Black Jack by Charles R. Smith Jr.

Smith, Charles R. 2010. Black Jack: the ballad of Jack Johnson. Ill. by Shane W. Evans.  New York: Roaring Brook Press. ISBN 9781596434738

This ballad depicts the life of heavyweight boxer Jack Johnson who became the first black heavyweight champion in 1910.  In addition to his boxing success, the poem paints a portrait of a proud man, the son of former slaves, who would not accept the racial discrimination that defined the era in which he lived.

The poet uses rhyme and rhythm to create the narrative poem, sometimes incorporating quotes or slang of the time period to lend a more realistic feel to the story.  In addition to relaying the events of Jack's life in poetic form, the ballad also evokes emotion through descriptions of Jack's family and upbringing, the hardships and discrimination that he faced, and the triumphs that he experienced as a boxer.

Featured poem:
an excerpt of the description of his childhood

But it was words from his mother,
whom Jack loved so dear,
that Jack took to heart
when they entered his ear:

"Jack, you are the BEST boy
in the world.  You can do
ANYTHING you want if
you want it badly enough."

Since the entire book is brief, I would be more inclined to share the entire ballad and show off the bold illustrations by Evans, but this poem would also work well on its own to demonstrate how Johnson developed the strong character necessary to cross the color line in boxing and demand equal treatment.

I would share Black Jack as a part of Black History Month in February and ask the students to use the ballad form demonstrated in the poem to write about another figure from history that we studied.