Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Polacco, Patricia. 1994. PINK AND SAY. New York, NY: Philomel Books. ISBN 0399226710.


2. PLOT SUMMARY
Here, Polacco relates a story told to her. During the civil war, a white union teenage soldier (Say) is wounded. He is rescued by a black union teenage soldier (Pink). Pink takes Say to his home where Pink's mother nurses Say back to heath. The boys forge a friendship that encompasses Say learning to read and finding out that Pink actually touched the hand of Abraham Lincoln. This friendship continues when they are both taken to Andersonville prison.

3. IMPRESSIONS
I must confess. I am not a big fan of Patricia Polacco. I was not looking forward to reading this book. However, this book may be the one that completely changes my thoughts on the author.

An easy read, I completed the book in one sitting. Yet, the message still resonates weeks later. I had quite a visceral reaction as I closed the back cover and said the words "Pinkus Aylee" while tears welled up in my eyes. I had no prior knowledge of the plot and what was going to happen and I'm guessing that my emotions were due to shock as much as anything. Also, my reaction did not stem from the story itself, but Polacco's comments on the last page.

I liked this book so much, I showed it to both adults and children. With few exceptions, the reactions were all the same as mine. During one library period, I read it to fifth grade students. I always read to my kids, so it was nothing new. They got out their folders and scrap paper and colored pencils and got busy while I started reading. By about page 5, not one boy or girl was doodling. All eyes were on me and they never left until I closed the book. I sat quietly and watched them as silence surrounded us. What a powerful, powerful moment.

This book will resonate with audiences of all ages. It is that book that you will never forget.

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS from http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0399226710/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

* Starred review in KIRKUS REVIEWS: "A white youth from Ohio, Sheldon Russell Curtis (Say), and a black youth from Georgia, Pinkus Aylee (Pink), meet as young soldiers with the Union army. Pink finds Say wounded in the leg after a battle and brings him home with him. Pink's mother, Moe Moe Bay, cares for the boys while Say recuperates, feeding and comforting them and banishing the war for a time. Whereas Pink is eager to go back and fight against ``the sickness'' that is slavery, Say is afraid to return to his unit. But when he sees Moe Moe Bay die at the hands of marauders, he understands the need to return. Pink and Say are captured by Confederate soldiers and brought to the notorious Andersonville prison camp. Say is released months later, ill and undernourished, but Pink is never released, and Polacco reports that he was hanged that very first day because he was black. Polacco (Babushka Baba Yaga, 1993, etc; My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother, above) tells this story, which was passed down for generations in her family (Say was her great-great-grandfather), carefully and without melodrama so that it speaks for itself. The stunning illustrations--reminiscent of the German expressionist Egon Shiele in their use of color and form--are completely heartbreaking. A spectacular achievement."

* Starred review in BOOKLIST: "Hands and gestures have always been important in Polacco's work. Here they are at the center of a picture book based on a true incident in the author's own family history. It's a story of interracial friendship during the Civil War between two 15-year-old Union soldiers. Say, who is white and poor, tells how he is rescued by Pinkus (Pink), who carries the wounded Say back to the Georgia home where Pink's black family were slaves. In a kind of idyllic interlude, Pink and his mother nurse Say back to health, and Pink teaches his friend to read; but before they can leave, marauders kill Pink's mother and drag the boys to Andersonville prison. Pink is hanged, but Say survives to tell the story and pass it on across generations. The figure of Pink's mother borders on the sentimental, but the boys' relationship is beautifully drawn. Throughout the story there are heartbreaking images of people torn from a loving embrace. Pictures on the title and copyright pages show the parallel partings as each boy leaves his family to go to war. At the end, when the friends are wrenched apart in prison, the widening space between their outstretched hands expresses all the sorrow of the war. Then, in a powerful double-page spread, they are able to clasp hands for a moment, and their union is like a rope. Say once shook Lincoln's hand, just as Say held Pink's hand, and Say tells his children, who tell theirs, that they have touched the hand that touched the hand."

Amazon.com (2008). http://www.amazon.com/