November 1, 2022
Gr 3-6-These four graphic novels tell the stories of outstanding young people of the past. In Mary Anning Breaks New Ground, readers learn of Anning's discoveries of prehistoric fossils along the English coast, her research, and her struggles to be recognized by the male-dominated Geologic Society. Ruby Bridges Takes Her Seat details the struggles of the six-year-old girl who broke school racial barriers in 1960 New Orleans. The Little Rock Nine Challenge Segregation provides a suspenseful account of the events surrounding the integration of Little Rock, Arkansas's Central High School. Anne Frank Writes Words of Hope provides readers with a look at her life inside the annex while hiding from the Nazis. Colorful drawings tell the story as much as the text and will attract visual learners. The information provided is good and the detailed narratives in Ruby Bridges and The Little Rock Nine are engrossing; readers will anxiously turn the pages to see how events unfold. Dinosaur fans will appreciate Anning's opportunity to find and research so many fossils. Those unfamiliar with Frank's story will find her an inspiration as someone who managed living in a constant state of fear and uncertainty. VERDICT Given the graphic form of these books along with perennial classroom topics, these books should do well in libraries and attract those who like the pictures to inform as well as the text.
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October 15, 2022
Grades 4-7 Folks who think that graphic novels don't hold as much content as traditional texts have another thing coming with the Courageous Kids series (4 new titles). These new entries examine the lives of brave young people in history while providing ample context for the events and social conditions each had to confront. Though the books have different illustrators, the artwork in each is realistic and incorporates significant historic details. Jim Crow laws and white supremacy are addressed through the lens of desegregating schools in the American South in The Little Rock Nine Challenge Segregation as this volume follows the first Black students chosen to attend Arkansas' Central High School as they bravely faced hateful crowds and the court system for their right to education.
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