Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 12/01/2023 Gr 3–7—In our current age of book bans and lesson censorship, this novel has plenty of material to reckon with. Set in small-town Louisiana, it follows aspiring teenage filmmaker Lamar Phillips, Jr., as he begins filming a documentary about his trailblazing grandfather. Sadly, unexpected violence leads Lamar's project in a different direction. Hudson's text sets out to boldly counterpoint beliefs that the past is stale news or too upsetting for children to learn. In that, it succeeds as a straightforward primer on Black history and racism in a town that's allegedly beyond segregation. The book shines when that purpose is made clear; when it takes on young Black kids who need their history, or points out the inequality of civic resources, or the injustice of undeserved murder. Its strength, and perhaps greatest weakness, is in its instructive tone. Every character—from the town mayor to the protagonist's goofy best friend—speaks in the same didactic way. The ideas are shared with passion and conviction, and it presents activism essentials in an accessible way. But the characters exist to serve those ideas, which get clunky at times. It's a strong intellectual experience without much emotional heft beyond how naturally difficult these topics are. It's a basic introduction to complicated concepts of political machines and culture wars. VERDICT The power of Black history and activism told simply; a good start for struggling middle grade readers just introduced to American history.—Cat McCarrey - Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.