Reviewed by Brianne Pitts Review Source: Independent Book Author: A picture book rendition of young Rosa Parks’ early life hopes to explore the joy, challenges, and agency of her childhood in rural Alabama. Though promising, like many well-meaning educators teaching the story of Rosa Parks, this text leaves readers with a sterile story that reinforces […]
Lift as You Climb: The Story of Ella Baker
Reviewed by Judy Richardson Review Source: Independent Book Author: Children’s Book on Ella Baker: A Critical Review by a SNCC Veteran As a former Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) staff worker who knew Ms. Baker, I looked forward to reading the 2020 picture book, Lift as You Climb: The Story of Ella Bake by Patricia Hruby […]
We March
Reviewed by Allyson Criner Brown Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Author: The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom is popularly remembered as the backdrop for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s now-famous speech. We March tells the story of the March on Washington from the perspective of the marchers — in particular, one […]
Belle, the Last Mule at Gee’s Bend: A Civil Rights Story
Reviewed by: Rebecca Lehr Book Author: As Alex’s mother shops for a quilt in Gee’s Bend, Alabama, he sits outside and spots an old mule eating collard greens from a garden. An elderly woman, Miz Pettway, sits down next to him and begins to tell him why Belle, the mule, is allowed to eat all […]
Someday Is Now: Clara Luper and the 1958 Oklahoma City Sit-In
Reviewed by Deborah Menkart Review Source: Crazy Quilt Edi Book Author: Every year in the Zinn Education Project “this day in history” series, we feature the story of high school history teacher Clara Luper and the NAACP Youth Council in Oklahoma who began sit-ins to desegregate lunch counters at the Katz Drugstore on Aug. 19, 1958. This […]
Troublemaker for Justice
Reviewed by Conner Suddick Review Source: Teaching for Change Book Authors: Troublemaker for Justice illuminates readers on the life and legacy of Bayard Rustin. A notable civil rights leader, Rustin is often cast into the historical shadows of the civil rights movement in part because of his sexuality, political engagement with the communist party during […]
