CROSSING BOK CHITTO: A CHOCTAW TALE OF FRIENDSHIP & FREEDOM by Tim Tingle, Ill. by Jeanne Rorex Bridges

Bibliography
Tingle, Tim. 2006. Crossing Bok Chitto: A Choctaw Tale of Friendship & Freedom. Ill. by Jeanne Rorex Bridges. El Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos Press. ISBN 9780938317777

Plot Summary
Martha Tom, a Choctaw girl, disobeys her mother, in a search for blackberries, by crossing the Bok Chitto River over to the side where there are plantations. There, she meets a slave boy, Little Mo, and forms a friendship with him. When Little Mo finds out that his mother is being sold to another plantation, he convinces his family to escape across the Bok Chitto because any slave who crosses that river becomes free by law. Brave Martha Tom and her people devise their own plan to help Little Mo and his family across Bok Chitto.


Critical Analysis
This story is a treat! Never before have I seen two cultures intermixed in a single historical setting with such authenticity. The story occurs among the Choctaws and African American slaves living on opposite sides of the Bok Chitto River in Mississippi. My family has a version of this story. We are from Louisiana and have Choctaw heritage mixed with our African American one, so we think. My mother and her sisters have always told a story about how we have an ancestor who escaped from slavery aided by the Choctaws. I never knew that there were such stories told by the Choctaws. I shared this story with my mother, and we both view it as a gift. We now know that there may be truth in the stories that have been passed down in our family. We value Tingle’s inclusion of a picture of Louisiana Choctaws in his notes at the end of the story. In Tingle’s notes at the end of the book, he chronicles how the idea for the story came about and includes a write-up about today’s Choctaws in Mississippi and Oklahoma.

I would like to discuss cultural authenticity on the part of all races presented in the story, Caucasian, Choctaw, and African American. The shades of various skin tones make it easy to spot the various races in the illustrations. The light brown skin of the Choctaws, the darker brown of the African Americans, and the paleness of the Caucasians cause an immediate connection as to what is being portrayed in the illustrations. However, variance in shades of skin tone would have been nice as well. Each person of a specific race is colored with the same shade although all races have skin tone variances. The clothing is another dominant cultural marker. The slave owners have fine garments that look clean and warm. The Choctaws in their strikingly white wedding ceremony dresses allow the reader to see why the slave owners thought they were seeing angels. The poor and drab clothing of the slaves depict the conditions they must have lived in. Hairstyles and hair textures are nicely done as well. The long dark hair of the Choctaws, the short curly hair of the African Americans, and the proper well-maintained hairstyles of the slave owners are all in accordance with the time period and cultures. These are all visuals, and so the illustrations truly enhance the story.

The emotions and mood the illustrations portray are touching. The close-ups of the father and mother crying when they find out mother will be sold are sorrowful. Martha Tom’s mother looks so caring when Little Mo runs to her for help. As mentioned before, the visual of the Choctaw women in their dresses is striking. With their candles, they do look like angels. Little Mo’s family resembles spirits when they escape, shrouded by fog, right under the watchful eyes of the guards.

This story will appeal to Native Americans as well as African Americans. Very few stories honor two cultures like this one. Thank you, Mr. Tingle, for sharing a story about your people. Tingle states that his culture trusts stories more if they are told amongst each other by word of mouth. My culture trusts things more in written form. By writing this story down and explaining how it came about, Mr. Tingle has probably shown many African Americans that this story they have passed down through word of mouth for so long as well has truth.

Awards Won & Review Excerpts

• American Indian Youth Literature Award, 2008
• Best Children's Books of the Year, 2007; Bank Street College of Education
• Notable Children's Books, 2007; ALSC American Library Association
• Oklahoma Book Award, 2007
• Booklist: "In a picture book that highlights rarely discussed intersections between Native Americans in the South and African Americans in bondage, a noted Choctaw storyteller and Cherokee artist join forces with stirring results."

Connections

• Other books by Tim Tingle:

          When Turtle Grew Feathers: A Folktale from the Choctaw Nation. ISBN
           0874837774
          Saltypie: A Choctaw Journey from Darkness into Light. ISBN 9781933693675

• Other books featuring Native Americans or their stories from North America:

          Bruchac, Joseph. Jim Thorpe's Bright Path. ISBN 9781584301660
          Erdrich, Lise. Bears Make Rock Soup and Other Stories. ISBN 0892391723
          Goble, Paul. Love Flute: Story and Illustrations. ISBN 0027362612
          McDermott, Gerald. Coyote: A Trickster Tale from the American Southwest. ISBN
          0152207244   

• Other books about escaping from slavery:

          Carbone, Elisa.Night Running: How James Escaped with the Help of his Faithful 
          Dog. ISBN 9780375822476
          Hegamin, Tonya Cherie. Most Loved in all the World. ISBN 0618419039
          McCully, Emily Arnold. The Escape of Oney Judge. ISBN 9780374322250
          Walter, Mildred Pitts. Alec's Primer. ISBN 9780916718206