Did you know that PA had a ‘gradual‘ abolition law in 1780? It was approved by the legislature only after Quaker leaders heeded the appeals of wealthy slaveholders and merchants who feared the economic and racial consequences of immediate emancipation. It gave ‘freedom‘ to enslaved children born after 1780 but required them to serve former masters for 28 years…
pickSuch a good read! The Crafts were daring and strong in their escape, but this book also offers more about their life in “freedom” than just the escape. Excellently written, captivating, and a great learning experience. We need more books like this!
pickFlee North, don‘t stop until you reach Canada. This was the advice given to those held in slavery by Thomas Smallwood, their hero and rescuer. Yet he did not follow his own advice for years. This was an intense story of bravery.
I forgot to mention that I received a free copy of this book when I volunteered for Authors! at my local library. Ilyon Woo, now a Pulitzer winner, was delightful and eloquent.
pick12-5 May 24 (audiobook)
A very well told non-fiction narrative about the escape of two enslaved peoples from Georgia and their journey first north and then abroad to escape the Fugitive Slave Act. Woo puts the story of the light skinned Ellen passing for an invalid white slaveowner travelling with William, her husband/slave, in its broader context of the abolitionist movement pre-civil war both in the US and England.
Informative and entertaining.
pickThis is narrative history at its best - a thrilling historical narrative about a specific/narrow event (the self-emancipation of Ellen and William Craft and the years following as they dealt with the effects) with some deep dives into the broader historical background (slavery, the Compromise of 1850/new Fugitive Slave Law, abolition movements) with both the micro and macro narratives illuminating each other.
