I have longed to read the works of Virginia Hamilton ever since I was introduced to her works almost half a decade ago. This book is a compilation of five of the best Virginia Hamilton stories, 'Zeely', 'The House of Dies Drear', 'The Planet of Junior Brown', 'M.C. Higgins, the Great' and 'Sweet Whispers, Brother Rush'.

Each of these stories are classics, and I wish more people read her works. The five stories are rare gems that talk of love, family, heart-break, compassion, kindness and so much more. The stories are profoundly impactful and unforgettable. I would recommend this book for everyone, especially middle-graders. If you want to pick up a black classic literature, then look no further. I simply loved the book, every story.

Virginia Hamilton was breaking barriers and winning awards in children's literature when I was in school. I haven't read her books since then. I've reread two of the novels in this anthology: Zeely and The House of Dies Drear. What I realized is how much young readers have changed. Hamilton's books are beautifully written, but they unfold slowly, with a lot of description. Many (if not most) young readers today prefer books with more action. They will need adults, teachers, librarians and parents, to introduce them to Hamilton. And for that, a large anthology like this isn't the best vehicle. Rather, this is an excellent anthology for students of children's literature. Hamilton definitely deserves a place in Library of America for her groundbreaking works.

As a child of immigrants, English-language children's books were not part of my repertoire. When I finally began to read English books in earnest, I had moved on to more YA and adult fare (One of the unspoken benefits of parents who don't know English is them allowing a 10-year old to read Agatha Christie, Clive Barker, Stephen King and Dean Koontz books). All of which to say that children's literature is a big gap in my reading history and I had never read or even heard of Virginia Hamilton before being given access to an ARC from LOA on NetGalley.

So maybe it's because I'm out of the target age group, but none of the included novels really drew me in. I could sense a very talented writer crafting wonderful sentences, but nothing impelled me to continue reading. I never give up on a book, but I had to force myself to keep going. It's not as if I hated these novels and in fact there were great moments in each, but most of what I read left me indifferent. The small collection of non-fiction at the end was the highlight for me, with great insight into the mind and artistry of a writer, especially one coming from a marginalized community. Perhaps those who read these as children would appreciate them more, as I do seem to be in the minority here.

As someone who lives outside of the US, I had heard of Virginia Hamiltons name in the past but never read any of her work. This collection was a wonderful introduction to her works, thank you NetGalley for the copy!

Many of Virginia Hamilton's novels are truly worthy of the overused label "classic, " and Virginia Hamilton herself is truly worthy of the overused label "genius." The five novels represented here are all important and worthy, not just for their status as some of the earliest examples of widely commercially and critically successful African-American children's literature, but because each one is a true literary tour-de-force. This compilation is more likely, simply because of its overwhelming size, to be of use to scholars of children's literature (which could include high school students) than it is to young readers. However, I do want to emphasize that every book in this compilation still belongs, in its more accessible individual book format, in school and public libraries that serve young readers.

What a nice little collection of short stories! Really gave me a lot more insight to the (once) enigma (to me) that is Virginia Hamilton.

Nice collection of stories. I haven't read these before and grateful for the chance to read them now. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

Who doesn't love Virginia Hamilton? What a wonderful collection of novels. I feel blessed that such incredible stories are still being given the platform to be enjoyed by generations to come.