Genesis Begins Again

Genesis Begins Again

• Genre: Fiction; middle grade contemporary
• Originally Published: 2019
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 670L; grades 4-8
• Structure/Length: 33 chapters; approx. 400 pages; approx. 8 hours, 48 minutes on audio
• Protagonist and Central Conflict: Thirteen-year-old Genesis struggles with self-esteem because of her dark skin and her father’s wish that she had lighter skin like her mother. A group of popular girls makes her feel even worse about herself, but when she moves to a new school, she begins to make friends, develop her singing talent, and gain a deeper understanding of her father’s self-loathing and alcoholism.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Colorism; addiction; bullying

Alicia D. Williams, Author

• Bio: Born in 1970 in Detroit, Michigan; earned her BA in African American Studies at the University of Kentucky and her MFA from Hamline University; studied theater at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in NYC; has done sketch and stand-up comedy and is an oral storyteller in the African American tradition; lives in North Carolina, where she is a teacher
• Other Works: Jump at the Sun: The True Life Tale of Unstoppable Storycatcher Zora Neale Hurston (2021); Shirley Chisholm Dared: The Story of the First Black Woman in Congress (2021); The Talk (2022)
• Awards: Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature (2019); Newbery Honor Book (2020); Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent (2020); William C. Morris Literary Award (finalist, 2020)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• The Harmful Effects of Internalized Colorism
• The Effects of Poverty and Addiction
• The Relationship Between Bullying and Self-Acceptance

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Develop an understanding of the historical and sociocultural contexts around colorism, poverty, and alcoholism, core issues that contribute to Genesis’s struggles throughout the text.
• Read and discuss paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of The Harmful Effects of Colorism, The Effects of Poverty and Addiction, and The Relationship Between Bullying and Self-Acceptance.
• Watch and analyze original performances by Billie Holiday, Etta James, and Ella Fitzgerald—three of Genesis’s most beloved artists—or similar artists to engage more deeply with how these iconic musicians helped Genesis reach Self-Acceptance.
• Examine and assess the author’s purpose and techniques to draw conclusions in structured essay responses on recurring symbols in the novel, how the first-person perspective influences the overall narrative, and other topics.