Freedom Songs (Puffin Book) [Paperback]

Yvette Moore (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: Puffin Book

In the sixties, when Sheryl's Uncle Pete joins the Freedom Riders down South, she organizes a gospel concert in Brooklyn to help him.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Sheryl, 14, gets her first taste of prejudice when she travels south for a family visit. PW said, "In the tradition of Mildred Taylor, Moore presents an authentic, disturbing slice of black American history." Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7-12-- This historical novel that opens on Good Friday morning in 1963 is the story of the impact of the beginnings of the civil rights movement on a Brooklyn teenager with family roots in the South. When Sheryl and her family head to North Carolina for Easter weekend, readers are plunged headlong into country living with outhouses and scary dogs at the neighbors' as well as a foot-washing church service, country picnics, and over and over the force of the Jim Crow laws that both infuriate and humiliate Sheryl. The topic of the freedom riders is introduced as young Uncle Pete is dedicated to the movement, and the whole family reacts. On Sheryl's return to her segregated northern community, she shares with her friends her concern and desire to support the movement with a fundraiser. Much of the story centers on how the kids struggle to achieve their goal and how that struggle changes them. The narrative resonates with the details and emotions of the times. The fear and anguish of the relatives and observers of those in the front lines are balanced by the lighthearted gossip and trivial pursuits of teenagers far from the reality. The book is uneven, however, and the narrator's voice is often not that of a 14-year-old. Moore includes far too many characters, and there is other evidence that this is a first novel and that the author's pacing and plot are not yet up to her vivid language and convincing ability to take readers to a crucial time in our history. --Carol A. Edwards, Buckham Memorial Library, Faribault, MN
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (September 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140360174
• ISBN-13: 978-0140360172
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,974,819 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Freedom starts in songs, March 1, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Freedom Songs (Puffin Book) (Paperback)

Civil Rights has been my favorite subject as for long as I can remember. Everytime we studied it in History clas I would pay the closest attention. One of my favorite movies has to do with the Civil Rights movement. This book was really good for me. It teaches many things. Not only does it teach you about the struggles and hardships that African American people had to go through back then, but it also teaches that if you beleive in yourself you can do anything and make a change. This story is about a 14 year old girl named Sherl. Her only dream for the upcomming year is to be a "fly girl". However when she goes down South to visit her relatives she finds out what racism really is and how it effects peoples lives. She finds out because her Uncle Pete announces that he is going to become a Freedom Rider. At first she was very proud but after she saw what was happening to other people helping out the Civil Rights cause, she got really scared for her uncles safety. So her and her friends decide to take action. This book is very inspiring. When you read this book you feel happy and everything because you not only know that a small 14 year old girl made a difference in her lives and other peoples lives, but it inspires you and tells you that if you work hard at it and are determined and really beleive in yourself you can make a difference too. Never give up if you feel like you havn't given your best. If you feel hopeless but you also feel like you still have like the smallest bit of hope left, try and try again and you'll be amazed at how much that little bit of hope can grow.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sheryl's Freedom Song, March 10, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Freedom Songs (Puffin Book) (Paperback)

SHERYLS FREEDOM SONG

Sheryl and her friends are trying to help the freedom riders with things like black people being able to vote. Or no white only restaurants, white only drinking fountains, or white only bathrooms. She organizes a number of events to raise money for the freedom riders. Such as a choir concert they raised enough money to help the freedom riders, in fact she raised over the amount she needed. I enjoyed the book very much so. I thought it was very ambitious for her to want to raise money to help people. She was very courageous. I dont think I could do that Id be afraid that the people who didnt like blacks would try to hurt me. But she wasnt afraid she even went to the white only restaurants and ordered food, of course they didnt serve it to her. They told her that they didnt serve food to nigras (the southern term for the word nigger).
I liked the book a lot. It was good to hear how Sheryl overcame the obstacles in her life. It always left me wondering about what exciting thing would happen next. She was always getting involved, and helping the freedom riders with there quest for freedom among the blacks. It amazed me that every time she didnt succeed she would try, try again. I could take lessons from her. I often give up very easily. I would give it 4 stars out of 5.

By:Kayla

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Racism Uproar, February 22, 2001

By 

Shannon - See all my reviews

This review is from: Freedom Songs (Puffin Book) (Paperback)

I read Freedom Songs by Yvette Moore. If I were to rate this book I would give it 4 out of 5 starts because it has a good meaning and it was interesting to read but it was also slow at times. Roll Of Thunder, Hear My Cry is similar and just as good as Freedom Songs. They both have lots of kids (and adults) that felt very strongly about what was happening to blacks around the world. Freedom Songs was a little different because the people in this story actually did something about the way they were being treated, the other characters in the other book didn't. For instance, they sat in whites chairs and drank from the whites drinking fountains to show that they were just as equal as anyone else in the U.S.A. I would recommend this book to any people (kids mostly) that like reading about black history because these things that happened to the characters really happen in real life. Its a real life story that people could probably relate to it and say that it really did and does happen. I think (my opinion only) that what whites did to blacks back then, and even now, is cruel and uncalled for since we are all equal in every way.