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SWEET LAND OF LIBERTY
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Written by
Deborah Hopkinson
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Illustrated by
Leonard Jenkins
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Hardcover: $16.95
ISBN: 978-1-56145-395-5
Total Pages: 32
Size: 11 x 9-1/2 inches
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Picture books, ages 6-10/Nonfiction/History
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Deborah Hopkinson is the award-winning author of numerous critically acclaimed picture and chapter books, including Under the Quilt of Night; Shutting Out the Sky: Life in the Tenements of New York 1880-1924; Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story in Nine Innings; and Up Before Daybreak: Cotton and People in America. She lives in Oregon.You can visit Deborah Hopkinson's website at: www.deborahhopkinson.com
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Leonard Jenkins has illustrated many books, including Champions on the Bench: The Cannon Street YMCA All-Stars; The Best Beekeeper of Lalibela; and Langston's Train Ride. He lives in New York.
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This inspiring story of little-known civil rights champion Oscar Chapman and his role in Marian Anderson's concert at the Lincoln Memorial reminds readers that one person can truly make a difference.
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Accelerated Reader & Reading Counts Tests:
Reading Counts Test #: Q41277
Reading Counts Level: 4.3
AR Quiz#: 112349
AR Reading Level: 5.1
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ON EASTER SUNDAY 1939, Marian Anderson performed at the foot of the Lincoln Memorial in front of a crowd of over 75,000 people. The person largely responsible for putting her there was a white man, Oscar Chapman, assistant secretary of the interior under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
When Chapman learned that Marian Anderson was not allowed to sing at Constitution Hall because of the color of her skin, he took it upon himself to do the impossible: find Marian Anderson an appropriate venue for a concert and make an important statement about equality and the rights of all Americans. With support from the highest levels of U.S. government, Chapman helped produce a landmark concert that - for at least one evening - bridged the color divide to bring a city and much of the nation together.
Author Deborah Hopkinson tells the inspirational story of Oscar Chapman, including his childhood exposure to racism that led to his lifelong commitment to ending bigotry. An author's note provides additional historical context. Illustrator Leonard Jenkins's remarkable illustrations recreate a bygone era and pay tribute to remarkable real-life people and a magical moment in modern history.
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Reviews
"Jenkins’s mixed-media illustrations are freighted with emotion, unnatural colors and skewed angles underlining the tumult of feelings surrounding the events, scribbles of colored chalk making the connection between Chapman the impassioned schoolboy and Chapman the righteous man...it brings deserved attention to Chapman and underscores the very worthwhile message that one does not need to be a star to make a difference."Kirkus Reviews "Jenkins’ powerful, bright, mixed-media collages show and tell the connections, past, present, and future, as the politician remembers his childhood experience and his works for civil rights."Booklist "Hopkinson's (Sky Boys) accessible, conversational narrative relays the little-known story of Oscar Chapman... Featuring bright swirling pastel patterns against deep blues and browns, Jenkins's (Langston's Train Ride) collage-like mixed-media illustrations deftly dramatize this illuminating and inspirational behind-the-scenes look at a triumphant moment in the civil rights movement."Publishers Weekly
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Awards
* 2008 NCSS/CBC Notable Trade Books for Young People in the Field of Social Studies
* 2008 Teachers’ Choices (intermediate winner)
* 2008 Storytelling World Awards: Stories for Pre-Adolescent Listeners
* 2008 The Best Children’s Books of the Year (Bank Street College of Education)
(starred - outstanding merit)
* 2009 (February) Anti-Defamation League Featured Book
* Honor Book, 2007 Society of School Librarians International Book Awards
(Social Studies Grades K-6)
* Honorable mention, 2007 Outstanding Book Award, Gustavus Myers Center
for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights
* Nominee, 2009-2010 Children’s Crown Awards
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