All the Colors of the Race by Arnold Adoff
**Overview of "All the Colors of the Race" by Arnold Adoff**
"All the Colors of the Race" is a collection of thirty-six short free-verse poems that delve into themes of heritage, identity, and self-discovery, particularly from the perspective of a biracial girl. The poems are narrated in the first person and reflect the girl's experiences growing up in a mixed-race family, highlighting the influence of both her Jewish father and African American mother. Through a range of emotions—thoughtful, nostalgic, and observant—the poems express pride in her diverse background while addressing broader issues of cultural bias and race relations in the United States. The collection is organized into sections that explore shared humanity, ancestry, self-identity, and the hope for a more tolerant future. The language is accessible and often playful, complemented by illustrations from African American artist John Steptoe that enhance the themes of pride and joy found in the poetry. Adoff's work not only celebrates the beauty of diversity but also serves as a tool for reflection and discussion about race and identity, making it a valuable resource for readers of all ages.
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Subject Terms
All the Colors of the Race by Arnold Adoff
First published: 1982; illustrated
Subjects: Emotions, family, race and ethnicity, and social issues
Type of work: Poetry
Recommended Ages: 10-13
Form and Content
Arnold Adoff’s All the Colors of the Race contains thirty-six short free-verse poems celebrating heritage, identity, and a sense of self. The poetry can be read as individual works or as one narrative work. The poems are told in the first person from the point of view of a daughter who is a member of a biracial family. They are vehicles to express the girl’s thoughts and feelings about her ancestors, about her place in the world, and especially about the place that she feels most welcome—the satisfying home created by her Jewish father and her African American mother.
The themes of pride in a diverse family background, of appreciation of one’s ancestry, the cultural bias prevalent in the world, family love, and hope for the future transcend the daughter’s immediate situation and become a mirror for both races and sexes. The language is simple, and the recognition of the positive aspects of both her black and her Jewish heritage on the girl’s personality is evident throughout the poems. The works are sometimes thoughtful, sometimes reminiscent, sometimes observant, and sometimes questioning, but they always reveal a pride in diversity and hope that people will become more tolerant of others.
The poems fall into rough groupings. The first two deal with the colors that all human beings share, and the next four examine the past, such as ancestors and heritage. The largest section of poems treats the search for self-identity and the recognition and appreciation of the girl’s racial background, as well as her Protestant and Jewish faiths. These poems are followed by more general reflections about race relations in the United States and the prejudice that often arises. The last poems offers a celebration of family and hope for the future.
The entire book is only fifty-six pages long and can easily be read in less than an hour; some poems are as short as two lines, and much white space appears on the pages. Yet, the poems are meant to be read slowly and thoughtfully. Words fall across the page, and often one word becomes an entire line. Adoff communicates not only through his choice of words but also through the placement of words on the page, as is evident in “Sum People”:
Titles do not always use capital letters, which is reflective of one of Adoff’s literary influences, E. E. Cummings.
Illustrations by noted African American artist John Steptoe accompany the text. These framed portraits of the girl and/or her family and her ancestors reflect the pride and joy that are evident in the poetry. The illustrations are in shades of brown and white, as are the cover and the endpapers.
Critical Context
Arnold Adoff was a pioneer in bringing the poetry of African American authors to young people, and he continued this tradition with his original poems for children and adolescents. His book of original poems Flamboyan, published in 1988, describes the life and dreams of a young girl who is of mixed racial heritage. In the mid-1990’s, he was working on an anthology of women’s poetry and an anthology of American Indian poetry, areas that Adoff believes have been neglected as much as African American poetry.
Adoff recognized early in his career that there was insufficient representation of black poetry in literature and in school textbooks. He set out to remedy this situation by organizing two anthologies that he hoped would represent the finest authors in content, racial vision, and message. I Am the Darker Brother: An Anthology of Modern Poems by Negro Americans was published in 1968 and was followed by The Poetry of Black Americans, an American Library Association (ALA) Notable Book for 1973.
Pivotal factors in Adoff’s life were his early years as a member of a family to whom both music and reading were important and his experience of growing up in a mixed, working-class New York neighborhood. He discovered the literary works of Langston Hughes and Gwendolyn Brooks. Later, living in Greenwich Village and teaching in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, he came into contact with black jazz musicians of his day. One musician, Charlie Mingus, became a role model for Adoff in communicating thoughts and feelings via rhythm and language.
The work of Arnold Adoff is recognized and appreciated by students, peers, and critics. His poems and poetry collections are used in classrooms to read both for pleasure and for analysis. They also serve as vehicles for discussion. His works have been honored by the ALA, the Child Study Association of America, the National Council for Social Studies, the International Reading Association, and the Children’s Book Council.
All the Colors of the Race was an ALA Notable Book in 1982 and was cited for special recognition by the Jane Addams Peace Association in 1983. Adoff himself is the recipient of the poetry award bestowed by the National Council of Teachers of English.