Fire From the Rock Reading Response

     In the book "Fire from the Rock" by Sharon M. Draper, there is a story that takes place in the mid 1900s while segregation was going on. Sylvia Patterson is a normal girl who is about to graduate from high school when the school board decides to integrate Central High School which only had white people in it. Sylvia was chosen to be one of the people and is carrying a huge responsibility to be one of the first black students to attend this all white Central High. She faces many bullying incidents throughout the whole summer before she starts her school at Central High. Then one of her dear friend's family's store burns into flames to protest the integration and Sylvia is very shocked. She was in the building and that could've killed her. This is when she realizes her generation needs to change this segregation in America once and for all.

    I thought the ending of the book was really interesting. I was totally expecting Sylvia to come to the first day of school and be a hero but instead, she crossed her name out of the list! I was shocked. I thought to myself, this is not how a book is supposed to end. But now that I think about, I believe the author was being very clever. It most books like these, there is a hero and he/she does something brave or incredible that not everyone could achieve. But in this book it was totally different. She ended up going to the high school where all her friends were and where she felt safe. I actually like this ending. In a way, it tells us that it's perfectly fine to not make a change. You don't always have to be the one who saves the day. Not everyone is like that. Sometimes the spotlight is for someone is, sometimes the hero is someone else. So this is really a book about a girl who lived in the segregated times and had an adventure, but returned back in the end.

       I really loved this book and I highly recommend it for other people who don't like historical fiction to read it. It is very interesting and fun to read! It literally had me on the edge of my seat at some points in the book!