Thursday, May 12, 2016

YA Friday: Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom


Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom is a first person perspective of the fight for Civil Rights in Selma, Alabama. The story follows the life of Lynda Blackmon Lowery from the ages of 13-15. In the story she explains her involvement in historical events including Bloody Sunday and the March from Selma to Montgomery. 

Being a former history teacher I really enjoyed this book. I find that some students know only a little bit about the Civil Rights Movement. Their knowledge is usually limited to Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King. Both of these individuals were essential to the Civil Rights Movement but, I wish that students learned about other Civil Rights leaders. This book offers more information about individuals who helped fight for voting rights. 

This book does a great job of telling the story of Selma through a young adults perspective. I also like how Lowery emphasized the fact that several different kinds of people fought for voting rights in Selma. Even though this book would be considered Non-fiction I think that Young Adults would really enjoy it. The story while factual, is also entertaining and the illustrations from PJ Loughran are excellent. 


Overall, I give this book 5 out of 5 stars and I highly recommend it for Young Adults interested in the Civil Rights Movement. 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Thank you for commenting. Comment moderation is enabled to prevent spam. We will review your comment ASAP. Can't bear to wait? Feel free to comment to us directly on Twitter. Our handles are @sralph31 and @lehmanac