P.S. Be Eleven

After spending the summer in Oakland, California, with their mother and the Black Panthers, Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern arrive home with a newfound streak of independence. That doesn't sit well with Big Ma, who doesn't like the way things are changing.

Neither does Delphine. Pa has a new girlfriend. Uncle Darnell comes home from Vietnam, but he's not the same. And her new sixth-grade teacher isn't the fun, stylish Miss Honeywell—it's Mr. Mwila, a stern exchange teacher from Zambia.

But the one thing that doesn't change during this turbulent year is the advice that Delphine receives from her mother, who reminds her not to grow up too fast. To be eleven while she can.

Readers who enjoy Christopher Paul Curtis's The Watsons Go to Birmingham and Jacqueline Woodson’s Brown Girl Dreaming will find much to love in this book. Rita Williams-Garcia's books about Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern can also be read alongside nonfiction explorations of American history such as Jason Reynolds's and Ibram X. Kendi's books.

Each humorous, unforgettable story in this trilogy follows the sisters as they grow up during one of the most tumultuous eras in recent American history, the 1960s. Read the adventures of eleven-year-old Delphine and her younger sisters, Vonetta, and Fern, as they visit their kin all over the rapidly changing nation—and as they discover that the bonds of family, and their own strength, run deeper than they ever knew possible.

“The Gaither sisters are an irresistible trio. Williams-Garcia excels at conveying defining moments of American society from their point of view.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

It’s 1968, and for eleven-year-old Delphine, everything is changing at once.

• A Story of Sisterhood: After a summer of activism, Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are closer than ever—but newfound independence and family secrets will put their bond to the test.
• 1960s Brooklyn Setting: Return to Herkimer Street in a vividly drawn historical backdrop, where the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War era shape the Gaither family’s world.
• Complex Family Dynamics: Delphine must navigate her changing relationship with her father, her grandmother’s strict rules, and the return of her uncle Darnell, who is not the same man who went to war.
• Growing Up Black in America: A heartfelt and humorous look at what it means to be eleven, grappling with crushes, new teachers, and a mother’s mysterious advice to not grow up too fast.