"Friend on Freedom River"

Friend on Freedom River
Written by: Gloria Whelan
Illustrated by: Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen
Published in 2004 by Sleeping Bear Press in Michigan
Genre: Historical Fiction (Multicultural Work)
Ages: Grades 3-5

Summary: A boy named Louis takes care of the farm while his father is away working in the logging camps. One night, as Louis is tying up his boat, he hears a noise in the bushes and finds three runaway slaves there--a mother and her son and daughter. The river on which Louis was tying his boat is the last thing they must cross in order to be in the free land of Canada, but it is a very cold night and dangerous to cross the river. Despite the danger of the police, which are just as dangerous to Louis as to the slaves, he decides to do what his father would, and help take the slaves to freedom over what would come to be called "Freedom River."

Response: I must admit that the pictures in this work where what drew me to it. They truly are remarkable! The emotion on the faces of these people depict the pain and fright they must feel. The colors are mostly dark since they traveled at night, but in addition to browns and blacks, a lot of oranges are used in this work. Every picture in this work is a double-page spread of watercolor art. The textures that Mr. Frankenhuyzen places in this work make readers want to reach onto the page and touch them. The one thing I was disappointed in was the depiction of Louis. There is just something about his face that did not seem quite right to me, but I cannot determine what exactly it is. Overall, though, the illustrations were remarkable.

Gloria Whelan's text in this work really makes readers feel as thought they are experiencing the fear of crossing this fog-covered dangerous river along with these individuals. One can almost hear the song the mother sings as they depart from the US shore about keeping them safe through their journey. One thing I learned from this book was that there were specific questions a white person could ask if he thought he was in the presence of slaves. This question and response session would tell the slaves they were in the company of friends. The white man would say: "What do you seek?" and the reply would be "Freedom." They he would ask: "Have you got faith?" and the answer would be "I have hope." Before reading this work, I never knew about those two questions helping slaves know to not be afraid of certain people. I also never knew about Freedom River until I read this book. I thought it was a refreshing change to hear about others helping slaves besides the traditional story of Harriet Tubman.

One of the most interesting quotes from this work is "Darkness is just daylight turned inside out." I think those words speak volumes. The quote really has less to do with the slaves and is more about the boy becoming more like his father, but the image that statement provides is vivid. It makes nighttime less frightening if one sees it in such a way, but I have never thought of night like that before!

Teaching Connections: I would have students write a song about escaping from slavery and completing their frightening journey. Students could use the song that the slave mother, Sarah, sings on page 32 of the work as an example.

Another idea is to have students continue the story. the teacher could facilitate this writing assignment on the overhead. Students could give ideas of what they think happens to Sarah and her children after they reach the safe house and whether Louis visits them the next summer as he promised and what he finds then doing if he returns. Then, the class could vote on which direction the story should flow based on those ideas.

(Image retrieved from http://www.embracingthechild.org/bsfriendfreedom.jpg on 4 April 2008)

"Aleutian Sparrow"

Aleutian Sparrow

Written by: Karen Hesse

Illustrated by: Evon Zerbetz

Published by: Simon & Schuster in 2003 in NY

Genre: Historical Fiction

Age: grades 3-5

After viewing the websites:

I was absolutely shocked upon hearing that anything like this ever occurred. Our country is so very focused on other aspects of WWII that apparently this event was overlooked. I too am very interested in WWII because my grandfather fought in it and there is nothing wrong with learning about that era in our history. However, I am so stunned that something as monumental as relocating so many people and nearly 27,000 attacks on one island was withheld from the American public. On one hand I understand that the government wants to protect the American people and only tell us what we need to know, but on the other hand, I believe that something as monumental as this is something we should have known about. It seems as if the government was just protecting itself from the harsh reality that we did not do the right thing and we were attacked twice. I was also surprised to read that the fighting in Alaska during this time was the first time since the War of 1812 that fighting had occurred on US soil! In addition, the mear fact that the Aleut Restitution Act was not passed by Congress until 1988, 43 years after the end of WWII, was astonishing! I cannot believe that it took that long for us to try to help the Aleutians. Everything about this part of history is completely new to me and absolutely shocking. It makes me feel so terrible for all of the people involved who had to leave everything they knew of their lives and make the transition into such horrible living conditions.

After reading Aleutian Sparrow by Karen Hesse:

After the shock of learning of this history in America, this novel was a more intriguing read. I think it was very important to learn about the tragedy before beginning this book. If I were using this novel in a classroom, I believe I would have read the author's note to the class to introduce them to the story before they began the book. I also think that viewing a few of the websites might also be beneficial, especially www.nps.gov/archive/aleu/home.htm, which has a children's section. This part of the website tells a story about the Aleuts which children can easily understand and also has a supplementary quiz and coloring pages. The entirety of this website is detailed and very informative.

The Temple textbook says that reading historical fiction, like Aleutian Sparrow, is very beneficial to children because it allows them to "step into" that time period and gives them a better grasp of the occurrences of the time as well as giving them answers to subjects in history they may naturally be curious to know more about. Temple also relates that historical fiction, as opposed to non-fiction, supplies readers with a closer connection to the story. I certainly agree with this statement because I believe that many more emotions are evoked through fiction than non-fiction simply because of the plethora of information in non-fiction. Fictional stories provide somewhat less information, but they do allow a more personal connection due to the story involved. Aleutian Sparrow maintains historical authenticacy through the background story, but fictionalizes the characters because they are "...not intended to depict specific individuals, but rather to represent the experience shared by many during the three-year relocation program(Hesse, 155). Furthermore, the setting and conflict in the story are completely true to reality according to information attained upon further research of the topic and upon viewing the websites. This work provides fictionalized family histories, but is based on research.

It is heartbreaking that throughout this novel, the same theme of "unwanted Aleutians" continues to reappear. "We are only trying to survive our exile, I want to say. Yet our white neighbors scratch at the rash of our existence. We didn't ask to come here. The Japanese are no longer a threat. Let us leave. Let us go home" (90). The Aleutian people never wanted to leave their homes in the first place; they never wanted or asked to become the burden they were. Yet, Americans remained prejudiced against them for all the trouble they caused. This work can teach children much about prejudices because it shows how little reason the Americans had to dislike the Aleuts and how much they took form the Aleutians in a way that children will understand. I absolutely believe that by helping children recognize injustice that we can empower them to initiate change. Children will be the leaders of the future, so if we do not teach them the difference between right and wrong, how can we expect them to know it? Because this novel is told from a child's perspective, children can more easily identify with the main characters an be more empathetic to their view of the situation because the character's view parallels what their own would have been. Vera talks of how her relationships with her friends, family, and the elders changed and how quickly she grew up and had to acquire employment, etc. due to the relocation.

Outwardly, Vera's life and the lives of all the Aleutians are very different from those of the children I will teach, but in some ways, they are much the same. The children still wish to keep their Christmas traditions within the church and go to the movies like normal children. Yet, to make the paper stars for the church they need glue and do not wish to "...catch four cod, Boil their eyeballs in water, crush the cooling goo with [their] fingers, and use that for glue" (107) as Alfred's grandfather suggests and they cannot afford to pay for a taxi to the movies, "But [they] all need to get out of camp. So [they] walk eight miles to Ketchikan and eight slow miles back home again" (99). Children's grandparents might not tell them to make glue in this way and children may not actually need to get out of the house bad enough to walk eight miles, but we all have daily struggles and perhaps looking and the trials and tribulations of others will help lessen the stress children have in dealing with their own struggles and make them more empathetic and compassionate.

In Because of Winn-Dixie Opal learns that just because people in her new town are different from her and different from her former friends, that these people are still good on the inside, even though they are outwardly different. Aleutian Sparrow teaches children the same lesson by portraying the Aleutians in a good light and showing that they are good people although they may have different customs and ways than white people. This further illustrates the injustice the American soldiers show toward the Aleutians by making them live in such harsh conditions without much medical assistance. The Aleuts are made to "...choose between warmth and privacy. [They] hang blankets to divide the space inside the crowded cabins...and [they] shiver (46). And when they become ill, "[They] ask for a doctor, beg for a doctor to come to [them]. When he finally arrives, he tells us we are not ill, only 'adjusting'" (91).

One thing I was disappointed in about the book was the relationship between Vera and her mother. I assume that it was just strained due to the loss of her father, but they really seem to never have a good connection and then her mother just leaves her during the war.

One of the quotes from the book really struck me as a great place to begin a topic of discussion with students. "We never thought who we were was so dependant on where we were" (139). I would read this quote to a classroom and have students volunteer to share their experiences about moving around or living in the same place all their lives and how they feel it affected them as people. I think this could potentially be a very interesting discussion to have with them.

Overall, I really feel like this is a very good novel to use in the classroom because it brings into view a part of history that most, if not all, students know nothing about and it does provide ample opportunities to discuss racial biases, prejudices, and injustices as well as empathy and compassion.

(Image retrieved from http://www.kimfolio.com/mix2/Resources/aleut_txt.jpg on 19 April 2008)

"Moses"

Moses
Written by Carole BostonWeatherford
Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
Published by Hyperion Books for Children in NY in 2006
Genre: historical fiction
(This work is multicultural.)
Ages: grades K-3
Awards: Caldecott Honor Book, Correta Scott King Award Winner


Summary: This book detailed the thoughts and prayers of Harriet Tubman during and after her time of enslavement. It chronicles her fervent wish to become free, the perils of her escape, and her subsequent victory in arriving in the safe town of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After her free life begins, and God helps her see the joys of such a life, she struggles with the idea of helping the family she left behind and others still trapped in the binds of slavery. Through many prayers, she determines that anything is possible through the Lord, and decides to help others. After she frees her family, she again risks her own life to take other slaves into the safety of Canada.

Response: The greatest aspect of this book is the pictures! The story is and excellent depiction of the trials and tribulations of Harriet Tubman, but the illustrations truly tell the story. It is as if one could narrate even without the words-that proves the quality of these illustrations. Readers can almost feel the pain of the characters through Nelson's illustrations. My favorite picture in Moses is on page 32 and is a double-page spread of a close-up depicting the pain and struggle in Harriet's face. This illustration is breath-taking. Kadir Nelson utilizes dark colors in this work to show the pain these people went through and to relate that all of Harriet's travels had to occur at night. Sometimes the text of the work would wrap around the pictures and integrate them. One page in particular, God is telling Harriet that he is with her and his words are wrapped around her.

I believe this book would be a challenge to read to a class since a teacher would need to use three different voice tones in order to truly portray the text in this story the way it is intended. I believe it could best be read as a play with three players rather than just being read by a teacher. There should be a narrator to tell the story, Harriet, and God's voice.

My concern with utilizing this test in a classroom is the explicit conversations Harriet has with God. Since religion is such a controversial issue in the school system, I am not sure how to make this novel appropriate for a lesson in schools. As a Christian, I see her prayers to God as part of the intrigue of reading this book, however, in a classroom setting, this could become an issue.

I liked the way that the story connected the title of the book to Harriet's role as a Moses-like figure who led her people to freedom. I had not ever thought of her in that manner before, but the comparison makes perfect sense.

Another of the aspects that I loved about this book was the introduction to slavery at the beginning and the author's note at the end detailing about the life of Harriet Tubman. These two aspects make the book very teacher-friendly because all of the information one needs to do a lesson about slavery, specifically about the Underground Railroad, is within this work.

Teaching Suggestions: A teacher could begin the discussion about the harsh circumstances most slaves faced in the United States during this historical period. Perhaps a general overview of the Foreward in Moses would also be of assistance in beginning this topic of discussion.

Then, a teacher could ask for volunteers from the class to read this book like a play. One student could be the narrator, one could be Harriet, and one could portray God. Students could even act during the skit and the narrator would be sure to share the illustrations with the class.

As a conclusion to the lesson, read the author's note about Tubman and study about the Underground Railroad.

As a follow-up activity, have students explore http://www.nationalgeographic.com/railroad/index.html and truly engage in the control of their own storey and the choices they might have to make if he or she was a slave. Then, have them write a poem, song, or essay about the feelings he or she might have had during this time if he or she was a slave and was being led to freedom by Harriet Tubman on the Underground Railroad.

(Image retrieved from http://www.lmlibrary.org/images/Moses.jpg on 19 April 2008)