From the legendary civil rights activist and author of the million-copy-selling
Warriors Don’t Cry
comes "a visceral and vital memoir" about growing up in the segregated South (
Publishers Weekly
, starred review).
Civil rights heroine Melba Patillo Beals, one of the Little Rock Nine, puts readers right in her saddle oxfords as a young activist fighting back against the laws that told her she was less just because of the color of her skin. Now with a Q&A with Melba!
Long before she was one of the Little Rock Nine, Melba Pattillo Beals was a warrior. Frustrated by the laws that kept African-Americans separate but very much unequal, she had questions. Why couldn’t she drink from a "whites only" fountain? Why couldn’t she feel safe beyond home? Adults all told her: Hold your tongue. Be patient. Know your place. But Beals had the heart of a fighter—and knew that her true place was a free one.
Alongside photos, Beals recounts her early journey to becoming a champion for equal rights, a bestselling author, and the recipient of this country’s highest recognition, the Congressional Gold Medal.