The Reading Warehouse

Belle, tonight was special. I could feel all of those folks with me. I want us to feel this way all the time. I want to sing in a place where black people and white people aren't kept apart, Grandmama said. That's the kind of world I want for you.

When Grandmama Coles gets a big chance, Belle gets one, too. Belle's going to spend the summer touring the South with Grandmama and a swing jazz band Belle's never been outside Pecan Flats, Mississippi, and she can't wait to go on the road with Grandmama, helping her read signs and menus and hearing her sing. There are so many new things to see on their travels through the Deep South. But some things aren't new. Everything is segregated, just like at home. But Grandmama stands up for what's right. And when she sings, Belle knows that Grandmama's song can bring everyone together.

From Margaree King Mitchell and James E. Ransome, the award-winning author and artist of Uncle Jed's Barbershop, comes this new picture-book collaboration about the gift of love, the beauty of music, and its power to bring people together--even in the segregated South.

James Ransome has illustrated more than fifty books for children. His titles include The Creation by James Weldon Johnson, winner of the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award; Uncle Jed's Barbershop by Margaree King Mitchell, a Coretta Scott King Honor Book; and My Name Is Truth: The Life of Sojourner Truth by Ann Turner. He lives in New York State and teaches illustration at Syracuse University. See more of his work at www.jamesransome.com.

Margaree King Mitchell is the author of the Coretta Scott King Honor Book Uncle Jed's Barbershop, illustrated by James E. Ransome, and Granddaddy's Gift. She is the creator of the Everybody Has a Dream program, which empowers students in urban and rural areas to shoot for the stars with aspirations for their lives. Margaree lives in Kansas City, KS, where she is a member of the Midwest Children's Authors Guild.