Loving vs. Virginia: A Documentary Novel of the Landmark Civil Rights Case

Ojo and Andrews are such wonderful actors that listeners quickly come to care personally about the two protagonists in the audio edition of Powell’s historical YA novel about Mildred and Richard Loving, the interracial couple whose marriage led to the United States Supreme Court decision to overturn Virginia’s antimiscegenation statute. Ojo gives Mildred a friendly voice and pleasing Southern accent, and Andrews employs a lovely tenor to display Richard’s low-key strength and tenderness. They elicit the listener’s sympathy for their painful experiences with the local sheriff, their long years of hiding from the law and struggling for their rights, and their great 1967 victory for themselves and the nation in the Supreme Court of the United States. There are lovely moments when the two speak simultaneously, emphasizing the strength of their bond. And in their own offstage voices, Ojo and Andrews read interspersing quotations from people and documents such as George Wallace, Martin Luther King, Jr. and the U.S. Constitution. Ages 12–up. A Chronicle hardcover. (Jan.)