Mississippi Bridge

Rating:
Summary: JUDGMENT AT THE BRIDGE?
Review: Here we meet again the Logan kids--those four rascals from Taylor's ROLL OF THUNDER. This read-in-one sitting short story is based on a real incident in the dark, prejudiced past of the deep South during the Depression. When Blacks had to sit at the back of the bus--if they were allowed to sit or even ride at all. Sassy Cassie is shocked by the way whites treat blacks, which is starkly contrasted by gentle Jeremy--whose nasty pa belives in keeping Negroes in their place. This mild white boy just dreams of simple friendship without racial boundaries.

This book is an excellent grade-school introduction to Southern racism and bigotry. Was it the hand of God in divine retribution (a sort of Black Passover) which spared the serfs but punished the masters? Does pride deserve a fall? Read this and judge for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: A+ 100% Book!!!!
Review: I always enjoy reading Mildred D. Taylor books, and Mississippi Bridge was no exception. It was to short for my liking, but it was an excellent book. Taylor writes from the perspective of Jeremy Simms, a white boy, which is different from most of her books, which are usually told from the perspective of the african-american Logan family.
Mississippi Bridge descibes the unfairness of racial prejudice in the south, and how it backfired on some of the people who commited it. A swollen creek, a rickety bridge, and an out of control bus turn into a disaster. The book then ends with Jeremy, his african-american friend Josias, and others pulling people out of the water. It ends here, and kills the quality of the book. It seems like Taylor wanted a cup of Starbucks more than the importance of answering the questions I and most likely other readers are asking. This was a disappointing ending to an otherwise excellent book.

Rating:
Summary: Taylor has wowed me again!
Review: I am simply facinated by the Logan series that Mildred D. Taylor has created. Born and raised in Mississippi, I have seen first hand the actions that Taylor writes about. I share the books with my students. I plan to read this one next week. I can't wait. Mississippi Bridge gives us a look into the character Jeremy Simms. The story is one of pride and human nature. This story, along with Taylor's others, is an excellent teaching tool. Children of all ages can learn from our past mistakes through these touching and true to life stories. I highly recommend ANY and ALL of the Logan series books!

Rating:
Summary: Mississippi Bridge- Thumbs Up!
Review: Mississippi Bridge by Mildred D. Taylor displays an excellent picture of what life was like in Mississippi in the 1930's. The depiction of racism that an African-American family had to go through was revealing.

The story takes place by the town store. The bus stop was also outside the store, where many of the characters were waiting for the bus. Jeremy Simms, a ten-year-old white boy, was interested in talking to all of these characters. However, one particular black family, the Logan's, were not interested in talking to him. Jeremy was faced with a difficult dilemma. He was torn between what he felt was right and what his father and the other white men in the town felt was right. Every time he witnessed an injustice, he tried to comfort or let the black people know that he did not agree with the way they were being treated. Despite his constant feel of sympathy for the blacks in the community, the oldest Logan boy, Stacey, did not warm up to Jeremy. In the end, a trust is built between the two boys.

I thought the book was very realistic and appropriate when explaining racism and segregation to children. The ending was my favorite part and really brought the book together. There is a heart-shaking catastrophe that brings that book to a close.

Rating:
Summary: Mississippi Bridge is one of Mildred Taylor's finest books.
Review: Mississippi Bridge is a prequel to Taylor's other novelsabout the Logan family. This time, however, the reader is treatedto the viewpoint of Jeremy Simms, the shy and sensitive white boy who sees in the Logan family everything that is missing in his own. Taylor captures not only the bite of prejudice in depression era Mississippi, but shows its effect on the lives of those who reject prejudice. Taylor cleverly weaves a story in which a tragic accident clearly dispenses a bittersweet justice in that world of prejudice without taking away the reader's sympathy for the victims.

Rating:
Summary: Mississippi Bridge- Thumbs Up!
Review: My third and fourth grade students read Mississippi Bridge as a part of an author study. They read The Friendship and I am currently reading Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry to the entire class. All of the books have given my students the opportunity to learn about relationships and the history of blacks in our country. The characters in the book are engaging and the plot offers rich substance for discussion. Great, great book!

Rating:
Summary: When Whites were Slaves to Prejudice
Review: Taylor's grim novella of Depression tragedy highlights the gross racial injustice rampant in rural Mississippi. Narrated by a decent and likeable white boy, the simple storyline proves both painful and powerful. Ten-year-old Jeremy is mostly a passive spectator, observing the subtle and flagrant ways that whites treat free blacks. He notices the mixed crowd of travelers who are waiting for the bus from Jackson, but on this rainy day there are more folks who want to ride than seats.

How does the arrogant bus driver handle this situation? Wading visually
through the heavy dialect readers quickly enter a dark world
of the deep South's shameful past. Despite his Pa's vicious temper and belligerent attitude toward black people, Jeremy's behavior serves as a moral bridge between the feuding races. Can one small boy show his elders the way to true social democracy? Because it is chapterless this lttle book rushes headlong towards its dramatic catastrophe, but who is to blame--if any person or race is? Can centuries of social discrimination and exploitation be avenged or expunged in one natural disaster? A riveting read.

Rating:
Summary: A+ 100% Book!!!!
Review: This is a story about how black people were treated differently than white people. The white people didn't treat the black people nicely. Black people had jobs being slaves for the white people. In the 1930's if black people wanted to ride the bus they had to sit in the back. If there were a lot of white people wanting to ride the bus the black people would get kicked off the bus.
I think that it is interesting that the white adults didn't feel like being around the black people, but their children didn't notice the color of their skin.
I fyou like stories about history you will like reading this book.
Josias was one of the main characters and he lived the story. The bus that the white people kicked off the black people was going down the bridge and went off into the river. Josias went down and started to try to save the people in the bus. A little girlthat Josias brought up was dead. No one survived on the bus even though they did everything that they could.
If I was a teacher on the book I would give it an A+ 100%.