Escape to Freedom: The Underground Railroad Adventures of Callie and William: National Geographic Kids

The year is 1858, and a 14-year old house servant named Callie and another young slave named William attempt a daring escape on the Underground Railroad. Traveling by night, these brave teens come across things they cannot believe, such as an African-American newspaper published by escaped slave Frederick Douglass, all the while amazingly avoiding capture.

Barbara Brooks weaves fact-based oral histories of the fictional characters Callie and William with rich period photographs, maps, and/or illustrations on every page, that place the adventures squarely within the era.

Grade 4-6–Fiction and nonfiction elements combine (sometimes confusingly) in this look at the Underground Railroad. The introduction provides straightforward information, but the bulk of the book recounts the adventures of two fictional characters who escape from slavery, meet on their journey north, and make it to Canada in 1858. Though the author states up front that Callie, a 14-year-old field worker from a plantation, and William, a city slave owned by a merchant, are not real people, the historical photos that accompany this pronouncement downplay that point. Also, the narrative slides between details of their travels and facts about the Underground Railroad and the actual people (such as John Parker and Harriet Tubman) involved in it, blurring the lines even further. Inset boxes tell parts of the story from the points of view of William, Callie, and her grandmother who remains behind in Kentucky. This title includes many characteristics of good nonfiction: cohesive organization of information, crisp photographs and period illustrations, and a helpful glossary. However, the manner in which it interlaces real and fictional characters and situations will mislead many readers.–Kathleen Kelly MacMillan, Maryland School for the Deaf, Columbia
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