Book breakfasts begin on August 29th and the first amazing story we'll discuss is Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor. I've fallen in love with the Logan family this week...especially Cassie and her brothers. I've felt their pain and heartbreak as they attempt to endure life in the deep south during the Great Depression. Fortunately for them, they own their land and can be somewhat independent, but they truly are an island as so many black families were back then...they had each other and that's about it. When I've shared the fact that they walked a mile to school each morning and that the white school bus splashed them intentionally and ran them off the road into the muddy ditch, my students look at me as if I were reading fantasy to them. "Yes," I say, "That kind of behavior really existed." It blesses me when they innocently ask why the bus driver wouldn't stop to pick them up... It's a difficult question to answer.
Winner of the John Newbery Medal, this classic will probably find it's way onto my top ten books of all time list. It's one of those stories that continues playing in your mind when you're not reading... This is a book for everyone. I strongly encourage you to read it. :)
Happy Reading!
RC
