Alligator Bayou

Summer reading has been hit-and-miss. _Alligator Bayou_ was a read for my summer book club, and would otherwise not be my standard fare. What a wonderful suprise, then, to enjoy it so much. Set in 1899 Louisana, the story revolves around a family of Sicilian immigrants who are attempting to live the "American dream," part of the immigration story that is so often romanticized. But this is the Deep South, just one year after the Plessy decision and in the midst of one of the nation's worst depressions in a quarter century. To boot, the Sicilians are unaware of the racial - and economic - boundaries in their adopted country. Told through the eyes of 14 year-old Calogero Scalise, Napoli does a top-notch job in showing the complexities of the Jim Crow South as well as the challenges immigrants face as they seek to make their way in America. The book is written for younger (ages 9 - 13) readers given the complexity of the sentence structure and plot - but Napoli (a linguistics professor by trade) also shows a mastery of AAVE (African-American Vernacular English) and Italian in the dialogue, and clearly - brutally - brings to light what life was like in the South at the start of the last century. What is perhaps most shocking, however, is that the story she has written here - of Sicilians not seen as "colored" (to use the term of the day) nor as "white" (thereby not granted the social status of "Americans") and the persecution they suffered is based largely on real-life events. At issue, of course, is not so much "race" as the maintenance of power (particularly economic power) by the elite. Power that was held and perpetrated by dividing the poor along "racial" lines (poor whites over poor African-Americans, poor immigrants somewhere in the middle ... divide and conquor, let them fight among themselves in order to preserve the status quo at the top of the social and economic heirarchy.) This is the sort of story I wish was taught more to our youth at an earlier age. Of special interest for older (older than 13) readers is the bibliography Napoli provides at the end of the story, outlining the real events that inspired the story, as well as a list of articles and websites for readers to delve more deeply into the story. Its a short read - maybe a lazy afternoon (or weekend) - but certainly worthy of attention.

I loved this book.Even tho it was a novel,it had historical significance.i thought it was well written and great content,it was easy to read and kept my interest.

Not many people realize the lynchings of Italians were just as prevalent as lynchings of Africans in America. In fact, the greatest lynching America was the lynching of Italians. In this coming of age tale set in Louisiana, we see the roots of prejudice in he South. It's all about money and power. It is a blight on our country that is still there today with those that want to deny others what they received so that they do not give up their perks. Christian country, my ass.

wow, I had no idea of this history. great story to show solidarity between oppressed in the jim crow south

Not very interesting

It is the year 1899. Calogero, a 14-year-old Sicilian immigrant, lives in Tallulah, Louisiana, with his uncles and cousins. They have all come to America seeking a better life. They do well for themselves, selling fruits and vegetables from a corner grocery store. They do not seek out trouble, but it always has a way of finding them. Calo and his family do not discriminate between blacks and whites. They sell to anyone who will buy their produce. Members of the town find this behavior reprehensible and disgusting. It is only a matter of time before the white citizens of Tallulah turn their backs on Calo and his family, and destroy every possible hope they had of leading quiet, normal lives. Donna Jo Napoli has done extensive research for this novel. The afterword explains that Napoli came across an article about five Sicilian grocers in Tallulah, Louisiana, who were lynched because they served a black customer before a white one. The article moved Napoli, and she felt a story must be told about these men. Napoli based her characters on those people who testified or were talked about in the testaments taken after the Tallulah lynching. The time and effort Napoli has put into her research makes the story more genuine, more affecting. It is a tragic story that ends with a glimmer of hope. Read this novel - it is a horrific reminder of what can happen when prejudice prevails and mob mentality rules over all. Reviewed by: LadyJay

This book has graphic violence. It's a great novel that tells a less well-known story of Sicilians in Louisiana. The violence and tragedy is perhaps too much for sensitive readers and for young people. I loved that she provides sources for her research in the back. I recommend pre-reading it if you are getting it for someone sensitive or younger. It may not be appropriate. I read it as an adult and it was very moving and upsetting.

One of the reasons I enjoy historical fiction is that it offers the opportunity to learn about little known episodes in our country's history, wrapped in the context of a compelling story. In writing Alligator Bayou, Donna Jo Napoli was inspired by a newspaper account about five Sicilian grocers in a small town in Louisiana who served a black customer who had entered the store first before a white one--and ended up lynched by a town mob. Many of the characters in the novel are based on the actual historical figures, but Napoli added a sixth grocer, a teenaged boy, Calogero. He and his relatives from Sicily don't understand the Jim Crow laws of the South, and when they shake hands with black boys their age, the other boys are speechless with surprise. Calogero takes a liking to Patricia, a very attractive black girl in the community, and she's attracted to him as well--but they have to keep their relationship secret. The Sicilians are not accepted by the white people in the town, who call them names and think they are all violent criminals and Mafia members. The black residents are kinder, even inviting Calogero and his cousins to a graduation party, where they are the only white guests, and inviting them to share a Fourth of July get-together. Trouble is brewing in the small town, though, and it's not only because Calogero gets in trouble for going on a night-time alligator hunt in the swamps or because he wants to go to the neighborhood black school. The grocers' goats, who are left free to wander around at night, keep congregating on the porch of the town's doctor, Dr. Hodge. When they hear shots in the night, they discover that Hodge has made good on his threat to shoot the goats if they keep coming onto his property. Soon there is altercation between the doctor and the Sicilian grocers, and Calogero must run for safety. Will he escape the wrath of the local mob? This novel delves into many prejudices prevalent in post-Civil War Louisiana; we see not only the expected racial divisions between blacks and whites, but also the hatred for the Italian immigrants, who poured into Louisiana through the port of New Orleans during the latter part of the 19th century, largely to work on sugar plantations. The terrible conclusion of this story is a lesson in the importance of tolerance, the evil of bigotry, and the need to get along with our neighbors from all countries, a lesson that is, unfortunately, still necessary in our multicultural society. Alligator Bayou has received numerous awards, including the American Library Association Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults, Parents' Choice Gold Award for Historical Fiction, and International Reading Association's (IRA) Notable Books for a Global Society.

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