Even though I am usually not a fan of “popular books” or “popular themed” books, I do wonder what I am missing. And So Tall Within: Sojourner Truth’s Long Walk Toward Freedom is one of those popular themed books I am wondering what I missed as it is not a book I am excited over.
Gary D. Schmidt’s story is interesting, but at times a smidgen choppy. I had to go back a couple times to see if I missed a page or if they had stuck together. Or, since I was reading a not finished copy, I thought maybe the pages had gotten out of order. The other part that made things a little choppy (and took me a second to realize) is that on the left side there is a poem that is related to the story but is not directly part of the story. However, this is my favorite part (even if I thought you needed to read the pages as usual with both sides being one story).
The illustrations of Daniel Minter are a delightful addition. They make this book for me. Especially the ones attached to the poem as they help separate the two stories. There is great color and detail. They tell their own story as well.
Perhaps I was looking for a less poetic story of Sojourner Truth. I was looking for “she was born, this is what she did, and this is how she died.” There is an afterwards that gives a little more information which fills in a few holes. What I like is when facts flow into a story and this did not exactly do that for me.