Tar Beach Analysis

The main idea of Tar Beach, to me, is that your imagination can make anything possible. The young girl uses her imagination to make all she wants her. She first explains how much she loves the George Washington bridge, “The bridge was my most prized possession.” She talks about how her father worked on the bridge and how much that meant to her. The author explains that the girl imagines she can fly and once she flies over something, she claims it to be hers. Throughout the book she claims the union building for her father and the ice cream factory for all of her family to enjoy. She also takes her brother flying with her, “I have told him it’s very easy. All you need is somewhere to go that you can’t get to any other way.” I believe the author

is trying to show that using your imagination can take you anywhere you want to go.

This book is what I have always thought of as a “typical” children’s book. It teaches a lesson, uses great imagery and is easily able for children to understand. Tar Beach shows that children’s literature is important in shaping minds of all ages. The young girl wants her father to get a better paying job, so that both her parents will be happier. “He’ll be rich and won’t have to stand on 24-story-high griders and look down. And mommy won’t cry all winter when he goes to look for work and doesn’t come home.” This is an example of young maturity and the words are easy to understand yet not dumb downed. This book was a great example children’s literature.