Avery S., Copper Sun
Copper Sun chapters 1-23
Sharon. M Draper has written one of my all time favorite books, so when I started reading Copper Sun I really needed it to live up to my high expectation of Out Of My Mind.
But unfortunately I didn’t quite do it for me… Yet.
The book just started out very slow and I was just reading it because I felt I had to, like a chore. But as soon as I flipped the page to chapter 6 I was glued. I literally couldn’t put this book down and through out the day, week and forever I will be thinking about this book!
It was so well written and in great detail, I was very impressed. I love how Draper went into so much time and detail to make sure that everyone could connect to Amari, Polly and Teenie. I especially loved how she wrote this book as if she was just writing down a real conversation.
This book really has my attention and I am so glad i decided to read this. I still have so many questions that need answers, and I sure hope they do get answered. Who is your favorite so far? Whats relatable or interesting to you? Let me know!
Avery S.
3 Replies to “Avery S., Copper Sun”
Hi Avery!
I also had a hard time getting into Copper Sun at first and although it’s really well written I found myself stopping after each chapter rather than reading on, for a few reasons. I have read several books with similar subject matter (Roots by Alex Haley, for example) and while it’s interesting to see the events unfold through the eyes of a young girl I kind of felt like I’d already read it. The other reason I had to stop often is because it’s hard to read about the cruelty and hardships Amari faces as she’s captured and sold into slavery.
Once I got to part two of the novel, though, I couldn’t put it down! (Literally…I read the rest of the book in one sitting.) The narration switching to Polly’s perspective breathes new life into the story for me. We get to see Amari in a different light and start to understand the magnitude of the challenges that lay ahead for both her and Polly. Plus Teenie and Tidbit enter the story here and Teenie is full of practical wisdom and expressions.
I really love how Draper develops the bond between Amari and Polly throughout the novel. At first they are indifferent to one another but over time they learn more about each other. Amari realizes that just because Polly is white her life isn’t easy and Polly comes to understand that Amari is a person with a past and feelings like any other. They start to see past skin color to discover that they are not so different after all, and then become true friends.
I do feel a bit cheated with the way the novel ends. *If you haven’t read that far you might not want to read further.* I understand that Polly, Amari, and Tidbit’s ultimate goal was to seek freedom but I wanted to learn more about their lives after they reached Fort Mose. It seemed almost like a fairy tale ending with freedom as the happily-ever-after instead of a wedding. I had heard of a Spanish settlement of former slaves in Florida but not in any detail. I guess I’ll have to look it up! I will say I liked the way Draper made it very clear at the end, through the character Inez, that there would still be rough times and hard work ahead for the trio even though they were free.
Another thing that struck me is that throughout the story Amari is torn from her mother and then encounters motherly figures to help support and encourage her along the way, first with Afi and Teenie, and I suspect Inez as well. It was a bit heartbreaking to see Amari have to take on the motherly role herself at such a young age at the end. I took comfort that she and Tidbit meant to keep their traditions alive and mothers at heart with remembrance and storytelling.
What will you be taking away from the novel? Did it live up to Out of My Mind?
Hi Jaurele!
I’m so glad you enjoyed Copper Sun (don’t worry I also felt cheated) we had a lot of the same opinions on the book I think. About learning more about life after the reach freedom. But in comparison to Out of My Mind I felt as if Out of My Mind was a 9 and Copper Sun was a 7. But it was still a great read!
Now I have started Maze Runner because all copies of Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie were gone. It once again took about 100 pages for Maze Runner to get my interest, but now I cant put it down! i think that is how I am with most books though. I will most likely finish Maze Runner this week, and I am very excited for my next book.
Then everything sunk in, what happens when I finish all my books? Im reading at a great pace and am reading perfect level books, so I decided when I finish 3 books I am going to make another set of 3 books until the end of school. My first book of my next three is Eleanor and Park which my friend Allison told me about! I really like this method of reading because it helps me read faster and to get me excited about books more,
Avery.
Hi Jaurele!
I was just wondering what book your on and how you felt on the books you have read already. I just haven’t heard from you in a while and wanted to know how its going, Im super stoked to see, and work with you next week!
Avery.