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Fire in the Streets (The Rock and the River #2)
by
Kekla Magoon (Goodreads Author)
What means more, shared values or shared blood? Maxie’s choice changes everything in this acclaimed companion to The Rock and the River.
Bad things happen in the heat, they say.
Maxie knows all about how fire can erupt at a moment’s notice, especially now, in the sweltering Chicago summer of 1968. She is a Black Panther—or at least she wants to be one. Maxie believes in the...more
Bad things happen in the heat, they say.
Maxie knows all about how fire can erupt at a moment’s notice, especially now, in the sweltering Chicago summer of 1968. She is a Black Panther—or at least she wants to be one. Maxie believes in the...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
August 28th 2012
by Aladdin
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Dec 04, 2012
Ed
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Magoon, K. (2012). Fire in the streets. New York: Simon and Schuster/Aladdin. 336 pp. ISBN: 978-1-4424-2230-8. (Hardcover); $16.99.
Kekla Magoon is an author to watch (http://www.spicyreads.org/Author_Vide... scroll down). One of my favorite books from 2007 is Magoon’s The Rock and the River. At the time, I mentioned in reviews that we have very few books that even mention the Black Panther Party, let alone deal with them in a careful, thorough way. Fire in the Streets continues the story Magoon...more
Kekla Magoon is an author to watch (http://www.spicyreads.org/Author_Vide... scroll down). One of my favorite books from 2007 is Magoon’s The Rock and the River. At the time, I mentioned in reviews that we have very few books that even mention the Black Panther Party, let alone deal with them in a careful, thorough way. Fire in the Streets continues the story Magoon...more
This sequel to The Rock and the River (2009) follows Maxie after the death of her friend Sam's brother Steve. Maxie and Raheem live with their mother in the projects, and are struggling to pay the rent and get food. Sam's family is well off, but reeling from Steve's death. Maxie has two very good friends, Patrice and Emmalee, but neither of them are as interested in working with the Black Panthers as Maxie is. Not content to stuff envelopes and babysit at the office, Maxie wants to be a fully tr...more
Mar 25, 2013
Beverly
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
11-14 year olds
Shelves:
good-girl-books
Fire In The Streets is the sequel to the outstanding The Rock and The River, but it is a very different kind of story. While The Rock and The River focused mostly on the relationship between brothers Sam and Steve, Fire In The Streets takes the reader into the heart of the Chicago Black Panther campaign during the summer of 1968. The fear and frustration of growing up in inner city Chicago is bearing down on young teen, Maxie. After participating in the Black Pather summer programs for kids, Max...more
Maxie, Patrice, and Emmalee have been best friends for as long as they can remember. Normally when they're together they're talking a mile a minute, but these are not normal times. As they head to the protest, fearing that riots may break out and promising to stay together, they sit in silence. Maxie knows that these protests are important and she'll have to be brave if she wants to be a Black Panther but Patrice and Emmalee would rather be enjoying what's left of the summer. Soon Emmalee and Pa...more
It was good; definitely a 5-star read. However, it did not live up to "The Rock and the River" in my opinion. "The Rock and the River" had well-rounded, memorable characters and palpable tension... it got so bad and I got so worried that I almost quit reading the book. "Fire in the Streets" just lacked... something. I think maybe it was the character development. In "The Rock and the River" we got to know many sides of Sam (and Stick). We came to truly love this brotherly duo. I never felt that...more
The Rock and the River blew me away when I read it, almost two years ago, now. I loved Sam, his brother, the struggle and the romance he had with Maxie...and it was centered in the greatest city in the world: CHICAGO.
So I was thrilled when I found out Magoon was coming out with a sequel, focusing on Sam's girlfriend, Maxie. And, as I did with The Rock and the River, I loved this story as well.
Maxie lives in 1968 Chicago, months after the assassination of MLK. Chicago -especially the Black commu...more
So I was thrilled when I found out Magoon was coming out with a sequel, focusing on Sam's girlfriend, Maxie. And, as I did with The Rock and the River, I loved this story as well.
Maxie lives in 1968 Chicago, months after the assassination of MLK. Chicago -especially the Black commu...more
Much more didactic than the previous book in the series - but reveals a lot about the workings of the Black Panther party. Told from Maxie's point of view this time. I liked the first book better; there was more character tension and development in the relationship between the brothers and their dad and the different ways that they were trying to solve the segregation/inequality issues.
Oct 24, 2012
Zandra
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Shelves:
african-american,
chicago,
historical,
racism,
teen-fiction,
black-panthers,
siblings,
betrayal
In 1968 Chicago, fourteen-year-old Maxie wants nothing more than to join the Black Panthers. She believes in all that they stand for and volunteers at the office every day in hopes of proving to everyone that she has what it takes to become a member. But, she keeps being turned down because they say she's too young. Tired of jobs she considers petty, such as stuffing envelopes and answering the phone, she comes up with a way to prove her readiness. Maxie is determined to find out who the traitor...more
Loved this book. The author tackles a topic that is hugely underrepresented, especially in children's literature. It is a story of family, loyalty, poverty, race, and difficult decisions, to which any American reader can relate.
This novel gets 4 stars for a) illuminating the community activism of the Black Panthers (breakfast/clinic/education class) and b) featuring strong women/girl characters. Though, it moved at a slower pace than 'The Rock and the River' and lacked some of that first novel's emotional power, 'Fire' is an important historical fiction/civil rights/Black history read for tweens & teens.
I applaud Magoon for her research and honesty in capturing the energy, fear, courage, hope and revolutionary spir...more
I applaud Magoon for her research and honesty in capturing the energy, fear, courage, hope and revolutionary spir...more
Fire in the Streets takes place after The Rock and the River, and Maxie is trying to become a full-fledged Black Panther. She is a realiable narrator and tells about the events happening in Chicago and the struggles her family is facing.
After reading The Rock and the River I was excited to see there was a companion from Maxie's point of view. Unfortunately, I felt this book fell a little short of the previous book. For me this book is "just there" - there's no real build up to a big event, it's...more
After reading The Rock and the River I was excited to see there was a companion from Maxie's point of view. Unfortunately, I felt this book fell a little short of the previous book. For me this book is "just there" - there's no real build up to a big event, it's...more
A little too didactic and the characters and voices didn't quite gel, but I love that there's a book about a teen girl trying to become a Black Panther in Chicago '68.
If you liked The Rock and the River, you will LOVE this book!
Very much worth the wait for this book.
Chicago 1968, Black Panthers
Very strong willed young girl. An informative look at the Black Panther party from the point of a young girl.
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Jan 26, 2013 08:11am