1959

by Thulani Davis

Mickey and Sylvia, two black girls living in a small Virginia town, find their lives turned upside when the civil rights movement arrives in town in the form of eight courageous black college students. Reprint.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction

297 pages, Library Binding

First published February 1, 1992

About the author

Born in 1949.

Reviews

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, this was an eye-opener!

Set in Turner, Virginia (USA) in 1959 and 1960, this tale is told through the eyes of Willie, a black girl, the 12 year old daughter of one of the town's teachers.

The town operates an unwritten apartheid, almost as bad as anything that South Africa could boast. Moves are afoot to 'integrate' the 'black' and 'white' schools, but very little comes of this except the installation of three white observers in Willie's class-room, one of whom is probably a Ku Klux Klan sympathiser.

Willie charts the development and activities of a 'black' citizens' group, which at first is concerned with the school integration plans, but later with a wider range of issues including marshalling the 'black' people to register their votes.

What emerges from this tale is that although the 'black' people want equal rights with their 'white' neighbours, they don't necessarily want to live like 'white' people. They want to maintain their traditional ways, but on equal terms with the 'whites'.

Thulani Davis has written a very powerful book, a literary recreation of an important part of the history of the modern USA. It contains moving dramatic scenes and many descriptive passages, which brought to life for me a part of the world of which I am unfamiliar. In addition, she gently weaves the development of Willie's sexual awakening in between the political events she is keen to witness.

[Ivy Pittman]

Remember reading this book in the 80's after meeting Thulani Davis at a book party, where the late Gregory Hines and Avery Brooks were guests as well. Loved the story!

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was about the civil rights movement from the perspective of a 13-year-old black girl living in Virginia. At times the story reminded me of To Kill a Mockingbird. Like Mockingbird, the young girl's mother is dead and she and her older brother are being raised by her college professor father. There were so many characters in this book it was hard to keep track of them all. It took me a while to get into the story. It was slow. Some things didn't make sense to me. Like why her father would leave her in the barbershop while he went off somewhere and why is someone her age dating? Also, it was sometimes confusing because some parts are obviously not from the perspective of the girl, but there's no indication of the change in perspective. This was a reason why it was slow going for me.

[Courtney H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was not surprised to learn, after I finished the novel, that Davis is a playwright. Her story is one of place, community, and time: specifically it is the story of Turner, Virginia, in 1959 (and immediately thereafter), as a middle-class Black community engages with the civil rights movement--in various ways leading and being pulled along by the multiple strands of dissent and protest that made up the movement. In this, she succeeded; there are several scenes that will stay with me for a very long time. But I think the sacrifice comes with the depth of her characters. Willie, the pre-teen girl who serves as her protagonist, is fairly well fleshed out, but a lot of the other characters are almost just sketches--the reason it didn't surprise me to find out that she was a playwright is because you got the sense that she was introducing characters that an actor would breath life into on the stage.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

A somewhat strange text - one that leaves you with an unsettling feeling through most of it. Tragedies spring out of nowhere, much as I would imagine a 12 year old would view them. And triumphs are conducted with such grace and emotion, as if you could be in the very room in which the author is sitting. By the end I realized there was so much I hadn't known, so much I still do not understand about those years, and they are not even too long ago. And I also had a great conviction of the power of patience and following the path towards what is right.

[Sha-shonda Porter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book when searching for fiction narratives that covers the Civil Rights Movement era. This novel explores the era from the perspective of a 12-year old, African American female. In many ways, this is a coming-of-age story that is deeply influenced by the social/racial discord of the era. Davis explores many of the issues relevant to the movement including segregation/integration, economy, education, voting rights, history, and class. I will likely use this text in the course I am developing, Literary Depictions of the Civil Rights Movement Era.

[Jonathan Williamson · Rating 3 out of 5]

1959 is nowhere near as good as 1984.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book felt like it was intended to give you a close-up view of history through the eyes of an adolescent girl. The history was interesting, but there wasn't much plot.

[Melissa Berninger · Rating 2 out of 5]

A good book for the remedial course I'm teaching, which focuses on the theme of Civil Rights, but not, ultimately, a very good novel. I wouldn't recommend it except for its subject matter.

[Heather Carpenter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would like to read more from Thulani Davis. Book draws you into 1959...