Praise for Kathlyn Kirkwood's Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Round!

A review of Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’Round from Fabulous nonfiction children’s books you need on your bookshelf: Part Two by Pamela Kramer:

This brilliant memoir-in-verse tells the moving story of how a nation learned to celebrate a hero. Through years of protests and petition, Kathlyn's story highlights the foot soldiers who fought to make Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday a national holiday.

Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’Round is a deeply moving middle-grade memoir about what it means to be an everyday activist and foot solider for racial justice, as Kathlyn recounts how, drawn to activism from childhood, she went from attending protests as a teenager to fighting for Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday to become a national holiday as an adult. A blueprint for kids starting down their own paths to civic awareness, it shows life beyond protests and details the sustained time, passion, and energy it takes to turn an idea into a law.

Deftly weaving together monumental historical events with a heartfelt coming-of-age story and in-depth information on law making, Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’Round is the perfect engaging example of how history can help inform the present.

"Memoirs like this one must be part of every library collection and classroom bookshelf."

- Fabulous nonfiction children’s books you need on your bookshelf: Part Two, Pamela Kramer, pamelakramer.com

The book has actually been in the works in one form or another for at least 10 years. It started as an oral history-a presentation I gave to young adults and teens titled “How Dr. King’s Day Came to Be.” Upon the suggestion of one of my church members, Jeanne Arradondo, I started thinking about turning that presentation into a book. It was still a number of years before I was ready to settle down and actually write the book that would become “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round.”

- School Library Journal (SLJ)

In this memoir-in-verse, Kirkwood describes how she was affected by King to push for racial justice as a young person and, 20 years later, for King’s birthday to be made a national holiday. Kirkwood doesn’t claim to be a central figure in these efforts or in reducing illiteracy, her current focus, but she writes movingly of being part of positive change.

- The Washington Post

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by Janna Morishima