Role of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor.

Role of Thunder, Hear My Cry. Written by Mildred D. Taylor. 1976. ISBN: 0-14-038451-0. African American historical fiction. Ages 10+. Winner of the Newbery Medal.

In this book, the Logan family is a typical hard working family from the deep south, in Mississippi. They work hard, as the Dad is a railroad worker and the Mom is a teacher. Their four children, are now all in school, although, schools are still segregated. Cassie, the stories narrator, is the second oldest and is just realizing what it means to be black in Mississippi. She doesn't understand why she would be considered different at first, but throughout the story, learns that she will always have a harder life than white children her age.

Throughout the story, the Logan family sparks up controversy by boycotting the Wallace's (white family) store. They do it because the want the Wallace family to lose their prejudices. A lot of other incidents happen as well. Cassie is publicly ridiculed by a white girl in the street, and Stacy is caught cheating by his teacher which leads to a fight.

All and all, the underlying theme of this story is perseverance. The Logan's have to fight and keep fighting for what they feel is fair and rightfully theirs (including their land). The equality of blacks and whites is also an underlying tone.

This book was and still is a controversial read. I would recommend this book as a novel for children to read during a study on the civil rights movement.