Carter Reads the Newspaper

Review Source: Zinn Education Project
Book Author: Deborah Hopkinson

One of the most important advocates for teaching the full story of African Americans in U.S. history was Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

Woodson founded Negro History Week in 1926 (which grew into Black History Month), the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), and the Journal of Negro History. He is quoted as saying that:

This crusade [to teach Black history] is much more important than the anti-lynching movement, because there would be no lynching if it did not start in the schoolroom.

Carter Reads the Newspaper chronicles Woodson’s early life. As the child of parents who had both been enslaved, it infuriated Woodson that their lives were not included in school books. While working in the coal mines in Appalachia, Woodson was asked to read the newspaper to his fellow miners who were illiterate. They asked lots of questions which led Woodson to conduct research and eventually to pursue higher education, including getting a doctorate at Harvard University. He was the second African American to do so. Continue reading at the Zinn Education Project.

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Carter Reads the Newspaper by Deborah Hopkinson
Published by Holiday House on August 4, 2020
Genres: Banned Books, Black History
Pages: 36
Reading Level: Grade K
ISBN: 9781682633076
Review Source: Zinn Education Project
Also by this author: Steamboat School

Publisher's Synopsis: "Carter G. Woodson didn't just read history. He changed it." As the father of Black History Month, he spent his life introducing others to the history of his people.

Carter G. Woodson was born to two formerly enslaved people ten years after the end of the Civil War. Though his father could not read, he believed in being an informed citizen, so he asked Carter to read the newspaper to him every day. As a teenager, Carter went to work in the coal mines, and there he met Oliver Jones, who did something important: he asked Carter not only to read to him and the other miners, but also research and find more information on the subjects that interested them.
"My interest in penetrating the past of my people was deepened," Carter wrote. His journey would take him many more years, traveling around the world and transforming the way people thought about history.

From an award-winning team of author Deborah Hopkinson and illustrator Don Tate, this first-ever picture book biography of Carter G. Woodson emphasizes the importance of pursuing curiosity and encouraging a hunger for knowledge of stories and histories that have not been told. Back matter includes author and illustrator notes and brief biological sketches of important figures from African and African American history.