"Voice of Freedom Fannie Lou Hamer" Book Review

1.      Bibliography

Weatherford, Carole Boston. 2015. VOICE OF FREEDOM FANNIE LOU HAMER: SPIRIT OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT. Ill. By Ekua Holmes. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN 9780763665319

2.      Plot Summary

In this lyrical book, readers will learn about the life of Fannie Lou Hamer and she was known as “the voice of freedom”.  Fannie’s life is told in poems written as if Fannie herself was speaking right next to you.  Each poem plays a role in telling the chronological events in Hamer’s life beginning when she was born in Mississippi to a sharecropper family.  The book continues with the hardships and struggles she and her family face with surviving in the south with unequal treatment.  Readers learn of Fannie’s experience of racial injustice which inspires her to learn more about voting rights.  It was not an easy road for Fannie, but she worked hard to pass the test to vote and became an advocate for voting rights in the 1960’s.  The “Author’s Note” at the end of the story is a great summary of the story the poems are telling the reader.  Readers will also find a timeline, sources cited used for quotes of Fannie, and gives additional resources for the life of Fannie Lou Hamer.

3.      Critical Analysis

Carole Boston Weatherford captivates her readers by giving them a beautiful biography written in poetry.  The events Weatherford choses to highlight in Fannie’s life keeps readers eager to turn the page and read more.  You find yourself on an emotional roller coaster as you learn about the racial injustices Fannie experienced, but then cheering at the end.  Children will have many questions after learning about “the beatings”, unfair pay, and learning about Fannie being tricked to undergo a surgery that the government issued to poor, black women so they would not be able to bear children.  The sources at the back of the book allow children to learn more about resources and how to use them. 

Ekua Holmes’ mixed-media collages allows readers to enter Fannie’s world.  Holmes captures the emotions of the hardships of what it was like for sharecroppers.  The hairstyles, clothes, and settings all work together to educate the reader of what life was like for Fannie Lou Hamer.  Readers of all ages will appreciate the poetry, the story, and the illustrations, all working together to educate others of an incredible life and how one person can make a difference for so many. 

  

4.      Review Excerpt(s)

2016 Caldecott Honor Book

2016 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book

2016 John Steptoe New Talent Illustrator Award Winner

The Horn Book – “This majestic biography offers a detailed, intelligible overview of Hamer’s life…”

5.      Connections

*Create a class timeline of Fannie’s life using the reference at the back of the book.  Students will research other events to fill in the timeline or do extensive research to learn more about the events given.

*Pull the biography references given at the back of the book.  Students will use other references to learn more on the life of Fannie Lou Hamer.

*Many questions will arise after learning about events featured in this book.  Have discussion questions ready and available for circle group discussion activities.