Marching Toward Freedom, 1957-1965

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-Beginning with a description of the sit-in at a Woolworth lunch counter in North Carolina in 1960, Weisbrot's text shows how the courageous spirit that undergirded these participants permeated the civil rights movement as a whole. He also describes other milestones, such as the 1961 Freedom Rides, the 1963 March on Washington, the 1964 Freedom Summer activities, and the 1965 Selma to Montgomery march. In each case, he tries to capture the intensity and dynamics surrounding these events. Intimate details are incorporated into the writing, which help to give readers a sense of the personalities involved. Challenges to the movement-both internal and external-are handled aptly. Black-and-white photographs liberally illustrate this book, and amply convey the mood of the nation at that time. One drawback is the limited amount of text devoted to Malcolm X, who appears only in the epilogue. This is somewhat ironic since the subtitle states the book covers the period through his assassination. Other than that, the author does a commendable job of exploring this period of social change.-Jeanette Lambert, Nashville Metropolitan Schools, TN