Posted by He preached and baptized his chickens as a young boy. He used to sneak off to school when his parents told him to stay home to help on their sharecropped farm. The man stood up for his right to be labeled as an equal black citizen in America, by speaking at the March on Washington with Martin Luther King Jr., and by helping to organize sit-ins at white-only restaurants during the fight for civil rights. His name was John Lewis.
Many people know that John Lewis died on July 17, 2020. He was such a brave, strong and smart man. As a regular citizen and as a congressman John Lewis did so much for this country, and his loss is one that shook the country.
“I believe that you see something that you want to get done, you cannot give up, and you cannot give in.” he said. He wrote several books, including a graphic novel series with Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell. The series is called MARCH, and his quote really summarizes the main theme of the books.
MARCH: Book One starts off with John Lewis marching on the Edmund Pettus Bridge on March 7, 1965. Then, the story travels to 2009, where the congressman meets two boys, and tells them all about his life as a boy growing up in the 1940’s, to when he fought for black people’s rights to sit at lunch counters.
The book stopped there, and now I’m anxious to know what happens in the next one!
One thing I liked about the book was the beautiful illustrations. On one page, the background was all black with these words that John Lewis said: “His words liberated me. I thought, this is it…this is the way out.” It really gave a strong effect of John Lewis’ epiphany at the moment, as he was watching Martin Luther King, Jr. speak. That’s another thing I liked about the book, the words that were sewn together just perfectly to make an amazing story. The story itself was so inspiring, and I learned so much about John Lewis.
I recommend this book to people who want to learn more about this trailblazing preacher, activist, and congressman. This is also a good book for parents who want to introduce their kids to the topic of racism and this extraordinary man. But, parents should know that the book has the N-word and B-word mentioned. Kids need to see that they can make a difference, just like John Lewis did. If they want to learn about him as a kid, they can also read Preaching To The Chickens, by Jabari Asim, which I reviewed.
I really loved this graphic novel. Four out of four roses!
Elena Reads and Reviews 