Author: Margot Theis Raven
Title: Night Boat to Freedom
Illustrator: E. B. Lewis
Readability: 920L
Genre: Picture Book
Subgenre: Historical Fiction
Theme: Working through fear and following your hear
Character: N/A
Award(s) date of publication: 2006
Publisher: Farrar Straus and Giroux
ISBN: 0-374-31266-4
Summary:
Night Boat to Freedom is set in Kentucky on a Plantation. Granny
Judith had raised Christmas John since birth. One day Granny Judith ask Christmas John to take Molly in the boat
and meet the man at the Ohio Station . When Granny Judith was taken from her
home in Africa she was leered from her
home in Africa by a beautiful red piece of cloth. Therefore she was wearing
when they arrived to freedom upon Christmas John return home he would tell
Granny Judith what color the passagener was wearing. Granny Judith would take
each color and make a quilt out of each color of cloth, wishing one day it
would cross the waters. After taking many to freedom one day Granny Judith
decided it was time for Christmas John to go to freedom for himself. Christmas John
wanted to take Granny but she did not want to go but Christmas John would not
leave her. He turned back around and took Granny Judith with him. The blood
hounds were on their track the whole way but they made it together. Christmas
John looked back with admiration in his heart for the boat that brought so many
to freedom.
How to use in the classroom:
For the young
students I would have them design the outfit they would wear to freedom. I
would have older students write a story from Christmas John perspective but
also from the slave’s perspective describing how they felt but also what they
saw. Also for younger students I would have them take the colors they decided
they would wear and make a class quilt of freedom.
No comments:
Post a Comment