Download high-resolution image
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00

This Is Your Time

Read by Ruby Bridges
Listen to a clip from the audiobook
audio pause button
0:00
0:00
Inspired by the recent wave of activism led by young people fighting for racial justice, civil rights icon Ruby Bridges--who, at the age of six, was the first black child to integrate an all-white elementary school in New Orleans--shares her story and offers a powerful call to action with this elegant gift book.

Written as a letter from civil rights activist and icon Ruby Bridges to the reader, This Is Your Time is both a recounting of Ruby's experience as a child who had no choice but to be escorted to class by federal marshals when she was chosen as one of the first black students to integrate New Orleans' all-white public school system and an appeal to generations to come to effect change.

Ruby's honest and impassioned words, imbued with love and grace, serve as a moving reminder that "what can inspire tomorrow often lies in our past." This Is Your Time will electrify people of all ages as the struggle for liberty and justice for all continues, and the powerful legacy of Ruby Bridges endures.
Ruby Bridges is a civil rights activist who, at the age of six, was the first black student to integrate an all-white elementary school in New Orleans. She was born in Mississippi in 1954, the same year the United States Supreme Court handed down its landmark decision ordering the integration of public schools. Her family later moved to New Orleans, where on November 14, 1960, Bridges began attending William Frantz Elementary School, single-handedly initiating the desegregation of public education in New Orleans. Her walk to the front door of the building was immortalized in Norman Rockwell's famous painting The Problem We All Live With, in Robert Coles's book The Story of Ruby Bridges, and in the Disney movie Ruby Bridges.

This Is Your Time is her first book in over twenty years, following the publication of her award-winning autobiography Through My Eyes. View titles by Ruby Bridges

Educator Guide for This Is Your Time

Classroom-based guides appropriate for schools and colleges provide pre-reading and classroom activities, discussion questions connected to the curriculum, further reading, and resources.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Discussion Guide for This Is Your Time

Provides questions, discussion topics, suggested reading lists, introductions and/or author Q&As, which are intended to enhance reading groups’ experiences.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

  • SELECTION | 2021
    Bank Street College Best Children's Book of the Year
"Powerful.... Bridges’ hopeful words, her faith born of experience, are soothing and encouraging in this time of unrest and uncertainty." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Timely, powerful, and full of hope. This missive of truth, spoken by a true American hero, deserves a place in all libraries.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“Ruby experienced unimaginable racial hatred, lost her oldest son to random violence, and still advocates for positive change. Kids will relate to Ruby's stories on many levels and be inspired by the difference one little girl made. A profoundly moving book.” —Booklist, starred review

About

Inspired by the recent wave of activism led by young people fighting for racial justice, civil rights icon Ruby Bridges--who, at the age of six, was the first black child to integrate an all-white elementary school in New Orleans--shares her story and offers a powerful call to action with this elegant gift book.

Written as a letter from civil rights activist and icon Ruby Bridges to the reader, This Is Your Time is both a recounting of Ruby's experience as a child who had no choice but to be escorted to class by federal marshals when she was chosen as one of the first black students to integrate New Orleans' all-white public school system and an appeal to generations to come to effect change.

Ruby's honest and impassioned words, imbued with love and grace, serve as a moving reminder that "what can inspire tomorrow often lies in our past." This Is Your Time will electrify people of all ages as the struggle for liberty and justice for all continues, and the powerful legacy of Ruby Bridges endures.

Author

Ruby Bridges is a civil rights activist who, at the age of six, was the first black student to integrate an all-white elementary school in New Orleans. She was born in Mississippi in 1954, the same year the United States Supreme Court handed down its landmark decision ordering the integration of public schools. Her family later moved to New Orleans, where on November 14, 1960, Bridges began attending William Frantz Elementary School, single-handedly initiating the desegregation of public education in New Orleans. Her walk to the front door of the building was immortalized in Norman Rockwell's famous painting The Problem We All Live With, in Robert Coles's book The Story of Ruby Bridges, and in the Disney movie Ruby Bridges.

This Is Your Time is her first book in over twenty years, following the publication of her award-winning autobiography Through My Eyes. View titles by Ruby Bridges

Guides

Educator Guide for This Is Your Time

Classroom-based guides appropriate for schools and colleges provide pre-reading and classroom activities, discussion questions connected to the curriculum, further reading, and resources.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Discussion Guide for This Is Your Time

Provides questions, discussion topics, suggested reading lists, introductions and/or author Q&As, which are intended to enhance reading groups’ experiences.

(Please note: the guide displayed here is the most recently uploaded version; while unlikely, any page citation discrepancies between the guide and book is likely due to pagination differences between a book’s different formats.)

Awards

  • SELECTION | 2021
    Bank Street College Best Children's Book of the Year

Praise

"Powerful.... Bridges’ hopeful words, her faith born of experience, are soothing and encouraging in this time of unrest and uncertainty." —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Timely, powerful, and full of hope. This missive of truth, spoken by a true American hero, deserves a place in all libraries.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“Ruby experienced unimaginable racial hatred, lost her oldest son to random violence, and still advocates for positive change. Kids will relate to Ruby's stories on many levels and be inspired by the difference one little girl made. A profoundly moving book.” —Booklist, starred review

Books for Native American Heritage Month

In celebration of Native American Heritage Month this November, Penguin Random House Education is highlighting books that detail the history of Native Americans, and stories that explore Native American culture and experiences. Browse our collections here: Native American Creators Native American History & Culture

Read more

2024 Middle and High School Collections

The Penguin Random House Education Middle School and High School Digital Collections feature outstanding fiction and nonfiction from the children’s, adult, DK, and Grupo Editorial divisions, as well as publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Peruse online or download these valuable resources to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: English Language Arts,

Read more

PRH Education High School Collections

All reading communities should contain protected time for the sake of reading. Independent reading practices emphasize the process of making meaning through reading, not an end product. The school culture (teachers, administration, etc.) should affirm this daily practice time as inherently important instructional time for all readers. (NCTE, 2019)   The Penguin Random House High

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more