Traveling Shoes: The Story of Willye White, Us Olympian and Long Jump Champion (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781635925807)

Untold until now, here is the story of Black sprinter and long-jumper Willye B. White, who went from picking cotton as a child in Mississippi to competing and winning in the 1956 and 1964 Olympics.

Future Olympian Willye B. White was born in 1939 in Money, Mississippi--but money was exactly what she didn't have. Abandoned by both her parents, she worked alongside her grandparents in the cotton fields. Willye had big dreams, though. So when her cousin noticed she was the fastest runner around, Willye jumped at the chance to put on her traveling shoes and run her way to better opportunities. And run Willye did, first for the Tennessee State Tigerbelles and then for the US Olympic team. Her struggles weren't over though--time and again, Willye had to remind herself, "I believe in me," whether she was running and jumping or witnessing the turmoil of the Civil Rights Movement.

Through Alice Faye Duncan's signature combination of poetry and prose and Keith Mallett's lifelike illustrations, readers will be inspired by Willye White's persistence and will learn how she contributed to Black progress with muscle and grit.

Author: Alice Faye Duncan
ISBN-10: 1635925800
ISBN-13: 9781635925807
Publisher: Calkins Creek Books
Language: English
Published: 10/24/2023
Pages: 48
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 0.90lbs
Size: 11.20h x 8.70w x 0.40d

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 07/01/2023 pg. 62
Publishers Weekly 10/02/2023
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 11/01/2023
Kirkus Reviews 12/01/2023