A review by nytephoenyx
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is as memorable a book in 2021 as it was in 1997 and as impressionable as I’m sure it was at its time of release – in 1976. Not many books age so well with time, but Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry remains an important book to read about the Jim Crow era.

First, the story. This novel addresses basic human rights and how they were (are?) constantly denied to Black people. The Logans are a strong family, and in any other world they’d be well-situated. They own their own land and on top of that Cassie’s father works or the railroad and her mother teaches at the local Black school. They are still only barely just getting by. They have to go into a different town to be able to buy home goods and basic necessities from a kinder proprietor. They are constantly under threat by their white neighbors who would want their land and their lives. Everyday, the Logans and the other Black families have to fight for their dignity… and most the time, at threat of their lives, they can’t even have that.

Every step in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry shares another story of oppression. There is joy woven around the stories. There are good people (Black and white) but there are also bad people (mostly white, but I’m not entirely discounting TJ). It’s not a lecture on racism, it’s a window into how life was. And, at that, I presume it’s a pretty generous window and that for so many, things were much, much worse.

Cassie’s story remains a staple because of all of these things, but on a technical level, Mildred D. Taylor’s writing makes a middle grade book both accessible and necessary for all ages. I was taught Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry in middle school and twenty-two years later, I’m glad to have picked it up again because it still rings true. It’s a good reminder of privilege and debt.

Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is an excellent book. It pulls your emotional heartstrings! Also, even though it’s the fourth book in the Logans’ story, it can easily be read as a standalone. I’m very glad I was taught this book in my little backwater central school, and I desperately hope it continues to be taught in schools today.
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