First published 2009
Elizabeth Partridge takes readers directly into Selma, Alabama during the turbulent spring of 1965. Her account centers on the three months of demonstrations that led to the historic march from Selma to Montgomery. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had chosen this small Alabama city as the focal point for securing voting rights for Black Americans. Partridge pays special attention to the young people who joined the movement, facing brutal attacks and life-threatening violence as they marched beside King. The author documents the chaos and intensity of those pivotal months, showing how ordinary children became part of an extraordinary struggle. Black and white photographs capture the raw emotion of the protests. This book reveals the courage required from participants who knew they risked everything for the fundamental right to vote.
Genres: historical-fiction, biography-memoir, activism, african-american-historical-fiction, american-history
Vibes: emotional, thought-provoking
Tropes: based-on-true-events, coming-of-age
Setting: Alabama, Selma
Period: 1965
83 pages · Kindle Edition · Viking Books for Young Readers
Content warnings: violence