Customer Reviews

Freedom Summer

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Joe and John Henry are best friends. They both love to play marbles, eat ice pops and swim in Fiddler's Creek. And, when they grow up, they're both planning to be firemen. But as Joe tells it there is one big difference between them... "John Henry's skin is the color of browned butter" and "my skin is the color of the pale moths that dance around the porch light at night." In the early 1960's, there are some things they just can't do together. John Henry's not allowed to swim in the town pool or buy his ice pops at Mr Mason's General Store. But all that is about to change. In 1964, the Civil Rights Act becomes law and segregation has to end. The town's swimming pool will be open to everyone, together and John Henry and his family will be able to shop at Mr Masons. The boys are so excited they can hardly sleep and race to the town pool extra early so that they can be there when it opens. But instead of cool blue water, they find workmen filling the pool with asphalt..... Deborah Wiles has written a gentle, yet powerful story of one small southern town's struggle with integration, as seen through the eyes of her white narrator, Joe. Her beautiful, heart-felt text, combined with Jerome Lagarrigue's stunning artwork will pull your children into the story and let them become part of Joe and John Henry's experience. Freedom Summer is a story of racism, friendship and the triumph of the human spirit, told with great insight and wisdom. A story you won't soon forget.

History comes alive in this book. Freedom Summer puts names and faces to one of the most intense struggles our country has ever faced. It tells of two young boys who go against the flow and dare to be friends. The language is poetic and moving. Before you know it you're walking down the street with the characters. You see what they see and you feel what they feel. This book is something I will read to my children and I hope that one day they pull it off the shelf and read it to their children because it is a story of enduring quality, and it is a story that needs to be told and remembered.

FREEDOM SUMMER is an amazing picture book. It's warm, child-centered, but also serious and meaningful. When I showed it recently to a children's librarian her comment was simply, "Wow!" This is a book to treasure, to read to your children, to share with students. It's a reminder that racism affects all children and that friendship is to be treasured.

This is a very evocative book about racism and hatred. Here's this boy, excited to play in the pool for the first time - and he can't. The city was so upset about integration that they filled the pool with concrete rather than let black people swim there. Terrible.

This book is realistic, and we can always use more books about history. It's well-written, I like the artwork.

But...

See, now, I have to ask this. Here's this book about integration, about hatred, about racism. It features a white boy and his black best friend. Best friend's big brother makes an appearance, too. The best friend is the one who feels heartbroken, he's the one who's suffering here...

So why is the white kid the narrator?

Is this story of friendship, and of hatred, really his story to tell? Why couldn't John Henry have told his own story?

This is a wonderful book about friendship and unfairness, beautifully told, emotionally illustrated, completely accessible--and about a subject important for us to remember and our kids to learn. The story and pictures are perfectly matched. I cry every time I read this book, and also feel hopeful. Don't miss it!

Mr. Truman's Fifth Grade Class

Mostly life takes you places, yet sometimes it takes you down. John Henry and Joe cannot go swimming in the public pool because of the segregation law. John Henry couldn't go into the store either.Friendship cannot separate the two of them and when the law changes, Joe and John Henry go into the store together.

Subtlety, outrage and compassion are delicately balanced in this story of two boys and a town struggling with segregation and integration. Illustrations are stunning, particularly the one showing the elder brother doing work that goes against his heart, only to earn his day's wage. His eyes tell his story. My seven year old daughter loved this story and exclaimed "that was great!" when we reached the last page. "It was really open-ended," she added.

Having just read Freedom Summer by Bruce Watson, I could see how skillfully Deborah Wiles captured the changing times, and their every moment - the excitement with which Joe leaves the dinner table, the shopkeeper's friendly banter, the lucky nickel ... small signs of hope that leave us optimistic even as the story leaves us in suspense when the two friends, on the heels of one defeat, courageously walk together.

Mrs. Belayachi's Fifth Grade Class

It is a great book written about segregation and friendship. It is about two boys, one black and one white, who are best friends. Joe and John Henry try to change the rules of segregation. We learned that best friends should always be together and care for eachother.

Freedom Summer, written by Deborah Wiles and illustrated by Jerome Lagarrigue, is a wonderful book for all ages. Children can understand it, and adults will appreciate the message this book is trying to send. It is about a white boy whose name is Joe, and his best friend, John Henry, who is black. The book takes place in 1964 when there was still segregation, and Joe and John Henry live in the Deep South. They do everything together. When they go to get something from the store John Henry has to stay outside because he isn't allowed inside. One day when Joe and John Henry were at Joe's house they overheard his mom talking about the new law that was passed that made segregation illegal. They were so happy that they ran down to the town pool because now, finally, John Henry will be allowed to swim in it. They find out that some people aren't ready to change what they think just because of a new law. The people who own the pool have filled it with asphalt. They don't want black people to be able to swim in it. Joe and John Henry are so disappointed, but they decide to go enjoy whatever they can together. In the book the artwork is beautiful! I love all of the different colors that the artist uses. The pictures really help tell the story. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I do!

As segregation ended, two boys, one white, one black, celebrated their friendship. They looked forward to the fact that they'd finally be able to swim in the town pool together. Though both were aware of their color differences, they were best friends and hung out together during the day. When laws are passed to end segregation, the boys thought it would mean big changes were going to overcome their small Southern town. Unfortunately, this is not the case as they learned when they get to the pool to see it being filled with cement.

FREEDOM SUMMER was a very eye-opening acknowledgment of racism, narrated by a young white boy. While blacks celebrated the Civil Rights Act being passed, there were whites all across the South who refused to cooperate and open their doors in equality for all. Instead, they found it better to close establishments, treat blacks poorly, or come up with other loopholes -- in the case of this book, by shutting down a public pool.

The dialogue between the two boys is innocent and hopeful, and the images created by Jerome Lagarrigue are subtle, yet inviting. This book speaks volumes on racism and friendship, and reminds one that treating others justly should not be limited by skin color. It is a great lesson on history as it touches on the emotional impact of civil rights and integration. I'm happy to see that this book has been awarded both the Coretta Scott King Award and the Ezra Jack Keats Book Award, because it is not only wonderfully told, but is educationally sound. It would make a wonderful addition to any child's library, regardless of race.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers