Sylvia  Aki, Winifred Conkling
Sylvia  Aki, Winifred Conkling
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Sylvia & Aki

Author: Winifred Conkling

Narrator: Stacy Gonzalez

Unabridged: 2 hr 46 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 10/10/2023


Synopsis

Sylvia never expected to be at the center of a landmark legal battle; all she wanted was to enroll in school.

Aki never expected to be relocated to a Japanese internment camp in the Arizona desert; all she wanted was to stay on her family farm and finish the school year.

The two girls certainly never expected to know each other, until their lives intersected in Southern California during a time when their country changed forever.

Here is the remarkable story based on true events of Sylvia Mendez and Aki Munemitsu, two ordinary girls living in extraordinary times. When Sylvia and her brothers are not allowed to register at the same school Aki attended and are instead sent to a "Mexican" school, the stage is set for Sylvia's father to challenge in court the separation of races in California's schools. Ultimately, Mendez vs. Westminster School District led to the desegregation of California schools and helped build the case that would end school segregation nationally.

Through extensive interviews with Sylvia and Aki—still good friends to this day—Winifred Conkling brings to life two stories of persistent courage in the face of tremendous odds.

About Winifred Conkling

Winifred Conkling studied journalism at Northwestern University and received her master of arts in writing for children and young adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. She has written more than thirty nonfiction books for adults. Her book Passenger on the Pearl won the Carter G. Woodson award. Her first book for children, Sylvia & Aki, won the 2012 Jane Addams Children's Book Award for Older Readers and the 2012 Tomas Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award. She lives in northern Virginia with her husband and three children.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Shelly on April 12, 2024

Seeing all the wonderful reviews for this book gives hope - people are interested in reading about important issues in history and sharing them with their children. I hope their enthusiasm for this book propels them to seek out others - books like A Place to Belong, We Are Not Free, and Separate Is......more

Goodreads review by Rilee on June 28, 2012

Audience: Upper Primary-Intermediate Appeal: The author personalizes the discrimination of the time in a way that today’s readers will be able to relate to and they are able to understand the importance of the historic events. It is a little-known case that is a huge turning point in Latino history.......more

Goodreads review by Nancy on August 01, 2021

There is so much going on in this story, but my biggest take-away is yes, one person can make a difference, not just in the world, but in history! This chronicles actual court dialog of a lawyer on the side of truth, hired by a courageous, persistent, loving father who wanted something better for hi......more

Goodreads review by Sarah on February 10, 2018

I'm a sucker for historical fiction like this. It's the teacher in me. When a Aki's family is sent to an internment camp with other Japanese Americans, Sylvia's family rents their farm. But Sylvia and her siblings are denied access to the public school and her parents lead the fight to end school se......more

Goodreads review by Margo on July 20, 2011

In her first work for young people, author Winifred Conkling brings to light an important but little known story in our nation’s civil rights history. Several years before Brown v. Board of Education, third-grader Sylvia Mendez wanted nothing extraordinary--just the right to attend her neighborhood......more