The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Rucker, Rhonda Lynn , Rucker, James "Sparky"

Make a Change

32 pp. | Pelican | August, 2017 | Trade ISBN 9781455622757 $16.99 | Ebook ISBN 9781455622764

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Brock Nicol. In this historical story, based on a real experience, an African American boy becomes determined to "make change happen" in pre–civil rights Knoxville, Tennessee. He's encouraged when a white man joins their black church's pray-in protest outside a segregated department store. Both the prose and the realistic paintings are somewhat stiff, but the story clearly conveys its powerful message. Author's note included.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen