Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

Mildred Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry is one of those books that I think can be read and re-read many times, each time appreciating the wonderful writing and the heartbreaking story of the Logans. My fifth grade book club picked this title as our latest book to discuss. I will admit that at first I was a little skeptical about this since other book clubs I have had would never have managed to make it through such a meaty read. And yet, this group of readers- 6 girls and one boy- have managed to read this book and have some good discussions about racism and the South, some of Taylor's writing techniques, and a variety of other topics relating to the book. I read this book long ago, and reading it as an adult with the actual goal of leading a discussion about it caused me to be a very careful reader this time around. I know that this time around there were discoveries I made in this story that I never even noticed as a child. Because my students read this with some adult direction I am hoping that they got something out of this book and will remember the Logans for a long time. Today after I finished Roll of Thunder, I picked up Taylor's other books depicting life with the Logans; I can hardly wait for another visit with Cassie and her siblings.