Book Review: Let The Children March

Disclaimer:  I was provided an advanced copy of this book from the author to facilitate this review.  As always, all opinions are my own.

  • The Facts: Let The Children March, written by Monica Clark-Robinson and illustrated by Frank Morrison, published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, New York, NY 2018, 32 pages, ISBN: 9780544704527 (hardcover).

 

  • Summary:  Let The Children March is a visually stunning and important book that children of all ages should read and be exposed to. It is the story of a young girl’s family faced with a decision with very real consequences including loss of employment, public/community ostracization, concerns of bodily safety and security, among others, regarding whether to march with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for civil rights in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. Ultimately the parents abstain from marching, but their children do, and this is their story.  This book is appropriate for children ages 7 and up, grades 2-5, and is the perfect book to read as a bedtime story with children of all ages.

 

  • The Review This book is beautifully illustrated and written and transports you back into the era of the civil rights around the tipping point in 1963. I read this book to my children as a bedtime story and we had an amazing conversation about sacrifice, choices, consequences, discrimination/racism bravery and courage and the fact that your age does not determine whether you can make a meaningful contribution to society.  We loved that this book is historically factual and that the main characters were a brother and sister duo, like my children, which made the book relatable for them.  This book is phenomenal and must have for your personal library.