookworm and burgeoning writer who adores her best friend Ruthie Mae, her loving—but strict!—grandmother, and, of course, the new shoes and television her mom sent from New York. But Ludell's grandmother has to wash floors to support them, and Ruthie Mae's sister is a mother at sixteen. Would life be different if she, like her mother, one day left to go to the big city?

Brenda Wilkinson was born in 1946 in Moultrie, Georgia. Her works have been awarded the New York Times Book Review Outstanding Children's Book of the Year and an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, and she has been both a nominee for the National Book Award and the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Historical Fiction, African American, Middle Grade, Childrens

228 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1975

Reviews

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when I was maybe nine or ten years old. It's the one of the first books I ever remember reading. Even at that age I knew I wanted to be a writer and reading about the exploits of Ludell and her friends birthed something in me that made me want to write. Because of that, I have a copy of the book on my writing desk as well as a small newspaper clipping about the author Brenda Wilkinson.

[CKE387 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mis Stevanson's (Ludell's teacher) parting words to the class were, "It's your own lil red wagon. You can roll it, pull it, or drag it. You can even stand still - not move a'tall and go no place at all."

[Shanita · Rating 5 out of 5]

First novel/series that made me want to read for fun. I read it in high school. Loved it! Great first YA book.

[Tanita Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books of
My youth. Great storytelling.

[Deborah collier]

Can't wait to read ag as in

[Eleni L · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ludell by Brenda Wilkinson is a historical fiction story that takes you back to follow the life of Ludell, an African American girl living in a segregated area in Georgia. Her 1950’s era life may not be overrun by plenty of money, toys, and clothes, but her spunky personality and her grandmother's drive to bring her up well allows her to push through her many struggles, financially or just growing up, with a smile. Ludell begins to discover many different ways of taking risks as a result of her adolescent freedoms, and her daring endeavors such as wandering to an old “haunted” house to play, sneakily buying food using her best friend Ruthie Mae’s mother’s credit, and even hiding her first boyfriend from her grandmother leaves the reader feeling a bit nervous too! As is common with children growing up, taking risks also involves bending the rules and dealing with the frustration of your parents’ rules, and Ludell is no exception. This makes her story very relatable as she finds reasons to complain about her grandmother’s instructions and more, as you will find as you read this book.
One example of this is found on page 68 when Ludell’s grandmother (Mama) says, “‘Girl if you don’ shut yo mouf trying to back-talk me, you gon find yo’self gitting up of the ground.’...`Mama make me so sick sometime!’” Ludell’s frustration is evident here as it is many times during the book, which makes it all the more relatable and humorous for teens to read.
This book isn't only relatable and funny, but Wilkinson’s warm writing style draws you in with interesting and show-stopping characters, embodying each individual character with dialogue, and dramatically telling stories. These tactics turn what could be, for some, a drab story line into one that is full of life. Not only this, but this story draws some of the attention away from the hardships that African Americans faced during segregation and the Civil Right’s Movement, and focuses a lot on the rich culture and joy that Ludell experiences, even though Mama struggles financially and segregation is still very prevalent. This aspect really opened my eyes towards the joy that could be found through the struggle of many black teens growing up in the segregated US. For me, this book was extremely worthwhile to read because of its emphasis on culture, its humor and relatable topics, and the bright characters and dialogue. These aspects brought me to relate to a main character that is growing up in much different situations than I am. Overall, this book gave me warmth to read, and it will certainly remind you to find joy in difficult situations and to stay full of culture, enthusiasm, and perseverance. I truly hope that you love this unique book as much as I did.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Content considerations: character calls another character a ‘hussy’ in anger. A teacher yells *a lot* at her students and threatens to whip them with parental permission. The principal also is described as mean tempered and a yeller. It’s mentioned that a portion of the students had nothing to eat for meals and would fill up on water or beg/bully food from others.

There’s mention of the classroom dictionary being able to fall open to the “one sex word” in the ‘I’ section (for intercourse.) honestly, I put this book down and have no desire to pick it back up again thus far.

I finished it anyways out of cussed determination. The book did engage me and hold my interest enough. The coming of age story is fleshed out to an unsatisfying cliff hanger ending—apparently there were two more books written in the series. It did give some good insight into the life of a black girl in the 50s , really focusing on her life, not saying much about the civil rights movement, segregation etc occurring at the same time other than in side notes—the deplorable ‘n’ word is used, I think twice.

[Yolanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

One if my favorite books from childhood. I had to revisit this one after recommending it to my young cousin. Thus book gave a good perspective from a young black girl growing up in the 50's pre-civil rights movement. It told a story of struggle, pain, laughter and endurance of a determined community with minimal resources.

[Neshiyqah Nash · Rating 5 out of 5]

my favorite book of All Time..my mom a child born to sharecroppers in Texas read it as I left it home one day in fifth grade. she waited for me at the door to tell me How much it was like her life. My whole family cherishes this book..

[*Weebles* · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good. Different, but good. I would recommend it. It's a read for the advanced reader, however. All in all, I liked it.

[Cindy Dyson Eitelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't not like it. I've never seen a book eschew cliches so thoroughly and just tell it like it is. Was. More review:
http://swampowl.blogspot.com/2013/04/...

[Carlise · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first book that I read which I fell in love with and started me enjoying to read