Overview

Thirteen-year-old Billie Simms doesn't think her hometown of Anniston, Alabama, should be segregated, but few of the town's residents share her opinion. As equality spreads across the country and the Civil Rights Movement gathers momentum, Billie can't help but feel stuck--and helpless--in a stubborn town too set in its ways to realize that the world is passing it by. So when Billie learns that the Freedom Riders, a group of peace activists riding interstate buses to protest segregation, will be traveling through Anniston on their way to Montgomery, she thinks that maybe change is finally coming and her quiet little town will shed itself of its antiquated views. But what starts as a series of angry grumbles soon turns to brutality as Anniston residents show just how deep their racism runs. The Freedom Riders will resume their ride to Montgomery, and Billie is now faced with a choice: stand idly by in silence or take a stand for what she believes in. Through her own decisions and actions and a few unlikely friendships, Billie is about to come to grips with the deep-seated prejudice of those she once thought she knew, and with her own inherent racism that she didn't even know she had.

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9780807570241

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Reviews

Kidd supplies sufficient family backstory to make the girls into credible characters; however, it's their polar views of the world that are really on display here, and Kidd's carefully orchestrated plot points and conversations serve as a guided tour through their crises of conscience. The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, November 2015

Kidd writes with insight and restraint, creating a richly layered opus that hits every note to perfection Beautifully written and earnestly delivered, the novel rolls to an inexorable, stunning conclusion readers won't soon forget. Kirkus Reviews, starred review, July 15, 2015

Author Information

Ronald Kidd is the author of ten novels for young readers, including the highly acclaimed Monkey Town: The Summer of the Scopes Trial. His novels of adventure, comedy, and mystery have received the Children's Choice Award, an Edgar Award nomination, and honors from the American Library Association, the International Reading Association, the Library of Congress, and the New York Public Library. He is a two-time O'Neill playwright who lives in Tennessee.

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