Book Reviews by Carol Neeland for LS 5603: Literature for Children and Young Adults

Summary:

Paul Logan is the son of a white farmer and a black woman who was born a slave. The story takes place in Georgia a few years after the Civil War in the United States. Paul has a sister and three half brothers. Their mother is white. His father teaches all the children to “read, write, and figure” and treats them almost equally until they begin to come of age. It is then that Paul struggles with the fact that he is considered black even though he looks white. A black boy named Mitchell whose father works for Edward Logan torments Paul for being different but then they become friends. Paul feels betrayed by his father and by his brother Robert and runs away to Mississippi with Mitchell. While he is there, he sees The Land of his dreams and spends years finding a way to buy it for himself.

Critical Analysis: 

This is one of the best historical fiction books for young adults that I have ever read. There are historical details woven into the plot but they do not overwhelm the reader and bog down the story to such an extent that the reader is constantly forced to remember that this is historical fiction. Instead, we jump right into getting to know the characters: 

I loved my daddy. I loved my brothers too. But in the end it was Mitchell Thomas and I who were most like brothers, with a bond that couldn’t be broken. (Taylor, p. 3) 

 Then the plot begins to evolve: 

The next time Mitchell Thomas caught up with me alone, he near to whipped the living daylights out of me. “Now, go tell your brothers ’bout this beatin’, you white nigger!” he cried as he pummeled me. “For all I care, you can tell yo’ white daddy ’bout it too!” (Taylor, p. 10) 

Details about the laws and customs of the time are included to further the development of the characters and the plot: 

Because my daddy was who he was, I had some of the privileges of a white boy, privileges denied to Mitchell and other colored folks on the place. Cassie and I sat right alongside Hammond, George, and Robert at our daddy’s table. We wore good clothes, and our daddy educated us. He’d taught us himself how to read and write and figure, even though when he taught Cassie, it was against the law at the time, and when he taught me, it was against what so many of his white neighbors held dear. (Taylor, p. 12). 

The reader becomes so caught up in the book that learning the historical details of the period and how laws and customs affected the characters just comes naturally. It never seems as if Taylor just put in some of the details so that teachers would use the book in history/language arts classes. She remained true to her story and her characters throughout. 

One of the most poignant descriptions and a major turning point in the novel is when Paul is whipped by his father: 

“Who said it was about fair?” My daddy’s eyes settled on mine, and I took off the clothes. I stripped bare as they all watched. I stripped bare and felt as I had never felt before, not just naked, but worn and like an old shoe, soleless…I just stood there in my nakedness gazing out across the land I had once thought was mine, feeling my humiliation and thinking on the family I had once thought was mine.” (Taylor, p. 83) 

Taylor is able to put feelings and a human face to so much of the humiliation and pain that African Americans must have felt in the years during and after slavery. But her descriptions are not just the “African American” experience. The universal human experience of loss when a loved one dies is evident in this passage: 

With Nathan and Tom Bee, Caroline and I sat the night through at Mitchell’s side. That next morning, just before the dawn, Mitchell died. My friend, my brother, was gone. (Taylor, p. 307) 

The shock and denial that are part of the experience of accepting death is also described in a heart-wrenching conversation between Mitchell and Sam Perry:  

“It’ll be hard,” I admitted, “but it’s been hard before. Mitchell and I, we can—” I stopped myself and there was a long silence between Sam Perry and me. (Taylor, p. 320) 

The highest praise that I can give to a work of historical fiction is that while reading this book I forgot I was reading historical fiction. The characters and plot were so gripping and the historical details woven into the plot so effortlessly that I simply forgot I was reading the book for this module and completely immersed myself in the story. The Land is truly superb. 

Review Excerpt: 

… The plot takes several surprising twists as Paul and Mitchell fall in love with the same young woman, and tragedy lies in wait for them. The ugliness of racial hatred and bigotry is clearly demonstrated throughout the book. The characters are crisply drawn and believable, although at times Paul’s total honesty, forthrightness, and devotion to hard work seem almost too good to be true. While this book gives insight and background to the family saga, it stands on its own merits. It is wonderful historical fiction about a shameful part of America’s past. Its length and use of the vernacular will discourage casual readers, but those who stick with it will be richly rewarded. For fans of the other Logan books, it is not to be missed.
Bruce Anne Shook, Mendenhall Middle School, Greensboro, NC 

Connections: 

Reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry would be obvious extension/connection for this book. Another book that would draw readers further into the experience that young black boys had prior to the Civil Rights movement is Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis. Although it takes place during the Depression era, it reveals that prejudice against black boys and attitudes about what they should and should not be allowed to do did not change much in the 70 years in between the ratification of the 13^th amendment and the Depression. Mature students might appreciate reading or watching The Color Purple and Roots to further appreciate the struggles that African Americans have experienced. Parts of those movies could be shown to spark discussion but depending on the age level the films in their entirety might not be appropriate.  

Bibliographic Data:

Shook, Bruce Anne. “The Land” School Library Journal (2001), http://reviews.schoollibraryjournal.com/bd.aspx?isbn=0803719507&pub=sl (accessed March 27, 2008).

Taylor, Mildred D. The Land. New York: Dial Books, 2001. ISBN Number: 0-8037-1950-7

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