|
November
14, 1960, New Orleans---a six-year-old girl changes
history. The tiny first grader is Ruby Bridges, and
she was the first African American child to attend
an all-white school in the Deep South. She needed
to be escorted by U. S. Marshals to protect her
from a mob of angry white people, mostly housewives
and teenagers, who jeered and taunted Ruby. Many
parents pulled their children out of the school
rather than have them schooled with an African
American child, so Ruby was kept separate from the
other children. Ruby Bridges tells her story in a
very personal, honest and even loving way, if more
than a bit bewildered. Quotations from magazines
and books of the day as well as chilling
photographs give the story its place in the America
of forty years ago. The book ends with an update on
what happened to Ruby after this courageous girl
grew up. A moving historical document, this is a
must read! (Jeannie Bellavance
bellavance@erols.com
for Pennsylvania
Young Reader's Choice
Awards)
|
