In as carefully plotted description of Peter Still’s life as there is for young readers, this biography chronicles his determination to free himself and his family. Around 1806, Peter, six, and his brother, Levin, eight, wake to find their mother and two sisters missing. What they do not know is that she has taken the younger children and escaped from their Maryland plantation to reunite with Levin Sr., who had purchased his freedom from slavery and is living outside Philadelphia. When an unknown man offers to take the boys to their mother, they eagerly accept. In actuality, they have been sold to another owner in Kentucky, who later sells them both to a plantation owner in Alabama. For nearly a half-century, Levin Sr., his wife, and their 16 other children live a secret, yet free, life, while Peter and Levin’s whereabouts remain unknown. From his plan to have a kind man buy him so he can then purchase his freedom, to a failed Underground Railroad rescue of Peter’s family, to his whirlwind tour of the North to collect money to buy his family, Fradin’s account of Still’s story is thorough and relentless. The author does not shy away from the realities of the time—the persistent threat of beatings, rape, death, and other atrocities. Yet the writing is full of hope and perseverance, as well as examples of individuals, including Peter’s own brother, William, who risk and give their lives for the Abolitionist cause. While Fradin’s style here is not as graceful or as fluid as this year’s Ida B. Wells (not reviewed), Peter Still’s remarkable life should be shared with all young people. (bibliography, graphics credits) (Nonfiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2001
ISBN: 0-06-029595-3
Page Count: 176
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2000
PLB 0-688-13166-2 King Midas And The Golden Touch ($16.00; PLB $15.63; Apr.; 32 pp.; 0-688-13165-4; PLB 0-688-13166-2): The familiar tale of King Midas gets the golden touch in the hands of Craft and Craft (Cupid and Psyche, 1996). The author takes her inspiration from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s retelling, capturing the essence of the tale with the use of pithy dialogue and colorful description. Enchanting in their own right, the illustrations summon the Middle Ages as a setting, and incorporate colors so lavish that when they are lost to the uniform gold spurred by King Midas’s touch, the point of the story is further burnished. (Picture book. 7-9)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-688-13165-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
Lunge-Larsen and Preus debut with this story of a flower that blooms for the first time to commemorate the uncommon courage of a girl who saves her people from illness. The girl, an Ojibwe of the northern woodlands, knows she must journey to the next village to get the healing herb, mash-ki- ki, for her people, who have all fallen ill. After lining her moccasins with rabbit fur, she braves a raging snowstorm and crosses a dark frozen lake to reach the village. Then, rather than wait for morning, she sets out for home while the villagers sleep. When she loses her moccasins in the deep snow, her bare feet are cut by icy shards, and bleed with every step until she reaches her home. The next spring beautiful lady slippers bloom from the place where her moccasins were lost, and from every spot her injured feet touched. Drawing on Ojibwe sources, the authors of this fluid retelling have peppered the tale with native words and have used traditional elements, e.g., giving voice to the forces of nature. The accompanying watercolors, with flowing lines, jewel tones, and decorative motifs, give stately credence to the story’s iconic aspects. (Picture book/folklore. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-395-90512-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1999
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