We Shall Overcome: A Song That Changed the World [Hardcover]

Stuart Stotts (Author), Terrance Cummings (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 18, 2010 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

“We Shall Overcome” isn’t a complicated piece of music. The first verse has only twenty-two words, most of them repeated. The melody is straightforward. The chords are basic. Yet the song has had a profound effect on people throughout the United States—and the world.
 

In clear, accessible language Stuart Stotts explores the roots of the tune and the lyrics in traditional African music and Christian hymns. He demonstrates the key role “We Shall Overcome” played in the civil rights, labor, and anti-war movements in America. And he traces the song’s transformation into an international anthem. With its dramatic stories and memorable quotes, this saga of a famous piece of music offers a unique way of looking at social history.
Author’s note, bibliography, source notes, index.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

“We Shall Overcome” is best known as the anthem of the civil rights movement, but what are the song’s origins, and how did it come to be such a powerful piece, both in its own right and as a musical metaphor? Stotts traces the song’s roots and evolution, beginning with a violent scene endured by a group of Freedom Riders. The blacks and whites attempting to integrate a bus terminal were about to be stormed by a vicious mob, yet they grasped hands and sang “We Shall Overcome.” From this drama, the story moves back in time to explore various types of music, including slave songs and church hymns, that may have been this tune’s basis. The song as we know it was shaped at the Highlander Folk School, whose workshop attendees included Rosa Parks. Ways in which the song has been adapted by other groups is also well chronicled. This smart, effective telling has few missteps. From the informative black-and-white photographs to the solid back matter to the CD sung by Pete Seeger, it is a complete package. Grades 5-8. --Ilene Cooper

Review

"From the informative black-and-white photographs to the solid back matter to the CD sung by Pete Seeger, it is a complete package."—Booklist

 "A fitting celebration of a song that has helped to create a better world."—Kirkus Reviews

"A thoughtful examination of a song that, as Stotts writes, 'seems to tap into our deepest emotions.'—Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 80 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books; 1 Rei/Com edition (January 18, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0547182104
• ISBN-13: 978-0547182100
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 9.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,793 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A case study of the "power of song", January 21, 2010

By 

Kristin Lems "Kristin/*" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: We Shall Overcome: A Song That Changed the World (Hardcover)

Many of us enjoyed "The Power of Song," the video documentary about folk singer Pete Seeger. Now we have "We Shall Overcome: A Song that Changed the World," which can be considered a powerful "case study" of the power of song. It traces the journey of "We Shall Overcome" across a century and a half of American history, with all its fascinating twists and turns, and demonstrates the song's power to inspire, comfort, and motivate millions in America and around the world.

The handsome layout and design of the book, a wide, square book with easily-readable double-spaced text and generous photographic supplements, makes it attractive to students seeking sources for American history papers and projects. It is packed with fascinating information about the song and its many singers, including some little-known ethnographic data, but the book is never pedantic, and the historical data is always broken up into small portions, written in a readable style and with many captivating photographs.

Stotts' writing style is conversational and engaged, always keeping both a tone of respect and a sense of wonder. The writing style will help the book attract a broad readership. Kids will not just pick it up -- they will actually read it!

The book is an indispensable resource for classroom libraries and school libraries and teachers of American history, social studies, black studies, ethnomusicology, and labor history (the uses of the song in labor organizing are detailed, in addition to its better-known status as an anthem of the civil rights movement). There is probably a secondary market for adult ESL, as well as GED and U.S. citizenship classes because of its contribution to the study of American history.

The inside sleeve, a CD of Pete Seeger singing the song, is the icing on the cake. Stunning brightly colored illustrations by Terrance Cummings start off each chapter with dramatic flair.

Clarion Books is to be congratulated for a compelling and important book about a powerful and important song. "We Shall Overcome: A song that Changed the World" is sure to make a lasting contribution to our understanding of the importance of culture in the study of history, and the unending power of song.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lively, powerful account especially good for home listening and discussion, February 21, 2010

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: We Shall Overcome: A Song That Changed the World (Hardcover)

Stuart Stotts' WE SHALL OVERCOME: A SONG THAT CHANGED THE WORLD comes with a CD performance by Pete Seger and provides the powerful, detailed story of the song packed with black and white archival images and graphic drawings. From music history to civil rights issues, this provides a lively, powerful account especially good for home listening and discussion.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We Shall Overcome, February 6, 2010

By 

Cynthia A. Mccrory - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: We Shall Overcome: A Song That Changed the World (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book, The cover sets the tone for the contents inside. The text and photos are incredible and very informative. The icing on the cake is the enclosed CD of Pete Seeger singing his song. Wonderful! This should be in every school and community library and ideally in every classroom library.