The Progress of Our People (I Am America)
Chicago, 1893. Young Lorraine Williams loves to sing and can’t wait to visit the Chicago World’s Fair. Her father laid concrete for the Expo’s ponds, but when his work is done, Lorraine’s family cannot afford the ticket price. When Lorraine learns that her friend’s choir will sing in the Haitian Pavilion, she joins that choir. Lorraine attends the fair and hears Sissieretta Jones sing: an African-American woman admired by all races. Lorraine vows to return to the Expo to get advice from Mrs. Jones. However, a movement has started in Chicago’s Black community to boycott the Expo: There is no mention of the many achievements of recently freed African Americans. What will Lorraine do?
This is an excellent novel, full of suspense, with a realistic heroine. Lorraine’s love of family, frustration with rules, ingenuity at finding ways to make money, ambitions and admirations all ring true. The mix of formats (prose, diary entries, newspaper excerpts, with end notes) all help to integrate the historical details while not slowing the pacing of the plot. The debate within the Black community forces the reader to grapple with the same ideas and brings little-known historical events and people to life. Highly recommended.
