Ryan, Pam Munoz. Illustrated by Brian Selznick. When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson, the Voice of a Century. Scholastic: 2002. 37 pages. Tr. $17.99. ISBN 0-439-57781-0.The whole world listened when Marian Anderson sang. There was something about her voice that was unlike any other; maybe it was the range of notes she could hit, the obvious emotion conveyed through her performances, or the sweet melodic sound of her voice. But not everyone saw Anderson for her singing talent, some never saw past the color of her skin.
Pam Munoz Ryan’s 37 page picture book explores the life and singing career of Marian Anderson, the first African-American to perform onstage at the Metropolitan Opera. While this picture book does not use the traditional rhyme or repetition patters usually found in picture books, Ryan’s text with Brian Selznick’s award winning illustrations, create a beautiful retelling of this amazing woman’s career. This book could also be classified as a partial biography, since it explores the career of Marian Anderson; and it could also be considered a multicultural text, since it describes the struggle for equality of African-Americans in the United States in the 1930’s. Despite the many genres that this book may fit into, the most prominent is historical fiction, since the author pairs true historic events with fictionalized dialogue and minor scenes to recreate a time in history for the reader.
The book begins with a brief glimpse into Marian’s childhood and her strong relationship with her family, especially her mother. It becomes apparent, both to Anderson’s family and her community, that she is a naturally gifted singer and she is asked to perform at various church events when she is ten. Marian begins believing in herself and her singing abilities, thanks to the praise and support of her community, and starts to dream of studying music formally in a music school. Unfortunately, the school she applies to blatantly denied her application stating, “We don’t take colored.” Devastated, Anderson seeks out alternate methods of studying music, including taking private lessons and seeking out well-known teachers. She continues in her studies, demonstrating the perseverance and strong-will of her character, and eventually travels to Europe to perform for audiences abroad. She is an immediate success in many European countries and Anderson returns home, waiting to be welcomed back by her home country.
The United States did not openly welcome Marian though, especially in concert halls and venues. After hearing about her success in Europe, many fans wanted to hear the gorgeous voice of Anderson for themselves. The one problem? Very few concert halls or even high schools would host an African-American performer. Even if she was allowed to sing, there were strict rules enforced about segregation of the audience. Ultimately, Anderson was offered the opportunity to sing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to an integrated audience, which was unfathomable at this time in history. Anderson’s voice blanketed the Washington Mall, which was filled with 75,000 people who had come to enjoy the concert on Easter Sunday.
Through this exciting and eye-opening tale of prejudice and discrimination, Ryan opens the usually overlooked world of the 1930’s and how the struggle for equality began long before Martin Luther King Jr. came on the Civil Rights scene. Marian Anderson started to pave the road for African-American singers and performers throughout her career.
Ryan weaves in lyrics to well-known gospel tunes that Anderson later made popular within the story itself. These brief four to five lines of lyrics contribute to the meaning of the story and provide an opportunity for an extension activity or further research for the reader.
Selznick’s illustrations create a harmonious atmosphere with Ryan’s words throughout the book. His sepia-toned pen and ink drawings, Selznick creates a historical look to the illustrations. By using a range of brown hues, the illustrations take on an older look and look as if they are historic photographs rather than drawings. Selznick also incorporates the use of perspective and uses a range that includes Anderson’s view from stage to the furthest seat back at the Lincoln Memorial concert, where Marian is nothing but a dot on the page. By showing various perspectives, Selznick shows that this is not just Marian’s story of success and perseverance, but one for any one who has endured prejudice and discrimination.
The reader cannot help but be moved by this uplifting tale of success. This text could be used in any grade level classroom as a read aloud or independent study book. As a read aloud, it offers many opportunities for the reader to pause and ask think aloud questions. This practice models what a “good” reader should be doing as he/she reads independently as well. The text is also a powerful read aloud since it naturally promotes discussion about Anderson’s struggles to perform here in the United States despite being widely accepted as a performer in Europe. Unjust rules and laws combine to be one the main sociological issues that this book presents to readers and one that should be openly discussed after all students have experienced the story. One notable feature of this publication is a lengthy and detailed author’s note at the end of the book. Both Ryan and Selznick offer their stories of how they created this text and some important historical background that goes into more detail than the book itself. Clearly, there is much more to this story than what they have recounted in their book, but what this pair has done is make a poignant historical event accessible to all audiences. For further reading about Anderson’s career, explore Russell Freedman’s The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights (2004). If you enjoy Ryan’s historical fiction writing and Selznick’s illustrations, pick up Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride (1999), which explains the joy ride that Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt took in an airplane after ditching a White House dinner party in 1933.
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