Birmingham, 1963

By Carole Boston Weatherford

Book Overview

A Jane Addams Children's Honor Book

Written by Children's Literature Legacy Award winner Carole Boston Weatherford, this poetic tribute to the victims of the racially motivated church bombing that served as a seminal event in the struggle for civil rights is a book that captures the heartbreak of that day, as seen through the eyes of a fictional witness.

In 1963, the eyes of the world were on Birmingham, Alabama, a flashpoint for the civil rights movement. Birmingham was one of the most segregated cities in the United States. Civil rights demonstrators were met with police dogs and water cannons. On Sunday, September 15, 1963, members of the Ku Klux Klan planted sticks of dynamite at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, which served as a meeting place for civil rights organizers. The explosion killed four little girls. Their murders shocked the nation and turned the tide in the struggle for equality. Poignant text written in free verse pairs with archival photographs in this powerful memorial to the young victims.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590784405
• ISBN13: 9781590784402
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Wordsong
• Length: 40 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.8" x 8.1"
• Age Range: 6 to 9 years
• Grade Range: Grades 1 to 4

Customer Reviews

Birmingham, 1963

One of my favorite books is THe Watson's Go to Birmingham -1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis. This new book by Carole Weatherford is an excellent addition to a text set on the Civil Rights Movement. THrough the eyes of a 10-year old girl attending church on that fateful Sunday in September, Weatherford creates a tribute not only to the four little girls who died in the bombing, but to all those who worked for change despite the cruelty and horror of the times. Both books should be accompanied by Spike Lee's "Four Little Girls." Weatherford's book about the Greensboro sit-ins - Freedom on the Menu - adds another dimension to the story. I would start out the unit with The Story of Ruby Bridges and THrough My Eyes (by Ruby Bridges) - books that tell about the integration of New Orleans schools in 1960. All these books allow us to see the times through the eyes of children. THe photos in Birmingham, 1963 help today's students get a sense of the times. THe four photos of the girls at the end accompanied by short poems about each helps today's children see how these girls were real children who played with their friends, participated in band and scouts and church and dreamed of their future.