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bridgetbosworth's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
4.5
onetrooluff's review against another edition
5.0
A very powerful, skillfully crafted look at the civil rights movement through the eyes of John Lewis. I feel like everyone should read this.
teresatumminello's review against another edition
4.0
The first of a trilogy about John Lewis’s life, this graphic novel’s defining events are the 1960 lunch-counter sit-ins and the march to Nashville’s City Hall after the bombing of the home of the attorney representing the jailed young people. It’s still hard for me to fathom that just over a year before I was born human beings treated other human beings in such despicable ways, got away with it, and were even silently encouraged; so of course I find it even harder to fathom that similar things go on around the world, all the time, to this day. Though I know the violence toward the non-violent will intensify, I look forward to book two.
jenikki's review against another edition
5.0
A friend of mine recommended this book to everyone on his Facebook feed a couple of weeks ago, and I just happened to start reading it on January 20, 2017. Why is that significant? Because while half the country was sad to see Obama go and was predicting the end of civilization as we know it, I was reading a book set on January 20, 2009, depicting a nation filled with hope as Obama was sworn in. This graphic novel is written by Congressman John Lewis — known as one of the Big Six civil rights leaders who helped organize the March on Washington and the Selma march. He also happens to be the only surviving member of the Six, which included Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The book opens on Obama's first inauguration day, where two little boys come in to Congressman Lewis's office and he begins to tell them about his upbringing, and the beginning of the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s, beginning with the meetings where they laid down the rules: you must never yell back, you must never hit back (violence begets violence) and if someone strikes you, you take it. This is not an easy book to read, but now, more than ever since it was published, it should be mandatory reading. I immediately handed the book to my 12-year-old daughter and she devoured it in a couple of hours. I'm so glad Congressman Lewis wrote this trilogy.
keegan_rellim_taylor's review against another edition
5.0
I got this series for my older kids and my second kept asking me to read it too, and I finally did. It is so excellent!!
I love that it has the highlights and the lowlights (so to speak) of the Civil Rights Movement. It couldn't be a complete picture but it was definitely much fuller than anything I read as a kid on the subject.
I appreciated how many people from the movement I learned about, especially how many women. For instance I had heard the name Fannie Lou Hammer but I didn't really know what she had done. There were so many powerful women!
I loved the excerpts from some of the important speeches of the era. It was just such a powerful piece done excellently!
I love that it has the highlights and the lowlights (so to speak) of the Civil Rights Movement. It couldn't be a complete picture but it was definitely much fuller than anything I read as a kid on the subject.
I appreciated how many people from the movement I learned about, especially how many women. For instance I had heard the name Fannie Lou Hammer but I didn't really know what she had done. There were so many powerful women!
I loved the excerpts from some of the important speeches of the era. It was just such a powerful piece done excellently!
catalogthis's review against another edition
5.0
Bought a copy at Powell's in Portland (CORRECTION: this was from Books with Pictures. You know it's a good vacation when all your indie bookstore visits start to blur together.)
Well written, balances personal memoir (especially loved seeing young Bob preaching to his chickens) with wider political/social context. Doesn't shy away from the ugliness of the Jim Crow era or the violence (verbal and physical) that pro-segregation whites inflicted on nonviolent protestors. Good conversation starter for young readers learning about the civil rights movement, but highly recommended for readers of all ages.
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/01/23/511230924/john-lewis-graphic-novel-wins-4-american-library-association-awards
Well written, balances personal memoir (especially loved seeing young Bob preaching to his chickens) with wider political/social context. Doesn't shy away from the ugliness of the Jim Crow era or the violence (verbal and physical) that pro-segregation whites inflicted on nonviolent protestors. Good conversation starter for young readers learning about the civil rights movement, but highly recommended for readers of all ages.
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/01/23/511230924/john-lewis-graphic-novel-wins-4-american-library-association-awards
carolyn325's review against another edition
4.0
I love graphic novels about historical events. They provide a lot of information in an easy-to-read way.
thunderdone's review against another edition
5.0
I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series! I appreciate any graphic novel that doesn't take a wholly literal stand with its illustrations. In particular, I found the drawing of hands quite moving when talking about nonviolence trying to be for all people. I had no idea about the practice runs before sit-ins and really appreciated hearing about that preparation. I also enjoyed hearing about John Lewis' chickens as a kid. The conversational framing of the book makes the dialogue feel more genuine.