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Summary: I couldn't put this book down.
Review: I kept asking myself, where did she find the courage to endure? For me, this is ultimately a story about family and unconditional love. If the U.S. is a better place in 1997, it is because of heroes such as Melba Patillo Beals. Buy this book in hardcover, you'll want to keep it around forever. Want a good book for your family to read? This is it
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Summary: A Phenomenal Tribute to Warriors of the 1950s
Review: "Warrios Don't Cry" gives a new perspective to those who did not experience integration during the 1950s as an adolescent. Melba Pattillo Beals brings the reader into her day to day battle with people fighting to see her fail. Beals, whether writing in her diary or weaving her memoir, brings you into her vicious battle: face to face with her foes. I can feel the joy in Melba's heart on her dates with Vince and the terror in her soul when she is almost attacked as a child. This story reached out and brought me into Little Rock Nine's reality that school is a battlefield and not a surreal world of wonder. As a white person, I am ashamed of the atrocities committed by teachers, citizens, and students alike. Yet, as a human being I am honored to see such strength in young men and women in the face of human evil. Such strenth is inspiring to me seeing that I have nowhere near such adversities. I particularly loved that Beal spared no details; her shortcomings were as noted as those of her enemies. Beyond that, Beals allowed you to walk with her down the hallways of Central High; you can picture this proud, stone-faced warrior moving from class to class impassive to the barrage of "cat-calls" and pencil attakcs. This book is not only a tribute to the Little Rock Nine and the amazing feat accomplished, but a tribute to human determination and strength found from deep within the soul. Melba shows the triumph over her soul over the malvelonce of others.
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Summary: Eye-Opening and Excellent True Story!
Review: Personally, I doubt many people today have the courage, motivation or just plain grit to do what the "Little Rock Nine" did. This story tells of the integration of the schools of Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957, as told from the point of view of one of nine courageous young black students. The author is Melba Patillo Beals, one of the students who actually began the integration process. She wrote this book by drawing from her memories and old journals she kept from that time period, so it is very real. She did an amazing job describing the hopes, dreams, fears and joys of young Melba so the reader seems to be right there during the entire ordeal. The reader will be awed by Melba and her friends' continued strength in the face of utmost hatred and danger.One of my college professors assigned this book in a course on Race, Class and Ethnicity. In all honesty, the story was probably ignored by many in my class - those who had never faced adversity and probably never will. But to a few of us, it really opened our eyes to another world most people never see or seek to understand. To those with an open heart, "Warriors Don't Cry" will show you that the same emotions and dreams are found in every person, no matter who they are. Not only do I recommend this book for pleasure reading, but I believe it could be a wonderful educational tool for every age group. Enjoy!
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Summary: A Book That Everyone Should Read
Review: Warriros Don't Cry is a must read for ALL Americans-white, black, and everyone in between. I was deeply moved by the Little Rock Nine's courage and perserverance during such tumultuous circumstances. Melba Pattillo Beals has written a memoir that should have a place in history books everywhere. As a young twenty-something, I found myself being transported from the year 2004 to 1957 where nine African American teenagers paid a steep price for the opportunities so many African American youths now take for granted. Maybe if they all read about Melba Patillo getting scorched with hot water in a gym shower and Minnijean Brown being prohibited from taking part in Central High's extracurricular activities, they would have a more profound sense of both appreciation and pride for what these brave youths endured. Nearly 50 yrs have past and we are certainly making progress in race relations in the U.S. But we have a long way to go. Beals' portrait of the battle to integrate Little Rock's Central High shows that it's important for us to forgive and move forward, but it's also equally important that we never forget where we've been.
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Summary: THE PRICE OF EQUALITY!
Review: The author has written a heart-rending account of children walking the gauntlet of hatred. paying a horrific price for progress. Melba Pattillo Beals was one of the children, and she spares little in sharing this tragic era in the history of America. Because of their courage under fire, our nation took a step forward in true social justice and equality for all of its citizens. Today, our schools are, for the most part, as they should be, -- places of higher learning, nurturing every child entrusted to its classrooms regardless of their race. May it continue to be so. Doors are open, and many students saunter through them without the kind of fear and reprisals these nine children endured. Their efforts should never be forgotten by anyone. This is a searing scorching revealing memoir.
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Summary: Excellent for teaching
Review: This is an excellent book about the Little Rock 9 told by one of the students.
The details are excellent and it gives a REAL account of the torture the students went through, and the depths to which people can sink and how terribly they treat each other.
I was glad to see an account of one of the MAJOR events in the American Civil Rights struggle which did not play down what happened, nor sugar coat it. People need to know what happened, and what it was like for the participants. This book will tell them.
I highly recommend this book.
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