Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 11/01/2021 *Starred Review* After Rosa Parks’ arrest on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus, local women organized minister Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s bus boycott, and many others in the Black community stepped up to do what they could. To raise money for ride-sharing and other expenses, a cook named Georgia Gilmore made and sold sandwiches, cakes, and pies, and she encouraged others to help as well. All the proceeds supported the cause. After Dr. King was arrested for inciting a boycott without “just cause,” she testified in court about the bus system’s discriminatory practices. As a result, she lost her job, but that didn’t deter her from her mission. Dr. King gave her money for pots and pans, enabling her to cook for many in her home, supporting herself and the boycott. Rockliff weaves many references to Gilmore’s cooking into the narrative of significant events taking place in her community. The author’s note points to her place in history as one of many “courageous and persistent individuals” who made up the era’s civil rights movement. Christie’s richly colorful, expressive gouache paintings bring the bus boycott into focus while depicting Gilmore as the text portrays her: a down-to-earth hero who used her considerable talent, energy, and courage to work for justice. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 01/28/2022 Gr 1–4—Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. are familiar names in the fight for justice and equality, but unsung heroes such as Georgia Gilmore contributed to the famous Montgomery Bus Boycott, too. In fact, Gilmore had been boycotting the bus herself before Parks was arrested. For over a year, she helped support the boycott by making and selling her delicious food, then using the proceeds to pay for transportation and fines for those who were arrested unjustly. When Gilmore spoke out in court, she was fired from her job, but King encouraged her to work for herself, making food at her house. Gouache illustrations are full of life and expression; think Gordon C. James's paintings for Derrick Barnes's Crown. Gilmore is a big Black woman, often wearing bright colors, with a missing front tooth. Substantial back matter includes "After the Boycott" and resources. VERDICT Offering an outstanding take on the Montgomery Bus Boycott from a fresh perspective, this is an essential purchase.—Jenny Arch - Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.