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Henry's Freedom Box

Name: Henry's Freedom Box
Author: Ellen Levine
ISBN: 9780439777339

by Levine, Ellen, Nelson, Kadir

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Overview

A stirring, dramatic story of a slave who mails himself to freedom by a Jane Addams Peace Award-winning author and a Coretta Scott King Award-winning artist.

Henry Brown doesn't know how old he is. Nobody keeps records of slaves' birthdays. All the time he dreams about freedom, but that dream seems farther away than ever when he is torn from his family and put to work in a warehouse. Henry grows up and marries, but he is again devastated when his family is sold at the slave market. Then one day, as he lifts a crate at the warehouse, he knows exactly what he must do: He will mail himself to the North. After an arduous journey in the crate, Henry finally has a birthday -- his first day of freedom.

About the Author, Ellen Levine

How did people escape on the Underground Railroad? What was it like to land on Ellis Island?How did it feel to travel the Oregon Trail in a covered wagon? Ellen Levine has revealed worldsof fascinating adventure with her nonfiction books for young readers.

Although Ellen Levine enjoys reading and writing fiction, most of her books for young readershave been nonfiction. “Writing nonfiction lets me in behind the scenes of the story. I enjoylearning new things and meeting new people, even if they lived 200 years ago.”

“Real heroes,” Levine says, “aren't necessarily on TV or in the news. They can be ordinarypeople who are willing to take risks for causes they believe in. Nonfiction offers a way tointroduce young readers to real people who have shown tremendous courage, even when facedwith great danger. All of us have the potential. And one doesn't have to be a grown-up,” sheadds.

When she's not writing, Levine likes to share the excitement of research and the importance ofaccuracy with young readers. “Many young people think research is dull; you go to anencyclopedia, copy information, give it a title, and call it a report.” Using her books asexamples, Ellen explains how to get other, more interesting information. “I may not mention theexact words, but I talk to young people about primary and secondary sources. If I'm speakingwith third graders, I ask them, 'Where would I go if I wanted to find out what it's like to be athird grader?' Most will say, 'Read a book.' But when they say, 'Ask a third grader,' I knowthey've understood what I mean by a primary source of inspiration.”

For If You Were an Animal Doctor, for example, Ellen witnessed an emergency operation on acow. While doing research in Wyoming for Ready, Aim, Fire!, her biography of Annie Oakley,she got to hold the gun Ms. Oakley is believed to have shot in the presence of the Queen ofEngland. “It gave me such a strong feeling about this person,” she says. “That's part of research,too.”

Ellen Levine is the author of many acclaimed books, both fiction and nonfiction. Among them:If You Traveled West in a Covered Wagon, If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island, I Hate English!, If You Lived at the Time of Martin Luther King, and Secret Missions. Her recent book, Freedom's Children: Young Civil Rights Activists Tell Their Own Stories, was named one of the Ten Best Children's Books of the Year by The New York Times, and Best Book for Young Adults by the American Library Association.

Ellen divides her time between New York City and Salem, New York.

Kadir Nelson illustrated two Caldecott Honor Books: MOSES and HENRY'S FREEDOM BOX. ELLINGTON WAS NOT A STREET by Ntozake Shange won the Coretta Scott King Award. Will Smith’s JUST THE TWO OF US won an NAACP Image Award, and his new book, WE ARE THE SHIP continues to garner major awards. Nelson showed artistic talent at age 3 and began working in oils by age 16. He lives with his family in San Diego, California.

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Editorials

From Barnes & Noble

Kadir Nelson's hauntingly beautiful images for Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom netted him a 2007 Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration. Now the artist teams with children's author Ellen Levine to re-create another tale from Tubman's time: the amazing true story of Henry "Box" Brown, a runaway slave from Virginia who "mailed himself to freedom" in a cramped wooden crate. Although the cruelties of slavery and the sad events of Henry's life may prove too intense for the youngest readers, grade-schoolers with some knowledge of American history will thrill to this astonishing tale of bravery, ingenuity, and the indomitable strength of the human spirit.

From the Publisher

Kirkus Starred Nelson's powerful portraits add a majestic element to Levine's history-based tale of Henry “Box”
Brown, a slave who escaped by having himself mailed to freedom in a crate. Depicted as a solemn boy with an arresting gaze on the cover, Henry displays riveting presence in every successive scene, as he grows from child to adult, marries and is impelled to make his escape after seeing his beloved wife and children sold to slaveowners. Related in measured, sonorous prose that makes a perfect match for the art,
this is a story of pride and ingenuity that will leave readers profoundly moved, especially those who may have been tantalized by the entry on Brown in Virginia Hamilton's Many Thousand Gone: African Americans from Slavery to Freedom (1993). (afterword, reading list) (Picture book. 8-10)

Publishers Weekly

Levine (Freedom's Children) recounts the true story of Henry Brown, a slave who mailed himself to freedom. Thanks to Nelson's (Ellington Was Not a Street) penetrating portraits, readers will feel as if they can experience Henry's thoughts and feelings as he matures through unthinkable adversity. As a boy, separated from his mother, he goes to work in his new master's tobacco factory and eventually meets and marries another slave, with whom he has three children. In a heartwrenching scene depicted in a dramatically shaded pencil, watercolor and oil illustration, Henry watches as his family—suddenly sold in the slave market—disappears down the road. Henry then enlists the help of an abolitionist doctor and mails himself in a wooden crate "to a place where there are no slaves!" He travels by horse-drawn cart, steamboat and train before his box is delivered to the Philadelphia address of the doctor's friends on March 30, 1849. Alongside Henry's anguished thoughts en route, Nelson's clever cutaway images reveal the man in his cramped quarters (at times upside-down). A concluding note provides answers to questions that readers may wish had been integrated into the story line, such as where did Henry begin his journey? (Richmond, Va.); how long did it take? (27 hours). Readers never learn about Henry's life as a free man—or, perhaps unavoidably, whether he was ever reunited with his family. Still, these powerful illustrations will make readers feel as if they have gained insight into a resourceful man and his extraordinary story. Ages 4-8. (Jan.)

Children's Literature - Paula McMillen

This true story of one escaped slave, Henry Brown, is simply and movingly told by Ellen Levine, author of several critically acclaimed books about episodes of social injustice (e.g., A Fence Away from Freedom, Freedom's Children, and Darkness over Denmark). When he was still a young boy, Henry was separated from his family at the whim of his master, and longed to be as free and happy as he imagined the birds were. As an adult, Henry once again lost his family when his wife and three children were sold off while he was at work. All the joy was gone from life and he was prepared to take desperate measures to escape. With the help of a local physician opposed to slavery, Henry was nailed into a wooden crate and shipped from Richmond, Virginia to Philadelphia—a grueling 27 hour journey—where he was released from the box and his slavery. Afterwards the story of Henry "Box" Brown's daring escape was used to help raise money for abolitionist efforts. Levine's narrative is richly enhanced by the masterful watercolor, oil, and pencil illustrations of Kadir Nelson, also a previous award recipient (e.g., Ellington was not a Street, and Thunder Rose). The full two-page spreads, often of small details, like the "THIS SIDE UP" label on the shipping crate, add visual power and immediacy to the text. A brief historical note about the Underground Railroad is provided at the end of the book along with a short bibliography for further reading. This is a very personal account of the injustice of slavery that will surely provoke curious students to learn more about the Underground Railroad, Henry Brown, and slavery in general.

School Library Journal

Gr 2–5—One of the most interesting stories from the Underground Railroad is that of Henry "Box" Brown. Raised a slave, he found a unique way to escape after his wife and children were sold away from him. With the help of friends, he mailed himself to Philadelphia and freedom in a small wooden crate. The 350 mile journey was rife with risk. Ellen Levine tells his tale (Scholastic, 2007) with well-crafted, evocative text, beautifully paired with Kadir Nelson's heart-touching illustrations. These are scanned iconographically, giving viewers the chance to appreciate the finer details of the powerful art, and are brighter and more clearly defined in the film than on the pages of the book. An interview with the author provides additional insight into her research, the Fugitive Slave Law, and her motivation for telling the story. Nicely narrated by Jerry Dixon, with original music and sound effects that help bring the story to life, this Caldecott Honor book is well-served by this presentation. When text, narration, and music combine in a joyous celebration at the end of Henry's journey, viewers will hopefully gain a greater understanding of the value of freedom.—Teresa Bateman, Brigadoon Elementary School, Federal Way, WA

Kirkus Reviews

Nelson's powerful portraits add a majestic element to Levine's history-based tale of Henry "Box" Brown, a slave who escaped by having himself mailed to freedom in a crate. Depicted as a solemn boy with an arresting gaze on the cover, Henry displays riveting presence in every successive scene, as he grows from child to adult, marries and is impelled to make his escape after seeing his beloved wife and children sold to slaveowners. Related in measured, sonorous prose that makes a perfect match for the art, this is a story of pride and ingenuity that will leave readers profoundly moved, especially those who may have been tantalized by the entry on Brown in Virginia Hamilton's Many Thousand Gone: African Americans from Slavery to Freedom (1993). (afterword, reading list) (Picture book. 8-10)

Children's Literature - Tiffany Erickson

In this amazing story of Henry Box Brown's journey to freedom, students will see the intense heartbreak of slavery. Henry lives with his mother until his owner gives him away. Henry works hard at the factory where he is enslaved, and his owner agrees to let him marry another slave. They have a couple of children and live happily for a time, until his wife's owner sells her and their children. After this devastating event, it is not long before Henry must escape. Very little animation is present, but rather the camera examines smaller areas of the illustrations to give a sense of movement. Music accompanies the narration and adds to the tension and victory of the text. Students might wonder what happened to Henry's children, and the author's note explains that he never saw them again, reminding everyone about the horrors of slavery. An interview with the author and notes for viewing are also included. Classrooms will find this DVD very useful. Reviewer: Tiffany Erickson