Yvette Moore

Freedom Songs Yvette Moore

FREEDOM SONGS A young adult classic by Yvette Moore Fourteen-year-old Sheryl Williams of Brooklyn, New York, is working a plan to become a "fly girl" when Jim Crow rudely interrupts her during a family trip to North Carolina in 1963. Sheryl and her idyllic view of "Down South" begin to change--and even more change is on the way because the Civil Rights Movement is coming to town! Sheryl's young Uncle Pete helps farm the family land, attends a nearby Negro college and is organizing Negroes to register to vote. Joining the Civil Rights Movement is dangerous and intimidates some family members, but it pushes Sheryl and her friends to action when she returns to Brooklyn. Freedom Songs is a moving coming of age story set in a turbulent, yet empowering and inspiring, time in U. S. history, the 1960s. Nevertheless, the book's themes of family, responsibility and justice remain vital for today. This young adult Civil Rights Movement classic was first published in the United States by Orchard Books/Franklin Watts, Inc., in 1991. It was reprinted by Puffin Books/`Penguin Group in 1992. Now Jubilee Year Communications brings this captivating story to yet another generation of YA readers in e-book and paperback formats. What the critics say: "The narrative resonates with the details and emotions of the times .... Moore's vivid language and convincing ability takes readers to a crucial time in our history." School Library Journal "In the tradition of Mildred Taylor, Moore presents an authentic, disturbing slice of black American history as she traces an impressionable heroine's changing perceptions. ... [The book's] themes regarding injustice, oppression and nonviolent forms of resistance remain relevant today." Publishers Weekly "Moore subtly and effectively describes the changing mixture of fear and resolution with which Sheryl faces white hostility, as well as the firm church and family relationships that are her foundation. She also presents the methods and nonviolent philosophy of the Civil Rights Movement as clearly as the abuses it aimed to correct. An uncompromising first novel that's easily strong enough to carry its educational load." Kirkus Review Freedom Songs by Yvette Moore is a Civil Rights Era classic that weaves history and important movement lessons into a compelling story about young people from Brooklyn who claim their power to change the world. Reissuing this empowering story will inspire yet another generation to step up to the challenges of their times. The Rev. Dr. Herbert Daughtry, National Presiding Minister, The House of the Lord Churches, www.herbertdaughtryglobalministries.com