Book Review: The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them
by The Freedom Writers and Erin Gruwell
Publication Date: Dec 12, 2006
List Price: $13.95
Format: Paperback, 320 pages
Classification: Fiction
ISBN13: 9780767924900
Imprint: Broadway Books
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Parent Company: Bertelsmann
Read a Description of The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them
Book Reviewed by Kam Williams
"My daughter Suhaila was born a full decade after my mother died… Becoming a parent made me think of my own mother with both intense grief and profound gratitude. More than anything, I wished that my mother and my daughter could have known and loved each other…
My mother was a remarkable woman. I hoped that I could teach Suhaila some of the many things I learned as I grew up witnessing my mother’s extraordinary compassion and empathy. It was then that I decided to unite grandmother and grandchild through a story in which my mother could meet one of her granddaughters and share the moon with her."
—Excerpted from Author’s Note
When Dr. Maya Soetoro-Ng was growing up on the island of Java, her mother
pinned a postcard over her bed of a Georgia O’Keefe painting entitled
"Ladder to the Moon." The surreal tableau, which featured a ladder suspended
in the desert air and stretching towards a lonely half-moon hanging high in
the sky, served to whet the imagination of the bright youngster with an
insatiable curiosity.
It’s important to remember that when the phrase "Reaching for the Moon" was
originally coined, it was intended to be applied to the implausible
aspirations of fanciful dreamers. However, if the historic lunar landing of
1969 taught the world anything, it was the priceless lesson that even a
destination as seemingly unattainable as the Moon was actually within our
grasp all along. So, why not dream big?
This was the essence of the message Maya and her big brother, Barack, were
raised with by their mom over the course of their childhood. Consequently,
both of these trailblazers overcame the odds en route to enjoying phenomenal
success in their chosen fields of endeavor.
Now, Maya has opted to pass along a measure of her late mother’s inspiration
via an enchanting children’s tale appropriately entitled "Ladder to the
Moon." Illustrated by a delightful array of delicate, airbrush drawings, the
evocative narrative relates a mythical meeting between the author’s
daughter, Suhaila, and the grandmother she unfortunately never actually had
a chance to meet.
In the story, dearly-departed Grandma Annie appears outside Suhaila’s window
at bedtime, and together they embark on an eventful journey by ladder up to
the Moon. The lucky, little girl learns some valuable life lessons along the
way, while the two simultaneously make the most of the posthumous
opportunity to bond.
Overall, a remarkably-rich, instant classic likely to strike an emotional
chord deep within the souls of kids from 2 to 92.