Timely New Historical Fiction Book Connects Young Readers with Virginia’s Checkered Civil Rights History

Richmond, VA, January 18, 2021 --(PR.com)-- In 1959, the Prince Edward County, Virginia public schools closed for five years because county leaders refused to desegregate white and Black schools, against the Supreme Court ruling of the time. In the new middle-grade release, "Pictures at the Protest" (published by MB3 Press), the ninth volume in author Steven K. Smith’s adventurous Virginia Mysteries series, long-hidden photographs surface from the student protests during that time and a local historian enlists brothers Sam and Derek and their friend Caitlin to uncover the mystery of who these brave students were. Smith masterfully takes readers on a journey through Virginia’s checkered racial past of Jim Crow and Massive Resistance, sending them to key sites like the Moton Museum, Evergreen Cemetery, Jackson Ward, and the Virginia State Capitol, and courageous voices like Barbara Johns, Oliver Hill, and Maggie Walker.

When a librarian friend of Mr. Murphy, Caitlin’s father, is knee-deep in an investigation as part of a program with the Virginia Commonwealth University's Freedom Now project, illustrating the struggle to desegregate schools in Prince Edward County, Virginia, the kids wondered what was such a mystery about a bunch of ignorant people who didn’t want to treat people fairly. But when they learned that they were needed for the project to help identify courageous Black students who stood up for their civil rights nearly sixty years ago, Sam, Caitlin, and Derek were hooked and joined the quest.

“The Court said it was illegal to have separate schools for Black and white students,” explained Caitlin. Mr. Murphy leaned back in his chair. "That’s right. But in Prince Edward, the county leaders - who were all white, mind you - decided that they weren’t going to desegregate like the courts had ordered. Instead, they closed down all the public schools and opened a private school that only whites could attend."

Their sleuthing put them in touch with many local residents who remembered how things were during that time, including their neighbor, Mr. Haskins, who explained to the kids what it was like living in the Jim Crow south.

“Jim Crow?...What’s that?” asked Derek. Mr. Haskins let out a cackle. "I gotta teach you boys everything. The Jim Crow South, that’s what they called it. It was what they called the laws that kept things separate between white and Black - most every public place was segregated, like bathrooms, drinking fountains, trains, buses, restaurants, theaters, schools...”

When the three kids forge a friendship with Jason, an African American boy who they meet during an unlikely connection with a rough bunch along the river, their mutual interest and support for social justice leads them traveling together to a family rally at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond. While there, Sam and Derek bump into the leader of the Confederate Ghosts biker gang, an old ally from a past adventure. But the bikers aren’t supporting social justice, they’re rallying for Southern pride, and the boys’ connection threatens to upend their new friendship with Jason and his family.

“Exercising our right to free speech is one of the most important things that we can do,” the boys’ father tells the kids by way of explaining how people have different views, while reminding them that actions speak louder than words. It’s not enough to have a belief, but the hard lesson is when our beliefs are put to the test, and that sometimes doing the right thing - speaking out against what you know is wrong instead of just thinking it - can be uncomfortable.”

“‘Jason probably thinks I’m racist, or segregationist, or whatever you’d call what the Ghosts were doing,’ Sam muttered. ‘I don’t know if it means that,’ answered his dad. ‘But I do think we should do everything we can to work for what’s right. Too many people are content to fall back on keeping things how they’ve always been or claiming ignorance instead of doing right.’”

Middle-graders will love the fast-paced modern-day adventure with a twist of history of a critical time in our nation’s civil rights journey. "The Virginia Mysteries: Pictures at the Protest" provides an entertaining way of communicating the importance of history, particularly in today’s current landscape of the social justice dilemma our country faces. Throughout his Virginia Mysteries series which spans nine titles, author Steven K. Smith expertly combines fictional mystery plots with real historical locations and figures like Mount Vernon, Jamestown, St. John’s Church, Colonial Williamsburg, Patrick Henry, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and many others, making them a hit with families and educators alike. To find out more about this inventive publishing program, visit http://stevenksmith.net/.

If you would like more information about author Steven K. Smith and "The Virginia Mysteries: Pictures at the Protest," please contact steve@myboys3.com.