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Rosa's Bus

The Ride to Civil Rights
by Jo S. Kittinger
40p. 978-1-59078-722-9.
COPY ISBN
Gr 1—4—Unlike Faith Ringgold's If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks (S & S, 1999), Rosa's Bus is a factual history in picture-book format of Bus #2837 itself and its role in the larger Civil Rights Movement. No fantasy elements are present. The story starts with the bus rolling off the factory assembly line in 1948 and ends with the restored vehicle becoming an exhibit at the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan. After a few scenes showing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., explaining the protest, the empty bus rolls by with walkers shown through its windows. The solid, heavy lines of Walker's oil paintings match the massive quality of the bus. The saturated colors convey strength and determination. Some prior knowledge is assumed because words such as boycott and Jim Crow are not explained in the text. Although there are already several high-quality picture books about Dr. King and Rosa Parks, this distinctive work is an excellent addition.—Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA
Lyrical prose describes the journey of bus #2857, from the assembly line in Michigan, to service in Montgomery, Alabama (before, during, and after Rosa Parks's famous stand), to the vehicle's final destination, Detroit's Ford Museum. Expansive oil illustrations consistently reflect the bus as the book's central focus; it's an interesting and well-presented perspective. Reading list, websites. Bib.
Reviewed by Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst , Dec 01, 2010

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