'March On!' by Christine King FarrisSunday, December 28, 2008 Come Jan. 20, the Washington Mall will fill with people who want to share in a historic moment: the inauguration of our first African American president. Just 45 years ago, in August 1963, the Mall was also filled - for a march on Washington, that such equality might someday be realized. There, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. His older sister, author Christine King Farris, pays tribute to the man and his message in March On! The Day My Brother Martin Changed the World, illustrated by London Ladd (Scholastic; 32 pages; $17.99; ages 6-8). From her special vantage point, she recalls their childhood (and the lessons of modesty and service they learned), King's meticulous preparation of the speech (he wrote and rewrote all night before he delivered it), and finally the day itself (she watched with her aged parents in Atlanta, sure that the power of his words would make a difference). Lovely paintings help set a mood of expectation and exultation. They include stirring portraits of King and photojournalistic scenes of the march. A sense of profound import pervades as the persuasive Farris proves her point: King did change the world that day. And as Barack Obama prepares to take the oath of office, there is special resonance to her claim. This article appeared on page M - 4 of the San Francisco Chronicle Comments |
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