Sounder by William Armstrong 116 pages. "Sounder" is the story of a family of Black sharecroppers and their dog Sounder living in the deep south sometime in the early 20th century. The family struggles to survive, and one night out of desperation to feed his family the father steals a pig. The racist criminal justice system of the time is swift and brutal. Sounder is nearly killed by a Sheriffs' shotgun and the father is sent away to prison. I first read Sounder when I was a boy, and it is one of my favorite books. I recommend it to everyone.
The following is a passage from Sounder. " There ain't no dog like Sounder," the boy said. But his father did not take up the conversation. The boy wished he would. His father stood silent and motionless. He was looking past the rim of half-light that came from the cabin window and pushed back the darkness in a circle that lost itself around the ends of the cabin. The man seemed to be listening. But no sounds came to the boy.
"Sounder was well named. When he treed a coon or possum in a persimmon tree or on a wild-grape vine, his voice would roll across the flat-lands. It wavered through the foothills, louder than any other dog's in the whole countryside."
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