Joy in the Morning — Alyssa Helton

With WWII and the Korean War now distant memories, life in America in 1955 seems idyllic. However, appearances can be deceiving as everyone finds they must choose a side in the fight for Civil Rights. The Crawford family and everyone else in East Tennessee are no exception. Fights, riots and shootings have the whole city on edge as Pastor Fred Crawford does his best to bring everyone together. Bert pitches in at the paper and prints his opinion pieces but to some he is a trader to his race. If that's not bad enough, now there's a hip shaking, white singer down in Memphis who sings black music. Things appear to be going from bad to worse, but though there may be tears in the night...there will be joy in the morning.