Thurgood Marshall

Hazel Rochman

Books for young people must be as meticulously accurate and as carefully documented as the most sophisticated adult material. What kids read determines whether they will see any value in books, whether they will go on reading. Books serve as models for kids' own research and writing. This attractively designed title in the I Have a Dream series is infused with the dynamic personality of Thurgood Marshall, the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court. Illustrated with black-and-white photographs, the biography introduces middle-grade readers to a great public figure and also to the struggle for civil rights in which he played a crucial role. However, no sources or bibliography are provided, even for direct quotes. What's more, there are grammatical errors and misspellings (even of names, even in the glossary), and hyphens are sprinkled at random. Kids deserve better.