Coretta's Song

A powerful biography of the influential civil rights leader and multitalented musician Coretta Scott King, featuring illustrations by Caldecott Honor winner, Cozbi A. Cabrera.

Young Coretta Scott was a gifted musician, learning multiple instruments and breaking barriers to study music in college. Yet growing up in 1930s Alabama, she frequently felt the sting of racial injustice and even violence: when public school for Black children ended after sixth grade, when white neighbors burned down her father's house and lumber mill, and when Coretta was denied a student teaching job based on the color of her skin.

She met a minister named Martin Luther King, Jr., and the two were drawn together by a shared commitment to serving others and fighting against inequality. Alongside her husband, Coretta became an influential voice in the Civil Rights Movement, holding Freedom Concerts to spread awareness and raise funds, and carrying on a message of peace and nonviolent protest after Martin's assassination.

In this inspiring addition to the acclaimed Big Words series, award-winning author Doreen Rappaport masterfully blends narrative with Coretta's own words to share her remarkable story. With powerful illustrations by Caldecott Honoree Cozbi A. Cabrera, Coretta's Song is a superb portrait of a woman whose voice changed America, and the world, forever.

Want to read more inspiring stories? Check out these Big Words books and many more!
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Ellen Takes Flight: The Life of Astronaut Ellen Ochoa
Ruth Objects: The Life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.