Name: Jeni Enjaian's review of The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon
Item: The Rock and the River
Rating: 5
Author: Jeni Enjaian

Kekla Magoon

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 chnage 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?

The Rock and the River

Jeni Enjaian

This might be one of my favorite books of all time. I do not say that lightly. 
Magoon infuses tremendous power through the narrative, real life choices that Sam has to face, decisions that shape his life in tremendous, powerful ways. Towards the end of the novel, I knew where Magoon had to be leading us and with overwhelming sadness read through an all too real reality both back in 1968 and today.

I highly recommend this book.

Jeni Enjaian &
The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon

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Jeni Enjaian &The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon

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Jeni Enjaian &
The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon