Sources of Light

by Margaret McMullan

Overview

It's 1962, a year after the death of Sam's father--he was a war hero--and Sam and her mother must move, along with their very liberal views, to Jackson, Mississippi, her father's conservative hometown. Needless to say, they don't quite fit in.
    People like the McLemores fear that Sam, her mother, and her mother's artist friend, Perry, are in the South to "agitate" and to shake up the dividing lines between black and white and blur it all to grey. As racial injustices ensue--sit-ins and run-ins with secret white supremacists--Sam learns to focus with her camera lens to bring forth the social injustice out of the darkness and into the light.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780547076591
Publisher:	HMH Books
Publication date:	04/12/2010
Pages:	233
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 7.80(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	840L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 12 Years

About the Author

Margaret McMullan is the author of Cashay,When I Crossed No-Bob, and How I Found the Strong. Twice she has received the Individual Artist Fellowship from the Indiana Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. She was born in Newton County, Mississippi, near Smith County, and lives in Evansville, Indiana, with her husband and son.

Editorial Reviews

This historical novel set in 1962 Mississippi spotlights the tensions of the early civil rights movement through the evolution of 14-year-old Sam, a former army brat transplanted to her recently deceased father's home state when her mother accepts a teaching job at the local college. McMullan (Cashay) effectively captures the Southern setting and frames Sam's conflict between belonging and doing the right thing in the face of racial prejudice. “I just wanted to fit into this place just as we had fit in to all the other towns we had lived in... do whatever it was we were supposed to do, let whatever was supposed to happen happen.” Sam's pivotal relationships with her family's maid, feisty grandmother, and love interest, Stone, whose family staunchly advocates white supremacy, force her to define her own beliefs. And her interest in photography, inspired by her mother's activist boyfriend, helps her focus on this society in transition, as she documents lunch counter protests and develops shocking film after a murder. It's a high stakes novel that powerfully portrays the bravery and loss of a tumultuous time. Ages 10–up. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Gr 7–10—With the camera that her mother's colleague gives her, 14-year-old Samantha records a portrait of life in Mississippi during the year 1962–1963. Perry teaches her how to use it and in many ways how to see. He also sets a powerful example through his activism and determination to do the right thing. Sam begins her freshman year somewhat unaware of the racial tensions that exist around her. By the end of the school year though, she becomes acutely aware of the situation, and she and her mother are directly impacted by those struggles. Sam's personal life has its own pressures as she and her mother cope with the loss of her father in Vietnam the previous year, Perry and her mom grow closer, and Sam meets a boy who seems to be at odds with her views on racial equality. McMullan's characters are authentic to the time and place. The themes come through naturally, as do the imagery and symbolism of the camera. Like many novels that have civil rights at the center of them, this is not an easy read, but it is worth the effort. McMullan's well-chosen words realistically portray the conflicts that Sam, her mother, and those around them face. The truths the teen learns are timeless, allowing readers to identify with her. Make room on your library shelves for this one.—Hilary Writt, Sullivan University, Lexington, KY

School Library Journal

"Like many novels that have civil rights at the center of them, this is not an easy read, but it is worth the effort. McMullan’s well-chosen words realistically portray the conflicts that Sam, her mother, and those around them face. The truths the teen learns are timeless, allowing readers to identify with her. Make room on your library shelves for this one."—School Library Journal, starred review

"When 14-year-old Samantha Thomas moves to Jackson, Miss., in 1962, following her father’s death in Vietnam, she learns about love and hate all in the same year...Though this fine volume easily stands by itself, McMullan links it with two previous works—How I Found the Strong (2004) and When I Crossed No-Bob (2007)—and readers who read the first installments will feel that they are in the midst of an excellent historical saga."—Kirkus

"This historical novel set in 1962 Mississippi spotlights the tensions of the early civil rights movement through the evolution of 14-year-old Sam, a former army brat transplanted to her recently deceased father's home state when her mother accepts a teaching job at the local college. McMullan (Cashay) effectively captures the Southern setting and frames Sam's conflict between belonging and doing the right thing in the face of racial prejudice...It's a high stakes novel that powerfully portrays the bravery and loss of a tumultuous time."—Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

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