Junebug

• Submit to industry reviewers, including Publishers Weekly Library Journal, Foreword Reviews
• Developing and will be driving readers to an iInteractive website dedicated to JuneBug, including a blog, photos, videos, music, lessons, and discussion forums 
• Website to also include lessons and examples of how to use parts of the book for shared reading, read aloud, and differentiated small group lessons.
• Outreach to schools 
• Demonstrate lessons that show how JuneBug is both a memoir and a historical text
• Reach out to and create opportunities with African American museums
• Reach out to the Church community to show that we have a book that celebrates the values of community, family, hard work, love, and forgiveness.
• Local speaking engagements at community events, professional gatherings, and schools
• Lead discussions with kindergartners and teachers alike
• Maintains daily presence on Facebook (4,600 followers), interacting on a broad range of topics and staying in touch with past colleagues and students

Set in the 1950’s and 1960’s American South, Junebug is a middle grade novel that fictionalizes Wilson Edward Reed, PhD’s experience growing up Black under Jim Crow—and finding a way out.

A fictionalized account of Wilson Edward Reed, PhD’s experience growing up Black in the South during the 1950’s and 60’s, Junebug is a middle-grade novel that shows how to move beyond hardships, like those many faced while living under Jim Crow. 

Full of humor and heartache, Junebug depicts a young person’s journey to find self-worth despite American society’s onslaught of negative messaging determined to define one’s identity and future—the kind that can come from any side. The story follows Junebug’s exploits with his friends, the loss of his mother, and his struggles with racial discrimination, before he sets his sights beyond Mississippi. After taking the 2,600 mile bus journey to Seattle, Junebug is encouraged by his three aunts to earn a college degree, all while his spiritual and emotional growth is on display. 

Like the Sankofa bird, Junebug is able to make peace with his past and use that knowledge to move forward as he takes responsibility for his mistakes and forgives those who hurt him. Junebug shows how familial support and community involvement can help motivated individuals rise above anger and discrimination and discover the life of their dreams.