TOMORROW'S BREAD: A Review and Giveaway

Congratulations to Gail Cartee who won The End of the World and Beyond on last week's giveaway.

When I began researching Half-Truths someone--I'm afraid I don't remember who it was--told me about how Brooklyn, an African American neighborhood in Charlotte that was leveled as a part of urban renewal.  Tomorrow's Bread by Anna Jean Mayhew, breathes life into that vital, bygone neighborhood. 

This story of a community affected by urban renewal is not unique to Charlotte, NC; but it is told in such well-researched detail that people living in Detroit, Philadelphia, St. Louis --any area that was torn down and cleared out--will resonate with the book. As A.J. points out in her Author's Note, there were homes that would meet the definition of blight. 

This photo, taken in the old Brooklyn neighborhood, was typical of the image often presented of Charlotte's historically black neighborhood near uptown. In reality, the area was made up of mixed-income residences and businesses. JAMES PEELER COURTESY OF CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG LIBRARY

Read more here: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article66934337.html#storylink=cpy

article66934337.html

But, there were also business, churches, theaters, and spacious brick homes that were destroyed. 

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article66934337.html
Business district in Brooklyn.

REVIEW

This historical novel for adults is told through three different points of view. We see the destruction of the neighborhood primarily through the eyes of Loraylee, a single black mother who lives with her son, uncle and grandmother. Loraylee is in love with a white man, but in the sixties, it is against the law for them to get married. Everyone in Loraylee's family is attached to their friends, fellow church-goers, schools and businesses in Brooklyn; all four can't imagine life elsewhere. Her hard-working and matter-of-fact manner made her a person I would have liked to know. 

Reverend Ebenezer Gabriel Polk ("Eben") is the faithful pastor of St. Tim's and unofficial church historian of the church cemetery and the 151 slaves that were buried there. His third-person account of watching his cemetery and community bulldozed is gripping and poignant. (Personal note: Since I have included  a cemetery disinterment in Half-Truths, I was interested in how Mayhew incorporated that into the story.) Eben's own family history (most likely descended from President Polk), his sorrow over his deceased wife and his brother's tragedies, and his commitment to his community weave throughout the book. 

Persy, a white woman who has had struggles of her own, is the third point-of-view in the story. Her childless and loveless marriage contrasts with the loving family relationships in Brooklyn. Her husband is on the committee for urban renewal and she is as helpless to stop him as she is to heal their failing marriage. Although Persy is mainly on the periphery of the story, her life intersects with Loraylee's when they both are at the beach, and Persy is instrumental in saving Loraylee's son's life in a near-drowning. 

Half-Truths takes place about ten years before Brooklyn's urban renewal. Although it is in a different area of the city, Black leaders were concerned about how urban renewal would not provide relocation to the families and businesses. In this article, local NAACP leader, Mr. Kelly Alexander (who makes a cameo appearance in Half-Truths) stated some of his concerns.  

GIVEAWAY

Next week, I am interviewing A.J. on my blog. Leave me a comment on this blog and I'll enter your name in the giveaway. Enter again next week, and you're in twice! Tomorrow's Bread could be yours! Make sure you leave your email address if you are new to my blog. 

The Hero Two Doors Down: A Review and Audio Book Giveaway

Congratulations to Jo Lyn Worden who won JUNK and to Dorothy Price who won BULLY.

*****

The Hero Two Doors Down is perfectly titled. Written by Sharon Robinson, Jackie Robinson's daughter, this fictionalized account of eight-year-old Steven Satlo's friendship with his hero, is a book that elementary age boys and girls will enjoy.

The year is 1948 and baseball is king. In New York, you are either a Yankees or Dodgers fan and Steve and his father share a great passion for the Dodgers. The author paints an authentic picture of the time period: neighbors sitting out on their front stoops listening to the game on the radio, going to an opening game as a huge occasion for a young boy, and school chums playing stickball together. Although Sharon Robinson says this is a work of fiction, it is based on the stories which Sharon heard her mother and Steve's mother tell. 

Central to the book is Steve's excitement when he hears that Jackie Robinson, his hero, is moving onto his street  Although this section of Brooklyn had been primarily a Jewish neighborhood, the Robinson family is one of the first black families to integrate the area. When some neighbors protest, Steve learns valuable lessons about prejudice from his father. 

Steve is thrilled when Jackie accompanies him to the school yard and teaches his peers how to slide home, provides tickets to a game for his class, as well as when he is invited to decorate the Robinson's Christmas tree. Since he's Jewish, this was a first time experience for Steve. A misunderstanding ensues when Jackie and his wife Rachel buy the Satlow's a Christmas tree--not knowing their friends are Jewish. 

In many ways Jackie Robinson was a role model and inspiration to Steve. Jackie had a rough childhood and encouraged Steve to solve problems peaceably and not with force. The two were lifetime friends and Jackie comforted and encouraged Steve after his father died. 

Chris Andrew Cuilla and Lisa Renee' Pitts both did a great job as narrators. This book would be a good classroom resource for third and fourth graders. 

To entice you, here is an audio snippet of the book and the trailer, narrated by Sharon Robinson.

Younger children will like the picture book Jackie's Gift: A Baseball Tale for the Holidays also by Sharon Robinson.

GIVEAWAY

Leave me a comment by August 23 and your email address if you are new to my blog. If you share this on social media or become a new follower of my blog I'll enter your name in the giveaway twice.