My Brother Martin: A Sister Remembers Growing Up with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Christine King Farris shares some of her childhood experiences with her famous brother, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in this lovely work of picture-book biography. From the mischievous fun that she and her two brothers, M.L. (Martin Luther) and A.D. (Alfred Daniel) would get up to together, to the role of their grandparents in helping to raise them, this is a book full of family love. It is also a book about the injustice of segregation, which made itself felt early in the lives of the King children, growing up in Atlanta, Georgia. In a particularly poignant anecdote, Farris describes how she and her brothers would play with all the local children, including the sons of a white storeowner, until they were separated by race. She show more goes on to describe how her brother worked throughout his life to "turn this world upside down," challenging the evils of racism and segregation, to build a world where all are treated justly, and where all children can play together, regardless of race...

After finding Doreen Rappaport and Bryan Collier's Martin's Big Words such a deeply flawed book (see my review for more details), I have recently been thinking about which other picture-books about Martin Luther King, Jr. I would recommend in its place. Last week was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day here in the states, and I decided to request My Brother Martin: A Sister Remembers Growing Up with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to honor the occasion. It came in a little late, but I am nevertheless very glad to have read it. Not only does it offer a unique perspective on the childhood of one of America's most celebrated sons, but it delivers where the Rappaport/Collier title fails, in embodying the ideals of its subject matter. Given that this is a book which focuses on King's youth, and is in turn meant for the young, I thought the depiction of how racial segregation effected young people and their friendships was particularly on point. The story involving the erstwhile white friends of the King children was terribly sad, but the conclusion of the book, showing a black and white child running together hand in hand, offers hope, as well as a celebration of the changes that have occurred in American society. I really appreciated this approach, and think it makes for a wonderfully child-centered narrative about King and his vision.

When I think of the toxic discourse surrounding race that is becoming ever more common in some progressive circles these days - Ekow N. Yankah's recent New York Times editorial questioning whether it was possible for his children to have white friends springs to mind, in this regard - I also think this book highlights how far we have fallen from that vision. Still, the dream is not lost, and hope spring eternal. Farris' book is one that celebrates and promulgates that dream, and is one I would wholeheartedly recommend to any picture-book readers seeking titles about MLK. Not only is it both educational and well-told, it features lovely artwork from illustrator Chris Soentpiet. For my part, I think I will keep on exploring the picture-books about Martin Luther King, Jr. that are available, to build up a body of works that I can recommend, in this area. show less

"In the years since his death, too many biographers of Martin Luther King Jr. have made him so much larger than life that to the current generation of children he has become more of an idealized heroic icon than a real person. By sharing her memories of their childhood, Farris has opened a window to show Martin as a small boy in a loving extended family, a sometime prankster, protected for a while from the harsh reality of racism. When that reality became impossible to ignore, he and his brother and sister have the example of the strong faith, the encouragement, and the strength of their parents to guide them. Young Martin promises his mother that he will be an agent for change, that he will one day “turn this world upside down.” show more Farris tells the story simply and gently, remembering Martin as her little brother and as the man who indeed turned the world upside down. Soenpiet’s (Dear Santa, Please Come to the 19th Floor, p. 1628, etc.) watercolors are both meticulous in their detail and beautifully expressive of the family’s emotions. Farris’s afterword, graced by childhood photos of Martin, further explains her need to share these memories. A poem by Mildred D Johnson, written in 1968, is included as a reminder that all children have the potential for greatness. A very welcome addition to the King story. (illustrator note) (Picture book/biography. 6-10)" show less

I read My Brother Martin: A Sister Remembers Growing Up with the Rev. Dr. Martin King Jr. as my second read-aloud narrative book. I chose an MLK book becasue the students just completed their African American research projects because February was black history month. I also thought the book was interesting because MLK's sister, Christine, recounts about their childhood and what is was like growing up with a brother who was to become one of the most famous Americans of all time. I feel that we always hear about MLK's amazing accomplishments he made in the civil rights movement, but we never hear about his childhood. Christine does a great job of showing us that MLK was just a regular boy who liked to do normal kid activities. The show more illustrations in this book are breathtaking and add an immense amount of detail and thought. show less

I thoroughly enjoyed this book because of the first-hand account from King’s sister, illustrations, and the message. It was nice to read about Martin Luther King Jr. from his sister’s point of view and what it was like to grow up together as young children. I enjoyed learning about King as someone’s mischievous little brother who scared adults with his grandmother’s fur piece and other funny anecdotes. The illustrations in the book brought the story to life. I especially liked the illustration at the end depicting a little white girl and black girl holding hands, laughing, and playing. A book is always more enjoyable when it makes you think, and this book made me think of little Martin the boy and how he grew into Martin the show more man. “My Brother Martin” drives home the message of how it felt to grow up in this country during the era of segregation and how a little boy grew up to fight those injustices and “turned the world upside down”. show less

Age appropriate for Intermediate students.

This book, written by Martin Luther King Jr.'s sister Christine, tells the story of MLK's childhood. It follows the birth of MLK and his family dynamics, as well as snippets into his personality as a child. The climax of the book occurs when MLK and his siblings have their first experience of being treated differently because of the color of their skin, when their white neighborhood friends refuse to play with them any longer. From that point on, MLK is inspired by stories of his father's resistance to segregation and injustice, and you see the beginnings of his future calling starting to sprout.

This book is a great read for any Intermediate classroom. The illustrations are beautiful, and the show more story is an important conversation starter. It gives a different perspective on the life of MLK, and makes him a more relatable figure for kids as it tells about his childhood. This book would fit in perfectly in a classroom that is going through a unit on Civil Rights or MLK, but is also a great read in general. show less

Review: I really enjoyed this book because it offers another perspective of MLK Jr.'s life. It humanizes him as more than just a social justice hero, but also a person who was a mischievous child, suffered prejudice and unfairness from a young age, and decided to begin changing the world before he ever became famous. It gives courage to kids who are afraid to stand up for what they believe in and shows any reader what conviction looks like for a cause they believe in.

Critique: This book is great to use when introducing the Civil Rights movement to students. It is human, fun, and brings up difficult topics that are usually hard to explore no matter the audience.

Lesson Activity: Write a letter to Martin Luther King Junior's sister. What show more would you like to ask her about how she grew up and how she feels about her brother and his famous movement? show less

I had mixed feelings about this book. I liked it because it was told from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s sister’s point of view, giving a new outlook on what MLK was like as a child. This book was not the typical biography, stating facts about Martin’s adult life and his dream. Rather, this book told more about what happened before he became a civil rights activist. The author depicts him and his siblings as typical kids pulling pranks such as loosening the legs on the piano bench. This allows students to make connections to their own experiences, seeing that such a powerful man was once just like them. I also liked the fact that many of the ideas raised in this book were powerful and elicited a strong emotional response. For instance, show more when Martin and his siblings realized that their white friends could no longer play with them because they were black, Martin said to his mother, “Mother dear, one day I am going to turn this world upside down.” I did not like, however, the fact that the book was a little wordy. It sometimes shared too much information about unimportant events such as where they were born and lived. Due to the fact that it only briefly touched upon civil rights laws and historical information, this book would not be a great resource to use solely to help students write a biography of Martin Luther King, Jr. Finally, the introduction and afterword were very touching to me, but I believe that their meaning and weight would be lost on children. The big idea of this book was to inform people about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. show less