Fragments of the Ark (Young Palmetto Books) - Softcover

Meriwether, Louise

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1611172829 ISBN 13: 9781611172829

Publisher: University of South Carolina Press, 2013

Synopsis

Fragments of the Ark follows the exploits of runaway slave Peter Mango, his family, and a band of fellow escaped slaves as they commandeer a Confederate gunboat out of Charleston harbor and deliver it to the Union navy. Mango is made captain of this liberated vessel and commands its crew through the duration of the war. He also travels to Washington to meet President Lincoln, adding his voice to others trying to persuade the president to allow black men to enlist in the armed forces. After the war Mango bought a home from his former master and became a political organizer for voting rights. Eventually he was elected a delegate to South Carolina's state convention to rewrite its constitution.

Based on the inspirational life of Robert Smalls, Fragments of the Ark explores the American Civil War through the eyes of its most deeply wounded souls. Against this chaotic backdrop, the novel sweeps readers into Mango's heroic quest for the most basic of human rights―a safe haven to nurture a family bound by love and not fear, and the freedom to be the master of his own life.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

A novelization of the inspirational life of Civil War hero Robert Smalls of South Carolina

About the Author:

Louise Meriwether is a novelist, essayist, journalist, and social activist with family ties to South Carolina. She earned a B.A. in English from New York University and an M.A. in journalism from the University of California at Los Angeles. In the 1950s, Meriwether worked for Universal Studios as the first African American story analyst in Hollywood history. Her first book, Daddy Was a Number Runner (1970), a fictional account of the economic devastation of Harlem in the Great Depression, was the first novel to emerge from the Watts Writers' Workshop. Meriwether followed with the publication of three historical biographies for children on Civil War hero Robert Smalls (1971), pioneer heart surgeon Dr. Daniel Hale Williams (1972), and civil rights activist Rosa Parks (1973). Her most recent novel, Shadow Dancing, was published in 2000. A member of the Harlem Writers Guild, Meriwether has taught creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College and the University of Houston.

About this edition

• Publisher: University of South Carolina Press
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1611172829
• ISBN 13: 9781611172829
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 342