In this touching, heartfelt book, two boys share a friendship that transcends the boundaries of racism during the Civil Rights movement. John Henry and the narrator are inseperable in this story, swimming in the lake together, eating ice pops, and even sharing the dream of becoming firefighters. When the ban of black people swimming in the public pools is lifted, the city decides to fill in the pool with cement to prevent this from happening. John Henry is sad because he wants to do all the things his white friends does. The narrator also feels horrible and wants so badly to experience things with his best friend, John Henry. After the pool incident, the boys deicde to head down to Diary Dip to get ice pops; something the boys could not do together before. This story really touched me because it was such a sweet story about two best friends. I really loved how the boys knew why John Henry couldn't swim in the public pool, but they did not mnetion it and went to the lake to swim instead. I think this story portrays what true friendship should look like while showing the reader what happened during the Civil Rights movement. However, I think this story could cause uncomfortable situations or be sensitive for young students. I think it would be better regarded in upper elementary grades because students need to take this subject matter seriously.
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