The Planet of Junior Brown (novel)

Last updated
The Planet of Junior Brown
The Planet of Junior Brown (novel).jpg
Author Virginia Hamilton
Illustrator Jerry Pinkney
LanguageEnglish
Genre Young adult fiction
Published1971 (Macmillan)
Publication placeUSA
Media typePrint (paperback)
Pages210
ISBN 9780027425109
OCLC 210830

The Planet of Junior Brown is a 1971 young adult novel by Virginia Hamilton and illustrator Jerry Pinkney. It is about two boys, Junior Brown and Buddy, who with a school janitor, Mr. Pool, construct a mechanical solar system.

Contents

Reception

Barbara Bader reviewing The Planet of Junior Brown in Kirkus Reviews wrote "This is not a story to be judged on grounds of probability, but one which makes its own insistent reality; it endures along with its promise long after the story ends." [1] and revisiting the book in Horn Book 40 years later noted that children were not borrowing the book from libraries but wrote "the human drama will prevail and Junior Brown will continue to find susceptible readers, here and there, to whom it will mean a great deal." [2]

The Planet of Junior Brown has also been reviewed by African American Review , and [3] Literature Arts Medicine Database. [4]

Awards and nominations

Adaptations

In 1997 a film of the same name, adapted from the novel was released. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carole Boston Weatherford</span> American author and critic (born 1956)

Carole Boston Weatherford is an American author and critic. She has published over 50 children's books, primarily non-fiction and poetry. The music of poetry has fascinated Weatherford and motivated her literary career. She has won multiple awards for her books, including the 2022 Coretta Scott King Award for Author for her book Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre. As a critic, she is best known for her controversial criticism of Pokémon character Jynx and Dragon Ball character Mr. Popo.

Sylvia Louise Engdahl is an American writer, known best for science fiction. Her debut novel Enchantress from the Stars, published by Atheneum Books in 1970, was the 1971 Newbery Honor Book, was a Geffen Award finalist in 2008, Best Translated YA Book, and she won the Phoenix Award for that work twenty years later.

<i>The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle</i> 1990 historical novel by Avi

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is a historical novel by the American author Avi published in 1990. The book is marketed towards children at a reading level of grades 5–8. The book chronicles the evolution of the title character as she is pushed outside her naive existence and learns about life aboard a ship crossing from England to America in 1832. The novel was well received and won several awards, including being named as a Newbery Honor book in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virginia Hamilton</span> American writer of childrens books (1936–2002)

Virginia Esther Hamilton was an American children's books author. She wrote 41 books, including M. C. Higgins, the Great (1974), for which she won the U.S. National Book Award for Young People's Literature and the Newbery Medal in 1975. Her works were celebrated for exploring the African-American experience, what she called "Liberation Literature."

<i>M. C. Higgins, the Great</i> 1974 novel by Virginia Hamilton

M. C. Higgins, the Great, first published in 1974, is a realistic novel by Virginia Hamilton that won the 1975 Newbery Medal for excellence in American children's literature. It also won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award; it was the first of only two books to do so.

<i>The Horn Book Magazine</i> Childrens literature magazine

The Horn Book Magazine, founded in Boston in 1924, is the oldest bimonthly magazine dedicated to reviewing children's literature. It began as a "suggestive purchase list" prepared by Bertha Mahony and Elinor Whitney Field, proprietors of the country's first bookstore for children, The Bookshop for Boys and Girls. Opened in 1916 in Boston as a project of the Women's Educational and Industrial Union, the bookshop closed in 1936, but The Horn Book Magazine continues in its mission to "blow the horn for fine books for boys and girls" as Mahony wrote in her first editorial.

<i>Story of the Negro</i> 1948 book by Arna Bontemps

Story of the Negro by Arna Bontemps is a children's history book published by Knopf in 1948. It was the first African-American authored book to receive a Newbery Honor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phillip Hoose</span> American writer (born 1947)

Phillip M. Hoose is an American writer of books, essays, stories, songs, and articles. His first published works were written for adults, but he turned his attention to children and young adults to keep up with his daughters. His work has been well received and honored more than once by the children's literature community. He won the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, Nonfiction, for The Race to Save the Lord God Bird (2004), and the National Book Award, Young People's Literature, for Claudette Colvin (2009).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. S. King</span> American writer (born 1970)

Amy Sarig King is an American writer of short fiction and young adult fiction. She is the recipient of the 2022 Margaret Edwards Award for her "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature". She is also the only two-time recipient of the Michael L. Printz Award for Young Adult Literature for Dig (2019) and as editor and contributor to The Collectors: Stories (2023).

<i>The Year of Billy Miller</i> Book by Kevin Henkes

The Year of Billy Miller, a 2014 children's book written by Kevin Henkes, was a Newbery Honor book in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kwame Alexander</span> American writer of poetry and childrens fiction (born 1968)

Kwame Alexander is an American writer of poetry and children's fiction.

<i>Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11</i> Book by Brian Floca

Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 is a 2009 children's picturebook by Brian Floca about the Apollo 11 spaceflight to the Moon. It was published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

<i>Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut</i> 2017 picture book by Derrick Barnes

Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut is a 2017 picture book by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Gordon C. James. The book, Barnes' first picture book, is a poem describing a boy's feelings and experience while getting a haircut. James, who was not the first choice to be the illustrator, wanted the oil color illustrations to have the feel of fine art.

<i>Long Way Down</i> (book) 2017 novel by Jason Reynolds

Long Way Down is a young adult novel in verse by Jason Reynolds, published October 24, 2017, by Atheneum Books. The book was longlisted for the National Book Award and was named a Printz Honor Book, Coretta Scott King Honor Book, and Newbery Medal Honor Book, alongside other awards and positive reviews.

Patricia Miles Martin was an American children's author who wrote American historical fiction, non-fiction, and biographies. She published under her own name as well as the names Miska Miles, Patricia A. Miles, and Jerry Lane. As Miska Miles, she received a Newbery Honor for her book Annie and the Old One in 1972.

<i>Patina</i> (novel) 2017 novel by Jason Reynolds

Patina is a young adult novel by Jason Reynolds, published August 29, 2017 by Atheneum. It is the second book in Reynold's Track series, preceded by Ghost (2016) and followed by Sunny (2018) and Lu (2018).

<i>X</i> (young adult novel) 2015 novel by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon

X: A Novel is a young adult novel by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon, published January 6, 2015 by Candlewick Press.

<i>Revolution in Our Time</i> 2021 book by Kekla Magoon

Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party's Promise to the People is a nonfiction book about the Black Panther Party, written by Kekla Magoon and published November 23, 2021 by Candlewick Press. In 2021, the book was a finalist for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature.

<i>Watercress</i> (book) 2021 childrens book by Andrea Wang

Watercress is a children's book written by Andrea Wang, illustrated by Jason Chin, and published on March 30, 2021 by Neal Porter Books.

Don Brown is an American author and illustrator of children's books.

References

  1. Barbara Bader (September 1, 1971). "The Planet of Junior Brown". Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Media LLC. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  2. "A Second Look: The Planet of Junior Brown". The Horn Book Magazine. Media Source. January 8, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  3. Trites, Roberta Seelinger (March 1998). ""I double never ever never lie to my chil'ren": Inside People in Virginia Hamilton's Narratives". African American Review. 32 (1). Johns Hopkins University Press: 147–156. doi:10.2307/3042277. JSTOR   3042277.
  4. Marilyn McEntyre (February 29, 2000). "The Planet of Junior Brown". medhum.med.nyu.edu. NYU School of Medicine. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  5. "Mark Twain Award Master List 1971-2008: Mark Twain Master List of Nominees 1971-2008" (PDF). maslonline.org. Mid-Continent Public Library. p. 41. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  6. "Horn Book Fanfare 1971". The Horn Book Magazine. Media Source. December 5, 1971. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  7. Deborah Kutenplon; Ellen Olmstead (1996). Young Adult Fiction By African American Writers, 1968-1993: A Critical and Annotated Guide. Garland Reference Library of the Humanities. p. 87.
  8. "Newbery Medal and Honor Books, 1922-Present". ala.org. American Library Association. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  9. "The Planet of Junior Brown (Junior's Groove) (1997)". rottentomatoes.com. Fandango Media. Retrieved December 28, 2016.