Black Angels [Paperback]

Rita Murphy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 8, 2002 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

A powerful look at race and family at the dawn of the civil rights movement.

Eleven-year-old Celli's summer begins the usual way -- her mother leaves for a month's vacation in Atlanta and Sophie the baby-sitter moves into their house from the other side of town. But this is not a usual summer. Celli has discovered angels that no one else can see -- black angels appearing on the white side of town. And Sophie, part of the family despite the dark color of her skin, has become an outspoken advocate for equal rights. Her daring support of the fledgling civil rights movement embarrasses Celli -- and leaves her an outcast among her friends. As the black community's support for equality swells, Celli feels more embarrassed by Sophie's strident presence in town than supportive of the movement, until her long-lost grandmother from Ohio pays a visit and reveals a secret that will change the way Celli looks at life, color, and family.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

During the summer of 1961, 11-year-old Celline Brower Jenkins discovers the existence of angels. "I believe in angels because I've seen them... three naked black girls with creamy white wings, throwing stones on my hopscotch board.... The angels come every day now since the trouble started." The "trouble" is that Celli's beloved housekeeper, Sophie, is stirring up the black community of Mystic, Georgia, with talk of the civil rights movement. Celli is frightened for Sophie, and knows the folks on her side of town--"the white side"--won't tolerate her activism much longer. But when Celli begins to see the small black angels around her home, she feels strangely comforted: "They never speak to me, but somehow their presence fills me with hope." Then a stranger with a secret about Celli's past comes to town the same week as the Freedom Riders, and Celli discovers her fate is tied to Sophie's in a way she never dreamed possible. Now Celli must find the courage, in a dangerous time and place, to stand up for what she knows is right.

Rita Murphy's second novel for young adults puts a fresh face on a familiar story. By inserting a trio of unconventional angels into the center of an ugly period of American history, Murphy gives her historical fiction a touch of fairy tale, while not shying away from the harsh reality of 1960s racism. A worthy companion novel to Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry or The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963. (Ages 10 to 13) --Jennifer Hubert --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

In Murphy's (Night Flying) second novel, she again mixes a folksy first-person narrative with a touch of magic, albeit with less success than in her previous work. Set in small-town Mystic, Ga., during the summer of 1961, the novel centers on 11-year-old Celli, who lives on the "white side" of town but sees visions of black angels "descending into the peach trees or sitting in the garden." Celli's single mother spends the month of July at her sister's, leaving Celli and her 14-year-old brother, Ellery, in the care of their cook, Sophie, a fiery, outspoken African-American involved in organizing the Freedom Riders' arrival. In fact, readers may find Sophie a bit too loose-lipped to be believed, given her leadership role (Why, for instance, would she confide so many of her views and plans to the children in her charge?). Then, Celli's life is turned around by the arrival of her African-American paternal grandmother, a family secret subtly foreshadowed in the text. During a demonstration, Sophie ends up in jail, and Celli's half-Jewish-half-African-American neighbor appears at her door, wrongly accused of breaking a window. The angels give Celli the courage she needs to perform a daring act. Unfortunately, the suspense never really translates to readers and Celli's motivations remain somewhat muddled. Unlike the flesh-and-blood family featured in Murphy's debut novel, the sketchily drawn characters here fail to bring the story to life. Ages 9-up. (Mar.).

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Yearling (October 8, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440229340
• ISBN-13: 978-0440229346
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.4 x 7.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,780,202 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Movement with Help from Friends, March 22, 2001

By 

Sharon Walker (Hammond, Louisiana (USA)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Angels (Hardcover)

This book is a really great book. The author really researched the information of the Civil Rights Movement. She shows us what a lot of us fail to realize, such as all white people and all black people aren't bad people. We need each other in this day and time to combat the cruelties of this world. She also shows that we also need spiritual help as well. If God is for us who can be against us, NOBODY! I recommend this people to people of all ages and races. I guarantee that it will relax you and broaden your knowledge of the struggle of the African-American struggle.

5.0 out of 5 stars black angels summarized by:A.S, February 19, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Black Angels (Paperback)

I RECOMEND THIS BOOK ,BECAUSE IT`S INTERESTING;IT TALKS ABOUT THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVMENTS ,AND HOW AN ANGLO AMERICAN GROWS UP HAVING TO DEAL WITH ALL OF THE COMMOTION ABOUT HOW ITS NOT RIGHT TO TREAT BLACK PEOPLE THE WAY THEY DO,BECAUSE HER MAID,SOPHIE,IS BLACK.ITS ALSO ABOUT HOW THEY DONT LIKE TO LIVE THEIR LIVES AND HOW THEY DONT WANT TO LIVE THIER LIVES.THE ANGLO AMERICANS ARE RELYING ON THE COLOR OF YOUR SKIN NOT WHO YOU ARE SO IT`S BAD FOR THE BLACK PEOPLE,YOU HAVE TO HAVE FAITH IN YOURSELF AND OTHERS AND IT`S JUST HOW YOU HANDLE YOURSELF OUT IN THE WORLD BECAUSE THINGS YOU DO IN LIFE THAT IS NOT GOOD FOR YOU AND OTHERS WILL ALWAYS BACKFIRE ON YOU.

4.0 out of 5 stars What i Think, June 6, 2006

By 

rita - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Angels (Paperback)

This book was so good. At first i couldn't really get into it. It then got interesting. It also teach you about your history. They let you look in the eyes of a little girl and how she had to fight to survive in her own battle with racist as she grew up. She also had to deal with the fact that she has more to deal with the equal rights movement than she actually think.