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1. When and where was the author of the book born and raised? How are his parents described?

James Weldon Johnson was born in Jacksonville, Florida, on June 17, 1871. His father was headwaiter at an expensive restaurant, and his mother was an elementary school teacher and a gifted pianist; neither had been slaves.

2. How are the author’s teenage years described? For whom did he work and where?

As a teenager, Johnson worked as a secretary to a white physician who took him to New York City and Washington, D.C., tutored him in upper-class manners, gave him books to read, and encouraged him to write.

3. Where did James Weldon Johnson attend university? How is this institution described?

Johnson attended Atlanta University, created to provide African Americans an education based on the classics and on the idea of public service. Johnson took to heart the call to serve his community, as he demonstrated through a long and varied career in public life.

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