As a teenager, Melba Patillo was one of the Little Rock Nine, the first group of Black students to enroll in the formerly all-white Little Rock Central High School in 1957. This memoir recounts Melba’s childhood, including the many experiences that primed her as an activist. Melba was an observant and sensitive child who deeply felt the injustice of the Jim Crow laws in the South. From an early age, she felt stifled and frustrated by the rules of behavior she had to follow outside of her home and neighborhood, particularly around white people. Her grandmother’s belief that God would provide doesn’t soothe her. Although supported and affirmed at home, Melba often felt unsafe; she knew even her beloved elders could not always protect her. Her memoir recounts several extraordinarily painful experiences, acts of violence perpetrated against her and members of her Black community. But her narrative is one of courage, resilience, and love of family and community. Her words effectively transport the reader back to a moment in history that was—considering Melba is still alive today—not long ago at all. (Ages 11–16)

"Beals' recollection of white oppression and her rise above it will haunt readers. A must-read for teens." --School Library Journal

From the legendary civil rights activist and author of the million-copy-selling Warriors Don't Cry comes an ardent and profound childhood memoir of growing up while facing adversity in the Jim Crow South.

Long before she was one of the Little Rock Nine, Melba Pattillo Beals was a warrior. Frustrated by the laws that kept African-Americans separate but very much unequal to whites, she had questions. Why couldn't she drink from a "whites only" fountain? Why couldn't she feel safe beyond home--or even within the walls of church? Adults all told her: Hold your tongue. Be patient. Know your place.

But Beals had the heart of a fighter--and the knowledge that her true place was a free one.

Combined with emotive drawings and photos, this memoir paints a vivid picture of Beals' powerful early journey on the road to becoming a champion for equal rights, an acclaimed journalist, a best-selling author, and the recipient of this country's highest recognition, the Congressional Gold Medal.