They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

 

They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

 

 

Bibliography:  Bartoletti, Susan Campbell. 2010. They called themselves the K.K.K.: the birth of an American terrorist group. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

ISBN: 9780618440337

Plot Summary: “Boys, let us get up a club or society” (25), marks the beginning of the first terrorist group in the United States of America.  The club began with a group of six well-educated soldiers from Tennessee, and was sparked as a result of the events surrounding the Civil War. The club became known as the KKK or Ku Klux Klan. The KKK spread rapidly throughout the South and had many secret dens for members to meet. They brought terror to slaves and freed African Americans for more than a century with raids and night rides. The book, They called themselves the K.K.K.: the birth of an American terrorist group, is full of firsthand accounts, documents, primary sources, and images that leave you remembering how much of an impact the KKK had on American society.  

Critical Analysis:

Bartoletti creates an accurate portrayal of the events surrounding the beginnings of the first terrorist group in the United States. She writes it in a way that is readable and includes a vast amount of information about the beginnings and demise of the KKK. Included in the text are images, political documents and cartoons, photographs, and even diary and newspaper entries of firsthand accounts and dealings with the KKK. This book gives an excellent and authentic overview of the time period by creating a well-documented and cited piece of literature that is littered with facts and information that is accurate, understandable, and verifiable.  When reading, the reader becomes immersed in the time period and is able to see the impact the KKK has had on American society.  The accuracy of the text is well documented and laid out in chronological order, allowing the reader to learn about the facts as they happened. The text includes reference aids such as captions, an index, a Civil Rights Timeline, quote attributions, bibliography and source notes, and a table of contents, promoting the accuracy and validity of the information presented in the text. The design of the text is attractive, as the cover, a picture of a white-hooded mask that the KKK is known for wearing, with a stark black backdrop, draws the reader in with its simplicity. As you read the text, it becomes apparent that it is full of vital information in understanding the KKK. The illustrations and graphics within the text are all in black and white and complement the dreary content of the book. The effective placement and design of the graphics are used in a way to help the reader understand the complexity of the text. The style of the book is appropriate and interesting, and reveals Bartoletti’s passion and enthusiasm for history. She also writes the text in a way that draws you in by placing interesting quotes of firsthand accounts throughout the book. This encourages critical thinking and leaves the reader wanting to learn more about both the victims and the KKK. This book is a good resource to use in the classroom and is an accurate portrayal of the KKK, jam packed with information from primary sources, adding to the validity of the book.

Awards Received:

·         2011 ALA Notable Children’s Books

·         2011 NCTE Orbis Pictus Recommended

·         YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist, 2011

Review Excerpts:

·         From School Library Journal - Gr 7-10–This richly documented, historically contextualized account traces the origin and evolution of the Ku Klux Klan from a small mischievous social club into a powerful, destructive organization. With compelling clarity, anecdotal detail, and insight, Bartoletti presents the complex era of Reconstruction, 1865-1877, that gave rise to the KKK. After the Civil War, the defeated South was a simmering cauldron of political, economic, and social instability. As the federal government struggled to provide law and order and to protect the rights of freed slaves, secret groups of Southern whites banded together to vent their anger over lost property, prosperity, and power. From six men in a law office in Pulaski, TN, KKK dens spread across the South targeting freed blacks and their supporters. Although the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 was meant to end violence, KKK activity persisted through the 20th century, diminishing in the last 30 years as civil rights became a reality for all Americans. Bartoletti includes excerpts from slave narratives, archival illustrations, and historical quotes to convey the human drama of KKK terrorism. An annotated bibliography and source notes illuminate the variety and significance of reference works. Additional secondary titles include Chester L. Quarles's scholarly The Ku Klux Klan and Related American Racialist and Antisemitic Organizations (McFarland, 2008). Bartoletti effectively targets teens with her engaging and informative account that presents a well-structured inside look at the KKK, societal forces that spawn hate/terrorist groups, and the research process.Gerry Larson, Durham School of the Arts, NC

·         From Booklist - *Starred Review* Bartoletti follows multi-award-winning titles such as Hitler Youth (2005) with another standout contribution to youth history shelves. Here, she examines how the Ku Klux Klan formed and grew out of the ashes of the Civil War. Bartoletti, who taught eighth-graders for 18 years, writes in admirably clear, accessible language about one of the most complex periods in U.S. history, and she deftly places the powerfully unsettling events into cultural and political context without oversimplifying. It’s the numerous first-person quotes, though, that give the book its beating heart, and her searing, expertly selected stories of people on all sides of the violent conflicts will give readers a larger understanding of the conditions that incubated the Klan’s terrorism; how profoundly the freed people and their sympathizers suffered; and how the legacy of that fear, racism, and brutality runs through our own time. In an author’s note, Bartoletti describes visiting a contemporary Klan rally as part of her research, and that bold, immersive approach to her subject is evident in every chapter of this thoroughly researched volume. Like the individual stories, the powerful archival images on every page will leave an indelible impression on young readers, who will want to move on to the extensive annotated resources. The adjacent Story behind the Story feature fills in more details about this lucid, important title, which should be required reading for young people as well as the adults in their lives. Grades 7-12. --Gillian Engberg

·         From Kirkus  Reviews, Starred Review - "Balancing the stories of the Klan and the former slaves' determination to remake their lives, Bartoletti makes extensive use of congressional testimony, interviews, journals, diaries and slave narratives to allow the players to speak in their own voices as much as possible...An exemplar of history writing and a must for libraries and classrooms."

·         From Publishers Weekly, Starred Review - * "Copious photos, engravings, and illustrations provide a hard-hitting graphic component to this illuminating book. And while Bartoletti notes that contemporary 'hate groups wield none of the power or prestige that the Ku Klux Klan held in earlier years,' her account of attending a Klan meeting while researching the book is chilling to the core."

·         From The Horn Book, Starred Review - * "As in Hitler Youth, Bartoletti tackles a tough, grim subject with firmness and sensitivity...Period illustrations throughout make seeing believing, and the appended civil rights timeline, bibliography, and source notes are an education in themselves. Exemplary in scholarship, interpretation, and presentation."—The Horn Book, starred review

·         From School Library Journal, Starred Review - * "Bartoletti effectively targets teens with her engaging and informative account that presents a well-structured inside look at the KKK, societal forces that spawn hate/terrorist groups, and the research process."

 

Connections/Activities:

·         Students can research the time period in which the KKK was founded and learn more about the Civil War.

·         Students can compare the KKK to another terrorist group.

·         Students can create a timeline of events surrounding the existence of the KKK.

Select other books by Susan Cambell Bartoletti

·         Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow - 978-0439353793

·         Kids on Strike - 978-0618369232

·         Growing Up in Coal Country - 978-0395979143

·         Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine, 1845-1850 - 978-0618548835

Related Texts:

·         Getting Away with Murder: The True Story of the Emmett Till Case by Chris Crowe - 0803728042

·         Hooded Americanism: The History of the Ku Klux Klan by David J. Chalmers - 978-0822307723

·         The Fiery Cross: The Ku Klux Klan in America by Wyn Craig Wade - 978-0195123579

·         Behind the Mask of Chivalry: The Making of the Second Ku Klux Klan by Nancy K. MacLean - 978-0195098365

·         Women of the Klan: Racism and Gender in the 1920s by Kathleen M. Bee -  978-0520257870

Personal Connections:

I found this book to be very interesting and informative. I wanted to read it the moment I saw it on the list because I have always been fascinated with U.S. History. The content is too mature for the elementary classroom, but I think it would be a good book that students in High School could read because there are a lot of activities and connections that can be made between literary and historical subjects.