The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1995

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-3

Chapters 4-6

Chapters 7-9

Chapters 10-12

Chapter 13-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Vocabulary

Essay Topics

Quiz

Background

Authorial Context: Christopher Paul Curtis

After a year of college, Christopher Paul Curtis took a job at the Fisher Auto Body plant in his hometown of Flint, Michigan. He and a co-worker decided to arrange their assembly line work hanging heavy doors on Buicks so that each hour of an eight-hour shift was 30 minutes on duty and 30 minutes off. This schedule allowed Curtis stretches of time to devote to his growing interest in writing. He practiced by writing letters and character sketches. Eventually his wife suggested he try writing full time; his first novel was The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963.

The original version of the story was actually The Watsons Go to Florida, inspired by a family road trip to the Sunshine State with his wife and children. Though his wife had the trip planned in minute detail (like Momma does in The Watsons), Curtis favored a drive without any overnight stops (like Dad). On the drive, he began to imagine a family and the story of their road trip. Later, he was inspired to change the Watsons’ destination when his son studied Dudley Randall’s “The Ballad of Birmingham,” a poem about the 1963 Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing.

Curtis acknowledges in interviews and author’s notes that his family members from childhood often inspire his characters. Joetta Watson is based on his sister Cydney, for example, and memories of himself as a child along with his brother David inspired main character Kenny. Curtis attributes at least one of Byron’s misdeeds to his own behavior as well: His mother once caught him lighting matches and throwing them into the toilet and actually broke through the bathroom door to reprimand him. In a Scholastic interview, Curtis also says that Kenny’s classmates LJ, Rufus, and Larry Dunn were inspired by school acquaintances of his (“Christopher Paul Curtis: Interview Transcript,” Scholastic Inc., www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/christopher-paul-curtis-interview-transcript/.)

The poem “The Ballad of Birmingham” can be viewed here: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46562/ballad-of-birmingham.

Literary Context: The American Road Narrative

The Watsons’ trip to Birmingham is the pivotal event of the story; Byron’s misdeeds before the trip necessitate it, and events back home after the trip serve to complete Kenny’s and Byron’s character arcs. Because their trip is so central to the book’s plot and character development, the story can be compared to those in the genre of the American road narrative—and in particular, to a subgenre of stories involving family road trips.

In a road narrative, the character’s physical travel from one location to another is a detailed part of the story, is the story itself, or is an allegory for a parallel story about a metaphorical, inner journey. American road narratives explore themes of freedom, adventure, change, and coming of age. Shifts in geographic location, environment and climate, and emotional and cultural atmosphere usually accompany eye-opening life lessons and/or the proving or disproving of some hoped-for hypothesis about the self or others. Predecessors include “voyage narratives,” popular in the age of steamboat travel, and rail journey stories, popularized as westward expansion prompted the American rail industry. The automobile meant freedom to travelers, who were no longer bound by rail schedules or steamship timetables. As car travel became standard, manufacturers customized automobiles for comfort on longer trips for the whole family; the interstate highway system also helped to popularize the family road trip.

While the road narrative’s sense of freedom generally pertains to grown travelers (epitomized by Jack Kerouac’s On the Road), the family road trip subgenre works especially well in young adult and middle grade stories where family or friend characters make the trek more realistic for a young protagonist. Anticipation and adventure are key elements. Though the Watsons have a serious reason for going to Birmingham, they are eager to ensure a fun and fulfilling journey; Dad invests in the Ultra-Glide record player, Momma plans every stop, and together they experience the awe of the Appalachians at night.

Family road trip stories often lead to unexpected revelations and events; in Birmingham, Kenny is puzzled by Byron’s behavior, surprised by the Wool Pooh, and shocked by the church bombing. Other family road trip stories with unexpected change and discoveries include middle grade novels See You in the Cosmos, Walk Two Moons, and The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise; young adult titles Homecoming and Somewhere in the Darkness, and mainstream movies Rain Man, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Little Miss Sunshine, and National Lampoon’s Family Vacation.

Historical Context: Racial Violence Against Black Churches

From the end of slavery to the civil rights movement to modern times, racist and supremacist groups and individuals have frequently sought to instill fear and cause violence in traditionally Black churches. Birmingham experienced a wave of bombings in Black churches (as well as Jewish and Catholic places of worship) from 1947 to 1965, which resulted in the infamous nickname “Bombingham.” Culturally and historically, the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church on September 15, 1963 stands out: The blast killed four young girls, caused a fierce public outcry, and brought additional momentum to the civil rights movement.

In The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963, the author explores how a bombing event very similar to the one at Sixteenth Street Baptist Church impacts his characters. Momma comments several times in the story that her old neighborhood is safe and secure; she and Dad are relying on a polite and quiet environment in which to immerse Byron. This establishment of a hoped-for peaceful atmosphere sets up the terrible irony experienced by the family when the bomb goes off; the youngest and most innocent family member, Joey, is feared hurt or killed. Instead of calm days at Grandma’s house, the scene turns chaotic, brutal, and mournful. Despite his sister’s safety and an immediate return to their home in Flint, Kenny experiences melancholy and shock in the days after the bombing, questioning how individuals could be so filled with hate and how the actions of a few could impact so many. In this way, Kenny’s reaction represents the emotions of many people nationwide after the historical bombing. In his afterword-style Epilogue, the author discusses the direct effect caused by the church bombing in revamped efforts by civil rights leaders and volunteers to fight for justice and equality.