A Picture Book of Rosa Parks (Picture Book Biography) - Hardcover

Adler, David A.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0823410412 ISBN 13: 9780823410415

Publisher: Holiday House, 1993

Synopsis

In 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white person on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, even though she was breaking the law. She was arrested, and African Americans throughout the city boycotted buses. Rosa Parks's courage to fight injustice led many to call her the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement."

About this title

About the Author

David A. Adler is the author of many popular books for children, including biographies, math books, and Judaica. His strong interest in history and biography led to his bestselling Picture Book Biography series. He lives in New York State with his wife and family.

Robert Casilla is the illustrator of several titles in David A. Adler's Picture Book Biography series, with subjects that include Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Jesse Owens. He lives in Connecticut.

Reviews

Grade 2-4-Adler presents a biographical account of the longtime and committed civil-rights activist, whose role in initiating the Montgomery bus boycott was but one aspect. He also brings in other issues, such as school desegregation and the presence of the Ku Klux Klan. While these inclusions diffuse his focus, they also give young readers background on the time and the movement in which she participated. Brief notes offer additional information about Tuskeegee Institute, located near Parks's birthplace, and Thurgood Marshall, who successfully argued the Brown v. Board of Education desegregation case before the Supreme Court. Casilla's illustrations are realistic and useful, though somewhat static and lacking in excitement. The text also tends toward dryness. Still, Adler's sensitive writing and broad perspective on his subject's life make this a useful source for young children.
Lyn Miller-Lachmann, Siena College Library, Loudonville, NY
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 2-4. In this volume of his fine Picture Book Biography series for younger readers, Adler sets the life story of Rosa Parks within the history of the civil-rights movement. The simple narrative text and the dramatic color illustrations show the discrimination that was common when Parks was growing up: one double-page spread depicts the insult of separate water fountains; another shows the Ku Klux Klan terror with flaming torches. Then there's the crucial confrontation in 1955 when Parks is arrested for refusing to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. How her brave act started the Montgomery bus boycott led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is stirring history. In addition to the sweeping political scenes, there are portraits by Casilla that capture the ordinary person who made a difference. Hazel Rochman

Edition details

• Publisher: Holiday House
• Publication date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0823410412
• ISBN 13: 9780823410415
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Casilla Robert
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32