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THE PLANET OF JUNIOR BROWN
This is the story of how three lonely and gifted people came together to create their own "solar system" of friendship and support. Each of them has been marginalized by society in some way--Junior Brown because he is a musical prodigy, Buddy because he is homeless, and Mr. Pool because his teaching methods were considered unorthodox. Together they construct a solar system in the basement of the boys' school where Mr. Pool is now a janitor, and they spend long hours watching the slow and stately revolution of the planets. It is this solar system that becomes the central metaphor of this remarkable story, for it comes to symbolize the harmony that should exist between one individual and another. As Mr. Pool says, each planet cannot "be measured alone, but only in relation to one or more of the others." Buddy himself knows this in a special way; he is the leader of a "planet"--a hideout for young homeless boys--and, like the sun that keeps all the lesser planets in orbit by its steady gravitational pull, Buddy teaches the boys how to survive on the street without resorting to crime. By introducing us to the unique worlds of her characters, Virginia Hamilton makes an eloquent and impassioned plea for compassion, tolerance, and charity--all the virtues that should bind our world (or planet) together. As one reviewer in "Black World" out it, "There is so much in 'The Planet of Junior Brown', it could be... a prayer." - Kilpatrick, William, Gregory Kilpatrick and Suzanne Wolfe. "A Guide to Teaching Your Child Moral Values Through Stories". USA: Simon and Schuster, 1994. |
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