Customer Reviews

Lay that Trumpet in Our Hands

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This novel is a glimpse into the world of 12-year-old Reesa and her family, a Northern family living in Central Florida during the early '50s.
Based on actual events, the story covers some of the atrocities committed by the KKK in Florida in 1951, beginning with the brutal slaying of Marvin, a dear friend of Reesa's family, who is African-American, and who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Marvin's slaying is only the first in a string of violent events that include bombings in Miami, and the murder of the Moores, a couple who worked to bring the vote to Florida's African-American population.
Determined to bring Marvin's murderers to justice, Reesa's family sets off a string of events that eventually lead to a federal investigation and federal trial of many of the town's KKK members.
Why don't they teach this in school? I had no idea of any of these events until I read this novel. How very sad.

WOW! What a read! This is an important story told beautifully. Some of the narrative is lyrical. Other parts will chill you to the bone. It is a story that will stick with me for a long, long time. Told from the point of view of a young girl in 1951 Florida, it takes the reader into the civil rights movement with heartbreaking intimacy. Compared, on the cover, to To Kill a Mockingbird (something that's almost inevitable when the story deals with a pre-pubescent narrator talking about racism in the South), I found it a "different bird" altogether. It stands on its own as a fine piece of literature. Book discussion groups, take note! And all others simply looking for a book that will provoke thought and feeling - look no further.

Susan Carol McCarthy tells an amazing story of family, friendship and personal strength through the eyes of a young girl, Reesa, living in central Florida in the 1950's.
Two families become entwined when the KKK intimidates, stalks and randomly murders a young man, Marvin Cully, because he is black. The young man's death is a turning point for Reesa McMahon because the ugly world of racism is unveiled before her young eyes. Marvin Cully's family and Reesa's families are friends, and Marvin's death draws them even closer. Reesa's parents must make decisions to do what is right, even at the risk of endangering their own family.
The early Civil Rights movement is explored, with the founder Harry T. Moore joining the McMahon's and the Cully's in trying to expose and bring to justice those responsible for Marvin's murder. This opens the window on the KKK and more violence and terror is unleashed.
This is a story that is both beautiful and heart-wrenching. It is a story about friends, faith and families that make definitive choices to do the right thing. It is also about innocence lost when wrong and right collide, leaving moral courage stamped in fire upon a young girl's soul.
I met the author at a book event in Tampa. She spoke about the historical accuracy of her book and told of her decision to write this book based on her father's actions in that time. Also at this event was Evangeline Moore, the daughter of Harry Moore, and she told of her view of events of the time and of her parents violent murder.
This is an amazing book that is an honest and insightful view into the thoughts and lives of those in the early days of the Civil Rights Movement and a foresight of changes that were to come.

Florida is hardly the place one would look to find the hotbed of violence and hatred that was the Ku Klux Klan in 1951. However, as Susan Carol McCarthy tells us in her highly effective debut novel, at that time, it was. Reesa McMahon's nightmare begins in spring of that year when a nineteen year old black youth named Marvin Cully is killed. Marvin was her friend and worked as citrus picker in her father's orange grove. This event sets off a wave of violence throughout the state. Bombs explode and people are killed as far south as Miami. The NAACP and FBI get involved and eventually Reesa's father, Warren, is involved as a sympathizer for the blacks. This leads to an eventual clash between Warren and the local black community versus the KKK.
Susan Carol McCarthy displays a prodigious talent at writing realistic historical fiction. There is much to be admired in this work. The civil rights era is brought fully to life in her hands. There is a great sense of place in that the reader could almost smell the fragrant citrus groves of this small central Florida town. However, most impressive of all is her depiction of the characters. They are both empathetic and realistic including the dialogue they speak. In a sense, it is a coming of age novel. It represents a clash between childhood innocence and the harsh realities of the adult world comprised of racial bigotry and hatred. Remnicent of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, LAY THAT TRUMPET IN OUR HANDS is a microcosmic saga that reveals the triumph of good over evil in the framework of a small southern town. Highly recommended.

While reading this book, I kept saying to myself and my husband, "I didn't know that or did you know that. . .". In other words, this book is based on facts of historical events involving the KKK and the FBI that occurred in Florida in 1951-1952. However, this story is far from boring; it's told from a young girl's perspective as she grows up emotionally. Not only does Ms. McCarthy tell a story of fearful circumstances but also personalizes it so that we rout for this girl, her family and the community. Every anecdote ties together perfectly. I especially didn't want to read about a "rattler race" in a dry sinkhole, yet I couldn't stop myself. So will you.

This story may have been written for young people but as a senior citizen I found it to be an interesting and compelling story of what wasn't so good in the good old days when segregation was still causing heartache especially in Florida.
The author actually lived in the area she wrote about and did a lot of research of the Civil Rights era.
This book had many heartwarming parts and also brought me to tears. My friends and I all read the book and then went out to lunch at the inn that was mentioned in the book. I liked the book so much that I read it twice.
After I read it I gave it to my husband and he enjoyed reading it too.

I loved this book. Ms. McCarthy writes simply and beautifully. I was raised in Central Florida and could recall some of the events mentioned in the book. What I loved the most about the book was the relationships, the use of poetry and bible scriptures. I think this book is a 'must read'.

"Lay that Trumpet in Our Hands" has been compared to "To Kill a Mockingbird", and I think the comparison is warranted. With a young, spunky girl as the narrator, troubled racial events taking place, and the relationships between people at its heart, using this book to bridge to the denser classic novel will help kids make the transition. I'm planning to use it with my 8th grade students; I might question using it with younger students.

It isn't only a great book for teaching purposes, though! Pick it up and prepare to connect with the characters and become immersed in the story.

I don't see the rating that I put on this book for the last time so maybe I didn't rate it at all. Why? I don't know. This book was one of the most excellent and intriguing books I've ever read in my life. It was so interesting to hear about a white person's perspective on the KKK and the plot was fabulous. Although I wish she wouldn't have had reason to write this story, I really did appreciate it. Thanks again!

My son was assigned this for school summer reading. He loved the book and talked about it constantly after he was done.It made a big impact.