Warriors Don't Cry

Warriors Don't Cry

By: Melba Patillo Beals

Summer Reading 2011 (SR2011)

Warriors Don't Cry, is the story of 9 African-American students trying to integrate Central High School of Little Rock, Arkansas. The author, Melba Patillo Beals, is one of the nine, and the story is told from her point of view.

Integration talks begin when Melba is twelve-years-old, and Melba, along with sixteen other kids volunteer to be the first African-American students to step foot in Central High School. The first day, September 3, 1957, they are met by a mob, and the Arkansas National Guard, sent by the governor to prevent the African-American students from entering the building. They are forced to return home, and remain there until September 23, 1957, when they finally are able to enter the school, with help from the 101st Airborne Division. But despite the fact that each student had their own "bodyguard", torments from the white kids rained on. The guards are eventually removed, and Melba and the other students are forced to endure on their own. Lives are threatened, and Melba can't hang out with any of her friends from her old school, because they are afraid she will get them killed. The hardships pull Melba to the brink of giving up, but with the help of her grandmother's encouragement, her family and some friends, Melba survives, and finishes the year out.

This book was very enlightening, inspiring, and it opened my eyes to how cruel people were back then. I can't think of any other words to describe this book, I mean it was sad, that the nine African-Americans had to deal with such cruelty just because they wanted to go to a good school. But it was awesome, and truly inspiring how they had the courage to stand the beatings, and the torments the whole year.

Rating: 5/5

Violence: PG-13, its cruel, but not overly graphic

Sexual Content: PG-13 or R?? Not sure really, there's talk of rape, the mom is sexually harassed, and other things, but nothing worse than what was mentioned above

Language: PG-13 I'm gonna say, though I don't quite remember

~Katie