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
CountryUSA
LanguageEnglish
Genre Young adult fiction
Published1971 (Macmillan)
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

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>Criss Cross</i> (novel)

Criss Cross is a novel by Lynne Rae Perkins that won the 2006 Newbery Medal for excellence in children's literature. It includes the character Debbie from her previous novel, All Alone in the Universe, but introduces several new characters, primarily her neighborhood friends Hector, Lenny and Phil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pam Muñoz Ryan</span> American writer

Pam Muñoz Ryan is an American writer for children and young adults, particularly in the Multicultural genre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virginia Hamilton</span> American writer of childrens books

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 in category Children's Books and the Newbery Medal in 1975.

<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 Miller and Elinor Whitney Field, proprietresses 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>

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.

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, in part 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

Amy Sarig King is an American writer of short fiction and young adult fiction.

<i>Last Stop on Market Street</i> 2015 childrens book by Matt de la Peña and illustrated by Christian Robinson

Last Stop on Market Street is a 2015 children's book written by American author Matt de la Peña and illustrated by Christian Robinson, which won the 2016 Newbery Medal, a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, and a Caldecott Honor. The book follows a young boy named CJ as he learns to appreciate the beauty in everyday things during a bus ride. De la Peña and Robinson both drew on personal experiences when working together to create the book. Through its story and illustrations, Last Stop on Market Street tackles issues of race and class as they may be seen through the eyes of a young teen. Last Stop on Market Street was met with widespread acclaim after its release, receiving positive reviews from Kirkus Reviews and the New York Times Book Review amongst many others. Last Stop on Market Street's Newbery win was monumental, as it is extremely rare for picture books to be awarded this medal. In 2018, the children's book was adapted into a children's musical which has been performed by various children's theater groups across the country.

<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Reynolds</span> American young adult novelist

Jason Reynolds is an American author of novels and poetry for young adult and middle-grade audience. Born in Washington, D.C. and raised in neighboring Oxon Hill, Maryland, Reynolds found inspiration in rap and had an early focus on poetry, publishing several poetry collections before his first novel in 2014, When I Was The Greatest, which won the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent.

<i>Wolf in the Snow</i> 2017 wordless picture book

Wolf in the Snow is a 2017 wordless picture book by Matthew Cordell. The book was favorably received by critics and won the 2018 Caldecott Award. The story has drawn comparisons to fairy tales like Little Red Riding Hood. The nearly wordless book tells the story of a girl and wolf who each get lost in the snowstorm. Cordell used distinctive illustration techniques for the girl and the wolf.

<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>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.

<i>When Stars Are Scattered</i> 2020 nonfiction young adult graphic novel by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed

When Stars Are Scattered is a nonfiction young adult graphic novel written by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed, illustrated by Victoria Jamieson and Iman Geddy, and published April 14, 2020, by Dial 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. Johns Hopkins University Press. 32 (1): 147. 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.