(4) 4-6 American Girl Mysteries series. Cécile, a "free person of color," searches her city of New Orleans for a lost necklace and learns about "maroons" (escaped slaves living in the Louisiana swamps), circus life, and more. Coleman ably evokes the novel's 1854 New Orleans setting and Cécile's perspective is interesting, but the narrative tries too hard to incorporate history. A historical note and French pronunciation guide are included. Glos.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(4) 4-6 Twelve-year-old Clyde lives on the poor-white side of the tracks in 1947 segregated Atlanta. His brother is a guard for the Freedom Train, carrying the Declaration of Independence around the country. After an African American boy helps save him from bullies, he begins to question the racial myths he's been taught. The message is didactically related, but the story is engaging.

Reviewer: Jack Forman

(3) YA Keisha, a girl from the projects who wants to go to medical school, ends up instead in a patronizing youth-at-risk program where, happily, she discovers she's a natural swimmer. A hasty romantic subplot ends unconvincingly, but first-person narration and gritty dialogue realistically portray the racism of low expectations, the importance of mentors, and the many barriers facing inner-city youth.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 History Mysteries series. When Papa takes twelve-year-old Bessie and her little brother to stay with their aunts in Harlem, Bessie thinks that her parents must be getting divorced. The adults won't share any information with the children, so Bessie sneaks around the house and the city, attempting to find clues that will lead her to her absent father. Set during the Harlem Renaissance, the story relies too much on coincidence, and Bessie sometimes seems younger--or older--than she is.

Reviewer: Anne St. John

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Daniel Minter. While retired laundress Oseola McCarty has become well known because of her endowment of a large scholarship fund to the University of Southern Mississippi, Coleman instead focuses upon the life and faith that made such a gift possible. Illustrated with handsome but appropriately modest block prints, the account is plainspoken and easy to read; the chapter-book format is appealing.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 1999

(4) K-3 Mat and Martha's father tells them to listen to the earth's heartbeat in this story that celebrates the strength African Americans have exhibited throughout history from creation and freedom in Mother Africa to enslavement and freedom in America. While the text reads well and has a certain inviting rhythm, it is overpowered in many instances by Robinson's stunning mixed-media illustrations.

Reviewer: The Horn Book, Inc.