Ebony Sea - Hardcover

Grade 3-6?Most tales about slavery in this country tell of narrow escapes to freedom or of the bravery of individual leaders. Few of those aimed at youngsters are as chilling or as poignant as this one. Small's lyrical narrative has a mythological feel to it; it captures the utter despair that must have gripped Africans when, upon landing on American soil, they recognized that they were doomed to a life of drudgery and toil. Some accepted life in chains, but others chose death. Smalls tells the story of a group of Ebos who drowned themselves rather than live in captivity. Lockard's bold paintings, depicting strong brown bodies emerging from the slave ship and then trudging slowly and relentlessly, with dignity, to their watery graves, are both beautiful and haunting. This book is important because it informs readers about the kinds of terrible choices slaves had to make and shows that no one choice was any better or braver than another.?Carol Jones Collins, Montclair Kimberley Academy, NJ
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.