Fire from the Rock

Feb 19, 2013 Ruth Noemi Rojas rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: chick-lit-only, cynthia-s-challenge

I just want to thank the Lord for allowing me the opportunity to read this book.This book is about Sylvia Patterson and the way her family struggles with racism. She has a brother named Gary, who is hardheaded, and a little sister named Donna Jean, who was my favorite character. The school board of Education has chosen several children based on their academic performance to integrate Central High School. Being such an excellent person, Sylvie is chosen.;) Will she decide to go to Central High sc...more

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Jun 26, 2008 Hooma added it

I loved this book because it's written with honesty and sincerity. Sharon Draper is my new favorite author. Mainly because she deals with topics that need to be dealt with. Her books are written with class. I spent some time thinking DJ's voice was too mature for her actual age of 8 but then I realized she grew up in time period where children went through so much and perhaps the voice that you were hearing is the maturity that she had gained through experience and seeing things that a child her...more

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Nov 06, 2011 Kathy Lane rated it 1 of 5 stars

Sylvia Patterson is shocked and confused when she is asked to be one of the first black students to attend Central High School, which is scheduled to be integrated in September 1957, whether the citizens or governor of Arkansas like it or not. Before Sylvia makes her final decision, smoldering racial tension in the town ignites into flame. When the smoke clears, she sees clearly that nothing is going to stop the change from coming. It is up to her generation to make it happen, in as many differe...more Sylvia Patterson is shocked and confused when she is asked to be one of the first black students to attend Central High School, which is scheduled to be integrated in September 1957, whether the citizens or governor of Arkansas like it or not. Before Sylvia makes her final decision, smoldering racial tension in the town ignites into flame. When the smoke clears, she sees clearly that nothing is going to stop the change from coming. It is up to her generation to make it happen, in as many different ways as there are colors in the world.
I do think this is a good book, but there is something about it that is preventing me from giving it an enthusiastic yay. Draper addresses many issues in this book such as segregation/integration, racial hatred towards both Black and Jewish people, friendship between a Black teen and a Jewish teen, non-violent father and militant son, first love, and making tough decisions and she created a main character who is strong and likeable. My main problem is that I think some of the situations in this book seem a little unbelievable to me (like the fire for instance). I can't wait to hear how others feel about this one. For now, I give it a MAYBE. (Zandra)

The topic of the book is worth having in the library. I don't think it is Thumbs Up worthy due to the writing that is poorly crafted. I found myself counting to the point of distraction the overused adverbs describing people's mannerisms, speaking and thinking. "said calmly" "sighed deeply" "watched quietly"
"asked angrily" "said bitterly" "said flatly" "explained quietly" "said gently" "asked angrily" "replied philosophically" "whimpered softly" - the last five just on page 9.

Maybe her editor could have helped hone the craft and elicited more descriptions rather than relying on repetitive and unsupported adverbs. The direct dialog is better written than the narrative. I felt like the narrative was telling rather than showing.

I stopped at page 60, promising myself to read it once I am through the Thumbs Up titles. (KDL)

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Jul 18, 2011 Alicia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: african-american, historical, politics, religion, romance

Much like the other historical stories that I've read recently, Draper's story of the Little Rock nine was pleasant. It follows Sylvia, a black girl in Arkansas who is both wise and intelligent. She is raised by her father, a pastor, her mother, a teacher (in the black school school of course, in the 1950s), and her older brother, who is more violent and than non-violent, which gets him into trouble with the white boys in the area.

Now, there is a call for the black youth to integrate Central Hi...more

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May 17, 2011 Bailee Koehler rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Oct 28, 2010 Mariyamou Drammeh rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: People who want to learn about history in a fun and exciting way.

Recommended to Mariyamou by: My friend

Fire from the Rock was an amazing book! I picked this book because of the author. I read a lot of Sharon M. Draper books; she is an great author. Also my friend read the book and told me that it was amazing so I decided to read it. One thing I loved about this book is the author really makes it seem like I know this character as if it were a real person. It has a lot of feeling and really makes the reader understand what these characters have to go through. Well, I kind of expected it to be grea...more

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Jul 02, 2010 Heather rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, ya

Possible book for civil rights lit circles.

Sylvia Faye Patterson is finishing her eighth grade year in Little Rock, Arkansas. The city is a boiling kettle of unrest over black and white segregation. Youths of both color are hot blooded and hot tempered in their words and actions, buoyed on by adults of the same mindset. Physical violence is a norm on the streets in spite of Martin Luther King Jr's preachings. Sylvia's father, the preacher, and her mother are very conservative and feel prayer and...more

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Feb 05, 2010 MarKEITHIA_83 Thornton added it

Fire From the Rock was about a time during segregation in the 50's. The Patterson family which included the daughter Sylvia,Donna Jean (dj)mr. and mrs. patterson, and son Gary. The book started out with Donna Jean getting bit by a white family Crandall. It all started out wrong. Also in this book Sylvia was going to an all black school called Mann High School. She also had a boyfriend named Reggie. Anyways people were trying to intergrate Central High School which was an all white school.Sylvia...more

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Jan 11, 2012 LibraryAvenger rated it 3 of 5 stars

Sylvia Patterson is about to finish middle school. She's, of course, concerned about what she'll wear on her first day of high school, if she'll have a boyfriend, what color her toenails should be, what her favorite song is, everything typical of a 15-year-old girl. There's something else she's worried about though. If she's strong enough to be one of the first black students to attend the all-white Central High School. She doesn't want to be a hero, she just wants to be normal!

Fire from the Ro...more

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Apr 19, 2012 Vicki rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, historical

Set in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957, the year that public schools were to be integrated for the first time. I expected this book to be highly explosive, keeping you on the edge of your seat as the story unfolds during one of the most turbulent times of American history. Instead, most of the story focuses on one teenage girl who is chosen to be one of the first African American students to be integrated into an all white high school, in the months leading up to the start of the integration. Thou...more

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Aug 24, 2010 Rebecca Radnor rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction-ya, civil-rights, america, jewish-israeli

Covers the first group of African American students to integrate white schools in Little rock, AK., from the standpoint of a fictional girl who was chosen to be part of the group but ultimately chooses not to (hence keeping the list of students who did, true to the historical record).

It starts out kind of heavy handed and slow, lecturing about racism. None of the characters are written with dialectical speech patterns. Midway through the book the story really picks up speed and becomes a page t...more

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Jan 17, 2010 Allegra rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: grade-8-ir-books-rick

Sylvia Patterson is shocked and confused when she is asked to be one of the first black students to attend Central High School, which is scheduled to be integrated in September 1957, whether the citizens or governor of Arkansas like it or not. Before Sylvia makes her final decision, smoldering racial tension in the town ignites into flame. When the smoke clears, she sees clearly that nothing is going to stop the change from coming. It is up to her generation to make it happen, in as many differe...more

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Feb 04, 2012 Karen Ball rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sylvia Faye Patterson is finishing the ninth grade in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957, and her teacher, Miss Washington, asks her to consider being one of the first black students to integrate Central High School the following school year. This is the story of what happened in Little Rock from a student's point of view, with the expected rampant racism of white segregationists. But this story has something different -- it also shows the conflict between those who believed in nonviolent protest, an...more

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Nov 08, 2012 Ajayia Perry rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ela9-conflict

I really liked this book! It had me wanting to read more and anxious about what will happen next. "Fire from the Rock" a historical fiction novel by Sharon M. Draper exposed me to the seriousness of segregation at that time. Sylvia Patterson, an African American teenager, was preparing to integrate an all white school. She deals with the external conflict with the citizens’ of Little Rock, Arkansas. Sylvia was excited about being the first African American selected to go to Central high school,...more

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Apr 29, 2011 Janessa Brown rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-literature

This beautiful piece of historical fiction will rip your heart out and sew it back together with an aching appreciation for those who suffered so much for equality. While our civil rights history lessons provide a skeleton for what happened in the 1950's and 60's, it's books like these that bring emotion and personal connection to the textbook stories.

"Fire from the Rock" is filled with rich history and timeless life lessons woven together with powerfully beautiful voice. Sharon Draper pulls yo...more

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May 28, 2012 Josiah rated it 3 of 5 stars

"I believe in the goodness of people, sir, and the power of young folks like us to overcome what grown-ups like you might not be able to."

―Sylvia Patterson, Fire from the Rock, P. 129

This is a story that absolutely had to be told, and who better to give their perspective on such a weighty matter than Sharon M. Draper, whose words never fail to cut through the extraneous and get right to the heart of any issue? She writes this story, Fire from the Rock, to be a book emotionally accessible not...more "I believe in the goodness of people, sir, and the power of young folks like us to overcome what grown-ups like you might not be able to."

―Sylvia Patterson, Fire from the Rock, P. 129

This is a story that absolutely had to be told, and who better to give their perspective on such a weighty matter than Sharon M. Draper, whose words never fail to cut through the extraneous and get right to the heart of any issue? She writes this story, Fire from the Rock, to be a book emotionally accessible not only to African-Americans as they read about the tumultuous history of race relations in the United States, but to anyone who has ever felt demeaned or hated because of something about themselves that they couldn't control, as if they were wearing a sign around their neck announcing themselves to be damaged goods and inviting the world to kick them around some more. I don't believe there's any legitimate reason to have to take that kind of abuse, but just tell that to the harangued African-American citizens of the 1960s, '50s and earlier, who lived with that (and worse) as the status quo and had to make the best of it in what small ways they could, knowing that to try fighting fire with fire could bring down the bitter anger of a frustrated white population directly on their heads. There had been more than enough racially motivated bloodshed down through the years to prove the immediacy of that danger.

It's 1957, and Sylvia Patterson is preparing to enter her first year of high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. The integration of public schools is at last coming to this hostile region of the deep-south, and not everyone is in favor of the change. Many of the city's whites are strongly opposed to the policy of integration and are willing to defend the exclusivity of their schools by whatever means they consider necessary, but a select few black students will be chosen to attend Central High School in the coming year, and there's nothing that the angry residents of Little Rock can legally do to stop it. Sylvia is a strong, dedicated student, but much more passive than her older brother, Gary, and so she is stunned to hear that she is one of the students being considered to make the transition to Central in the fall. She doesn't know how bad it might get if she tries to go to that school, or what the reactions of the white kids will be to having African-Americans suddenly introduced into the general student population. Sylvia isn't sure if she wants to be a part of this project even if she ends up being chosen, but at least she has the whole summer to think it over and come up with her answer.

Even just being on the fringe of the experience, Sylvia has to deal with some pretty nasty things as the weeks of summer speed by and the start of the new school year looms large in front of her and all of the other teenagers being considered for the integration experiment. In her final interview before the list of black students approved for the integration is finalized, Sylvia undergoes a virtual interrogation before a group of very white, wholly unsympathetic arbiters, trying her hardest to come across as sincere and respectful to a group that has apparently already decided that there's nothing a black kid can bring to the school experience that will be of any benefit to his or her white peers. I try to imagine being intensely disliked by people just because of my outside appearance, before they even really get to know me, and immediately I can feel the weight on Sylvia's shoulders and in her stomach, dragging her down like an anchor as she attempts to walk with shoulders straight and head held high. That's harder than you might think, but Sylvia conducts herself admirably even as the storm of emotions builds inside of her and threatens to capsize the boat. If anyone can survive in the extreme environment that is sure to pervade Central High School as zero hour approaches for the commencement of integration, it's probably Sylvia, though being tossed into the frying pan sure won't feel like any kind of a reward.

Fire from the Rock is as good a novel as it is, in my opinion, because it switches so smoothly from being one kind of a story to another, giving us a variety of looks at Sylvia's life and the rare opportunity that she faces to possibly be one of the first black students to integrate schools in Little Rock. We get all kinds of great history in this book, overlooked information and little-known facts as well as the more commonly known pieces of the integration story, and the depth of the characters does much to bring it all alive and make us feel the same core emotions that are affecting them. But this isn't just a story about social revolution and the quiet determination of an abused group of people. Fire from the Rock gives us inside access to the realistic world of high school as it existed in the 1950s, not all that different a place than fifty years later when one really looks at it, and the visceral excitement of unsure, budding love as it first ripens into something recognizable as more than just a passing attraction. Sharon M. Draper paints the scene of imperfect yet wondrous young love so that it will affect anyone, beating in sync with the memories of our own hearts and how we treasure those moments that first made the world glow in our eyes as a place eminently worth calling home. It's the knowledge of this ecstasy of love, in addition to the firm support of her family and friends, that gives Sylvia the strength to remain standing against forces that would buffet her mercilessly for no reason other than that she is willing to stand, to resist the idea that there is something broken or wrong with her just because she's different from the white kids, to refuse to yield to those whose calling card is hatred and to believe in her heart that she should be able to earn anything that those around her are given the chance to earn. Sylvia makes the decision to stand up in her own quiet way against the opposition that will always be there, unwilling to live less of a life because that's what the people around her thinks she deserves.

Sharon M. Draper writes beautifully, describing situations charged with tension and fury and blind passion, but never coming across as bitter or jaundiced in the way that she relates the story. As a result, the reader feels a sense of always being in good hands as the narrative moves along, ready to endure with Sylvia the next challenge as it arrives. Fire from the Rock is a solid, dependable novel that delivers what one would expect plus a few extras, and I think that it deserves its place on the shelves of junior high and high school classrooms across the country. I would probably give it two and a half stars. (less)

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Jul 07, 2009 Regina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-literature

Fire From the Rock is engaging historical fiction. It tells the story of school integration in Little Rock in 1957. I could not believe that these things ever happened in our country, especially not within the last 50 or so years! I was shocked at how hateful and ignorant the whites were toward the blacks (and Jews). Of course I'd learned about Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks in school, but I had never heard the struggle told from the black point of view. Maybe it was the normalcy of Sylvia an...more

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May 09, 2013 Ellie Deakin rated it 4 of 5 stars

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Jun 27, 2008 Jean rated it 3 of 5 stars

An important book about the forced integration of Little Rock's schools in the late 1950's. Once again I find Draper's desire to "teach" us through her character's dialogue forced and unnatural. All in all, though, a compelling story that surprised me with some of its plot twists.

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Apr 28, 2012 Katie Boehmer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Fire From The Rock is a great book that I would definitely recommend to others. This book takes place during the Civil Rights Movement. In the beginning of the story, Sylvia is chosen by her teacher to be one of the students on the list that will integrate Central High School in the fall. Sylvia is not excited about this and knows that she is not brave enough to do this. Her brother on the other hand really wants to be on the list and will do anything to get on it. Then a few days later, Sylvia...more

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May 22, 2013 Joslin Fields rated it 5 of 5 stars

I would recommend this book to someone because it teaches as well as entertains. Fire from the Rock by Sharon Draper is about a teenage girl named Sylvia. Sylvia has been given the opportunity to be one of the first blacks to interstate into Central High School. not only will Sylvia have to face a tough decision, but she'll also have to face horrible discrimination from both black and white people.

I first read this book as a fifth grader and again this year as an eight grader. I believe the int...more

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Feb 15, 2012 Angie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-teen, classroom

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 09, 2009 alireza rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read this book for my black history month book (the assignment from Sally). My grandmother was visiting from LA and she gave me this book as a present...and she didn't even know about this assignment! She read my mind! I was shocked when she gave it to me because just that day I was at the library looking for a book to read for this assignment! LOL!
Well, anyways, this was a very good book. When I first heard the BHM assignment, I thought I wouldn't be able to find a book that would hold my int...more

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Nov 18, 2010 Donna rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, multicultural, middle-school, rll595-award-winning-literature

Although I appreciate the historical story this book was telling, I felt it moved much too slow. It tells the story about the integration of schools in Alabama in the early 60's. Eleven African American students were chosen to attend Central High School and be the first to integrate this all white public school. Much of the book was built around Sylvia Patterson, who was chosen to attend the school. Her story shows the anguish that many students endured while trying to make this decision: Should...more

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Aug 20, 2009 Additeenlibrarian rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

I learned quite a bit - and got a feel for - the times and troubles surrounding school desegregation in the South. It is difficult for many modern people, born well after this time period, to understand just how ridiculously nasty, petty, and open racism was. But there was also division within the black community as to how to proceed -- aggressively, calmly, or is integration even necessary? Draper's novel casts light on many of the issues that aren't brought up in most of the novels about schoo...more

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May 06, 2012 Jessica Flynn rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have already finished this book but am re reading it to do the sentence leads. It was interesting and kept me hooked until I finished. I thought it shed light on the civil rights movement and explained why so many people dropped out of the list to enter Central High school. Although it was fictional, it showed a view of a little rock African American, that is often overshadowed by the legendary little rock nine. I was surprised by the brutality of the movement in Little Rock although this came...more

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Sep 17, 2010 Alexander rated it 4 of 5 stars

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Oct 31, 2012 Tiarra Andrews-owens rated it 4 of 5 stars

Sylvia Patterson lives in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957. Sylvia is a shy and smart girl who is unaware of her abilities. Sylvia lives with her little sister Donna Jean, her big brother Gary, her mother, and her father who is the pastor of a church. Sylvia’s whole world is changed when she is selected to be one of the first black students to go to a previously all white school. This book would be very educational to people who have little knowledge of the integration of school and the problems t...more Sylvia Patterson lives in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957. Sylvia is a shy and smart girl who is unaware of her abilities. Sylvia lives with her little sister Donna Jean, her big brother Gary, her mother, and her father who is the pastor of a church. Sylvia’s whole world is changed when she is selected to be one of the first black students to go to a previously all white school. This book would be very educational to people who have little knowledge of the integration of school and the problems that African-Americans had to go through to have the same education as white people. I would definitely recommend this book because it has a lasting value, it is interesting to read, and it teaches a lesson that everyone should learn.
Fire from the Rock has a lasting value. This book helps to understand what African-Americans had to go through to a place where we had the same educational opportunities. Though this story is fictional it has realistic characters that bring history to life. Like Gary, Sylvia’s hot headed brother that got beaten up after trying to stand up for himself. “His wounds will heal, but not the fury that keeps growing in his heart.” This book can help everyone connect to what occurred in history.
This book was very interesting to read. The book had interesting characters. Fire from the Rock also had interesting plot twists. This book was emotionally written from the heart. This book shows that Draper has a connection to this subject because it really touches you. Fire from the Rock is definitely a good book to recommend to people who want to read something from the heart.
Fire from the Rock teaches a very good lesson that everyone should learn. This book teaches people that even though you do not believe in yourself, you can be capable of so much. Sylvia did not see that she could change the world but many adults did. That is one of the major reasons why her parents let her go. Miss Lillie who owns the flower shop was an example of seeing that in Sylvia, “…It might just be this integration stuff, it might be something else. But I see something in you that I don’t see in other teenagers…”
Fire from the Rock was just a very good book overall. Fire from the Rock had a lasting value because it taught something that everyone should know about. Everyone should know what African-Americans had to go through to get the same education and this book touched me emotionally. Fire from the Rock was just an interesting book that had fictional but realistic characters that were interesting. Fire from the Rock also teaches you a lesson that problems should not be solved with violence. When Gary lost his temper it dissolved his chances of getting on the list to go to the integrated school. Miss Washington said that it ruined his chances, “Gary has always been volatile and impetuous, and I must admit that his behavior might work against you…” Fire from the Rock also taught a lesson that you should not let your bashfulness make you feel like you are not capable of something because one day you might end up changing the world. This book was just really good and I would recommend it.
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Aug 08, 2011 Sherrie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: already-read, 2011-reading-challenge

This book is written in diary form. Sylvia is the one telling the story and she keeps a diary about what is happening. It starts with January 1, 1957. Interrogation is about to make a big move in Arkansas, at Sylvia's school. The school board at Sylvia's school is picking some students who they feel can make the move to the all white middle school. Sylvia is one that gets picked. Sylvia is telling her story about what happens. She is scared and doesn't want to leave her friends at her school. Bu...more

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Apr 10, 2012 Shanda rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I picked up this book I thought It was about a girl trying to fit in a kind of school. But when I started reading I learned about what was happeneing. I really liked it. But at times it got scareier. I felt like going in the book and slapping each and every person who teased her. My heart almost broke when I found out that her own boyfriend threw the bomb at the Grocery store. I loved the main character she was a great, smart person. Even though, She was great her brother scared me many tim...more

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