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Overview
Solomon Northup was torn from his family in Saratoga Springs, New York, and thrust into a life of servitude in Bayou Boeuf, Louisiana. Northup, a well-educated and modestly successful family man, made his living as a fiddler and carpenter. When work grew scarce, Northup was tricked into traveling to Washington, DC, hoping to earn money for his family. There, he was drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery. For Northup, coming from a life of freedom and comparative privilege, slavery was intolerable. This powerful, first-person account, rewritten for younger readers, personalizes the experience of millions of slaves.Describes the life of Solomon Northup, a free Black man from Saratoga, N.Y., who was kidnapped in 1841 and forced into slavery in Louisiana for twelve years.
Synopsis
The original, autobiographical tale of Solomon Northup's epic journey from free man of color, to slave, to free man again was published in 1853, one year after Uncle Tom's Cabin and eight years prior to the Civil War.
Described as the best firsthand account of the slavery experience, it is even more remarkable considering that, as a slave, Solomon Northup was permitted neither pen nor paper. His stirring tale was written strictly from memory!
Today, with the publication of this young readers' version, what better way for young people of all races to learn how Solomon Northup endured his hardships, how some men could act so cruelly, and how far we have come?
Children's Literature
Solomon Northup, a free black man, lived and worked in Saratoga, New York. One day he was kidnapped and his freedom was stolen from him. He resisted his captor's until he could no longer endure the torture. When he finally agreed to do as he was told, his captors sold him in an auction to a Louisiana plantation owner. Throughout his years as a slave, he never gave up hope of one day being free and returning to life with his family. His determination eventually paid off when he met a man named Bass. Bass did not believe in slavery, and he helped Solomon get word to his family and friends in New York that eventually led to his freedom. Solomon Northup's trials and tribulations are retold in such a way that young adult readers will be totally captivated by his story.