Books On Tape

Listen to an Exclusive Song Excerpt from STANDING IN THE NEED OF PRAYER audiobook written and read by Carole Boston Weatherford Submitted by Jennifer Rubins on August 12, 2022

From poet, author & professor, Carole Boston Weatherford, a Newbery Honor Winner, New York Times bestseller, and two-time NAACP Image Award winner, comes a stunning and deeply moving audiobook based on the popular spiritual “Standing in the Need of Prayer.” The classic lyrics have been reworked to chronicle the milestones, struggles, tragedies, and triumphs of African American history.

It’s me, O Lord,
Standing in the need of prayer.
It’s me, it’s me, O Lord,
Standing in the need of prayer.
Not my father, not my mother,
but it’s me, O Lord,
Standing in the need of prayer.
Not my father, not my mother,
but it’s me, O Lord,
Standing in the need of prayer.
It’s Africans enslaved and families sold apart,
Standing in the need of prayer.
It’s runaways fleeing the yoke by dark,
Standing in the need of prayer.

Starting from 1619 and stretching more than four hundred years, this audiobook features such pivotal moments in history as the arrival of enslaved people in Jamestown, Virginia; Nat Turner’s rebellion; the integration of the US military; the Selma to Montgomery marches; and peaceful present-day protests. It also celebrates the feats of African American musicians and athletes, such as Duke Ellington and Florence Griffith Joyner.

The audiobook features music and sound effects, and at the end of the audiobook, listeners will find descriptions of the people, places, and events that are featured, along with a note from Carole Boston Weatherford.

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