A moving tale of courage and persistence, told simply and succinctly.
Nathan’s middle-grade chapter book tells the inspiring story of an undersung civil rights hero.
Sarah Louise Keys (later Sarah Keys Evans) grew up as a Black girl on a farm in Washington, North Carolina. As an adult, Evans joined the Women’s Army Corps to work at a U.S. Army hospital in New Jersey. On August 1, 1952, she boarded a bus for her first trip back home since joining; after entering North Carolina, a new white driver demanded Evans move to the back. When she politely refused, two police officers arrived to arrest her before throwing her in jail for the night. The next morning, they escorted her home on a new bus—and made her sit in the back. After she’d revealed her terrible ordeal to her family, Evans’ father took her to see a lawyer in Washington, D.C. Together, they took the Interstate Commerce Commission to court to demand fairer bus laws. Despite setbacks, they eventually succeeded, paving the way for more just legislation that eventually resulted in the desegregation of all buses, trains, and airplanes. Powell brings Evans’ journey to life through expressive, cartoonish illustrations featuring bold lines and a strong sense of movement. Nathan recounts Evans’ story with a clear narrative voice, using details appropriate for a young audience (“She was afraid they might hurt her”). Still, the book has some truly chilling moments, such as when Evans asks the police why they’re arresting her, and they respond, “We can get you for anything. For disorderly conduct…We don’t really even have to get you to jail.” While younger readers of this early chapter book may find the legal proceedings a bit tedious, the overarching themes of fairness, justice, and kindness toward all—supported by the bright, detailed illustrations—clearly shine through.
A moving tale of courage and persistence, told simply and succinctly.Pub Date: Oct. 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780865265134
Page Count: 72
Publisher: North Carolina Office of Archives and History
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An authentic and moving time capsule of middle school angst, trauma, and joy.
Through the author’s own childhood diary entries, a seventh grader details her inner life before and after 9/11.
Alyssa’s diary entries start in September 2000, in the first week of her seventh grade year. She’s 11 and dealing with typical preteen concerns—popularity and anxiety about grades—along with other things more particular to her own life. She’s shuffling between Queens and Manhattan to share time between her divorced parents and struggling with thick facial hair and classmates who make her feel like she’s “not a whole person” due to her mixed White and Puerto Rican heritage. Alyssa is endlessly earnest and awkward as she works up the courage to talk to her crush, Alejandro; gushes about her dreams of becoming a shoe designer; and tries to solve her burgeoning unibrow problem. The diaries also have a darker side, as a sense of impending doom builds as the entries approach 9/11, especially because Alyssa’s father works in finance in the World Trade Center. As a number of the diary entries are taken directly from the author’s originals, they effortlessly capture the loud, confusing feelings middle school brings out. The artwork, in its muted but effective periwinkle tones, lends a satisfying layer to the diary’s accessible and delightful format.
An authentic and moving time capsule of middle school angst, trauma, and joy. (author's note) (Graphic memoir. 8-13)Pub Date: Aug. 17, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-77427-9
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A breezy, bustling bucketful of courageous acts and eye-popping feats.
Why should grown-ups get all the historical, scientific, athletic, cinematic, and artistic glory?
Choosing exemplars from both past and present, Mitchell includes but goes well beyond Alexander the Great, Anne Frank, and like usual suspects to introduce a host of lesser-known luminaries. These include Shapur II, who was formally crowned king of Persia before he was born, Indian dancer/professional architect Sheila Sri Prakash, transgender spokesperson Jazz Jennings, inventor Param Jaggi, and an international host of other teen or preteen activists and prodigies. The individual portraits range from one paragraph to several pages in length, and they are interspersed with group tributes to, for instance, the Nazi-resisting “Swingkinder,” the striking New York City newsboys, and the marchers of the Birmingham Children’s Crusade. Mitchell even offers would-be villains a role model in Elagabalus, “boy emperor of Rome,” though she notes that he, at least, came to an awful end: “Then, then! They dumped his remains in the Tiber River, to be nommed by fish for all eternity.” The entries are arranged in no evident order, and though the backmatter includes multiple booklists, a personality quiz, a glossary, and even a quick Braille primer (with Braille jokes to decode), there is no index. Still, for readers whose fires need lighting, there’s motivational kindling on nearly every page.
A breezy, bustling bucketful of courageous acts and eye-popping feats. (finished illustrations not seen) (Collective biography. 10-13)Pub Date: May 10, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-14-751813-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Puffin
Review Posted Online: Nov. 10, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2015
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