Bookverdict.com

Gr 4–7—It is 1936, and the country is struggling in the midst of the Great Depression. As Joe Louis inches closer to becoming the American heavyweight boxing champion, his victories spark hope in a nation starved for good news. Against this backdrop, Pinkney introduces three narrators whose lives are about to intersect. Hibernia chafes at her father's overprotectiveness: since her mother left them with dreams of singing at the Savoy, the reverend limits Hibernia's singing to the church choi...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

In alternating chapters, three preadolescent African American narrators reveal their deep private pain: Hibernia's mother left her and her father, a minister in "slowpoke Elmira, New York," to pursue a singing career at the Savoy Ballroom; Otis's devoted parents were killed in a highway accident; and Willie's father abused him cruelly. As their lives intersect during the year before Joe Louis wins his heavyweight championship fight (agai...Log In or Sign Up to Read More

In alternating chapters, three preadolescent African American narrators--Hibernia, Otis, and Willie--reveal their deep private pain. As their ...Log In or Sign Up to Read More