Solomon Northup | 12 years a slave
"The retelling of Solomon Northup's true story is a valuable contribution to black history. Readers of all ages will enjoy . . . this important account." --Dr. Charles A. Hicks, former Arkansas state supervisor of education The best firsthand account of the slavery experience, this autobiographical story, originally published in 1853, has been rewritten to make it accessible to younger readers.
Northup, a family man and hack driver in upstate New York, was kidnapped, whisked away from his home, and sold into slavery. His remarkable telling of the epic journey from free man of color to slave to free man again is even more astonishing because it was written entirely from memory. As a slave, Northup was permitted neither pen nor paper, yet he was able to recall his ordeal in exacting detail. Written for children aged nine through thirteen, this story of perseverance presents to children a personal side to the detached history of slavery.