Richard Wright and the Library Card - Softcover

William Miller

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1880000881 ISBN 13: 9781880000885

Publisher: Lee & Low Books, 1997

Synopsis

As a young black man in the segregated South of the 1920s, Wright was hungry to explore new worlds through books, but was forbidden from borrowing them from the library. This touching account tells of his love of reading, and how his unwavering perseverance, along with the help of a co-worker, came together to make Richard's dream a reality An inspirational story for children of all backgrounds, Richard Wright and the Library Card shares a poignant turning point in the life of a young man who became one of this country's most brilliant writers, the author of Native Son and Black Boy. This book is the third in a series of biographies by William Miller, including Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree and Frederick Douglass: The Last Day of Slavery. All focus on important moments in the lives of these prominent African Americans.

About this title

Review:

Richard Wright, African American author of Black Boy and Native Son, grew up in the segregated South of the 1920s. His formal education ended after he completed the ninth grade, but gaining access to the public library with the help of a white coworker opened up a new world of books for him, eventually inspiring him to become a writer. Richard Wright and the Library Card is a fictionalized account of this powerful story, deftly adapted by William Miller from a scene in Black Boy.

Miller--a professor of African American literature and author of the critically acclaimed Frederick Douglass: The Last Day of Slavery, A House by the River, and Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree-- masterfully builds suspense, as readers wonder how the young African American will quench his thirst for books without being busted by the local white librarian. Wright's story is perfectly complemented by the work of Gregory Christie, winner of the 1997 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award for Palm of My Heart. (Ages 5 to 9)

About the Author:

William is the award-winning author of numerous books for children for LEE & LOW. Mr. Miller lives in York, Pennsylvania, where he teaches African American literature and creative writing at York College.

About this edition

• Publisher: Lee & Low Books
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 1880000881
• ISBN 13: 9781880000885
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: R. Gregory Christie