Voices from the Underground Railroad - Hardcover

Winters, Kay

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0803740921 ISBN 13: 9780803740921

Publisher: Dial Books, 2018

Synopsis

From the creators of Voices from the Oregon Trail and Colonial Voices, an unflinching story of two young runaway slaves on the Underground Railroad, told in their voices and those who helped and hindered them

It's the 1850s and enslaved siblings Jeb and Mattie are about the make a break for freedom. The pair travel north from Maryland to New Bedford, Massachusetts along the Underground Railroad. Each spread tells about a step of their journey through a poem in the first person perspective. The main and repeating voices are Jeb and Mattie, but we also hear from the stationmasters and conductors, those who offer them haven, as well as those who want to capture them.

Like its predecessors in the Voices series, this richly researched and beautifully illustrated picture book brings a difficult chapter of American history to life for young readers.

About this title

About the Author

Kay Winters is a former teacher and the author of many children's books. She lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Larry Day has been illustrating children's books for the last twelve years. He lives in Oak Park, Illinois.

Reviews

Gr 4–6—Large illustrations accompany narrative poems told from a variety of viewpoints that revolve around the escape of Mattie and Jeb, two young enslaved siblings, from a master who wants to sell them to pay off gambling debts. Both Mattie and Jeb tend to speak and think in fragments with little to distinguish them from each other ("I work hard but get no pay./The master collects it."; "Never a kind word./Always afraid./I want to be free!/We gotta go."). In addition to the perspective of the conductor, stationmaster, and operative, Winters also provides the point of view of slave owner Clarinda and Angus and Rufus, two slave catchers. Their scenes are littered with disturbing language such as "Blast their black hides" and "Dumb darkies." The illustrations are done well but the didactic text struggles to balance a history lesson with emotional storytelling. Winters attempts to ramp up tension with lines such as "The hunt's begun!" but the overall feeling is one of exploitation. Mattie and Jeb do successfully make it up North where "Black people and white people are out and about/No one looks afraid!" VERDICT This book misses its mark.—Elizabeth Nicolai, Anchorage Public Library, AK

Edition details

• Publisher: Dial Books
• Publication date: 2018
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0803740921
• ISBN 13: 9780803740921
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Day Larry
• Number of pages: 48