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  • Ron's Big Mission

Ron's Big Mission

Author
Illustrator
Don Tate
Publication Date
February 01, 2009
Genre / Grade Band
Fiction /  2nd − 3rd
Language
English
Ron's Big Mission

Description
Nine-year-old Ron loves going to the Lake City Public Library to look through all the books on airplanes and flight. Today, Ron is ready to take out books by himself. But in the segregated world of South Carolina in the 1950s, Ron's obtaining his own library card is not just a small rite of passage? It is a young man's first courageous mission. Here is an inspiring story, based on Ron McNair's life, of how a little boy, future scientist, and Challenger astronaut desegregated his library through peaceful resistance.
Publication date
February 01, 2009
Genre
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780525478492
Lexile Measure
540
Guided Reading Level
M
Publisher
Dutton Books for Young Readers
BISAC categories
JUV000000 - Juvenile Fiction | General
Library of Congress categories
History
Childhood and youth
African Americans
20th century
South Carolina
Libraries
Books and reading
Segregation
McNair, Ronald E.

School Library Journal

Gr 1-4--When nine-year-old Ron tries to take library books home instead of just looking at them, he knowingly challenges the rule that "only white people can check out books." The boy does not back down, even when his mother and the police arrive. The librarian finally relents and creates a library card for Ron, who proudly checks out the airplane books he loves to read. The purpose of Ron's "mission" is revealed with dramatic subtlety. There's no hint of racism as he walks through his 1950s South Carolina town on the way to the library where he is its "best customer." The truth emerges when a white patron offers to check out his books for him as the clerk blatantly ignores the boy. Stylized cartoon illustrations convey the town's benign facade while revealing tension through Ron's expressions of determination mixed with fear. The impact of his actions shows in the confusion and anger of onlookers. Readers do not learn if the library will change the rules for everyone, or just for Ron, but the final scene resonates as the child eagerly opens his book to page one. An author's note explains that this is a fictionalized account of a real incident from the childhood of astronaut Ron McNair, who died in the 1986 "Challenger" explosion. This context lends power and poignancy to the event and adds to the book's value as an introduction and discussion starter for concepts of racism and individual courage."Steven Engelfried, Multnomah County Library, OR" Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Rose Blue
Corinne Naden has written many books for children. She lives in Westchester, New York and Sarasota, Florida.

Rose Blue had a long career as a writer and teacher. Ms. Blue died in 2004. Don Tate is the award-winning illustrator of Summer Sun Risin', by W. Nikola-Lisa. He lives in Austin, Texas.
South Carolina Childrens, Junior and Young Adult Book Award
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Nominee 2010 - 2011
Washington Children's Choice Picture Book Award
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Nominee 2011 - 2011
Flicker Tale Children's Book Award
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Nominee 2012 - 2012
Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award
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Nominee 2012 - 2012
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