The Rock and the River

The Rock and the River - Paperback

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The Rock and the River
  • The Rock and the River
The Rock and the River - Paperback

The Rock and the River - Paperback

by Kekla Magoon
$8.99
$8.99

Book Overview

by Kekla Magoon (Author)

Coretta Scott King - John Steptoe Award winner

In this "taut, eloquent first novel" (Booklist, starred review), a young Black boy wrestles with conflicting notions of revolution and family loyalty as he becomes involved with the Black Panthers in 1968 Chicago.

The Time: 1968
The Place: Chicago

For thirteen-year-old Sam, it's not easy being the son of known civil rights activist Roland Childs. Especially when his older (and best friend), Stick, begins to drift away from him for no apparent reason. And then it happens: Sam finds something that changes everything forever.

Sam has always had faith in his father, but when he finds literature about the Black Panthers under Stick's bed, he's not sure who to believe: his father or his best friend. Suddenly, nothing feels certain anymore.

Sam wants to believe that his father is right: You can effect change without using violence. But as time goes on, Sam grows weary of standing by and watching as his friends and family suffer at the hands of racism in their own community. Sam beings to explore the Panthers with Stick, but soon he's involved in something far more serious--and more dangerous--than he could have ever predicted. Sam is faced with a difficult decision. Will he follow his father or his brother? His mind or his heart? The rock or the river?

Author Biography

Kekla Magoon has worked with youth-serving nonprofit organizations in New York City and Chicago. She holds an MFA in writing for children from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and her first novel, The Rock and the River, won the Coretta Scott King - John Steptoe Award for New Talent. She resides in New York City and you can visit her at KeklaMagoon.com.

Number of Pages: 304
Dimensions: 0.8 x 7.66 x 5.48 IN
Publication Date: April 06, 2010
Accelerated Reader:
Quiz Name: Rock and the River
Interest Level: Upper Middle Grades, 6 and up
Reading Level: 3.9
Point Value: 8
ISBN9781416978039
Author Kekla Magoon
PublisherAladdin Paperbacks
GenreChildren and Family
FormatPaperback
PublishedApril 2010
LanguageENG- English
Pages304
Weight1.0 lb
Target AudienceKids and Teens & young adults
Print SizeStandard Print

Related Subjects

Juvenile Fiction Kids

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About Kekla Magoon

Kekla Magoon is the author of Camo Girl and The Rock and the River, winner of the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award. She is a New York City-based editor, speaker, and educator. In addition to writing fiction, Kekla leads writing workshops for youth and adults, writes nonfiction titles for the education market, and is the co-editor of YA & Children's Literature for Hunger Mountain, the arts journal of Vermont College.

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