The Freedom Maze by Delia Sherman - ADVISABLE

Sherman, Delia The Freedom Maze, 253 p. Candlewick, 2014.  $7.  Mature Content: G; Language: G; Violence: PG (mentions of master/slave violence).  

Sophie is so angry that her mother is forcing her to spend the summer at her grandmother’s.  Her grandmother may still reminisce about the old life on the plantation, but only two old people are left in a run down house on the edge of the bayou.  When she investigates the old maze, however, a mischievous spirit draws her back through time.  And with her tanned skin, she is mistaken for a slave – a family member, yes – born on the wrong side of the sheets.  Sophie spends her days toiling in the Big House, but is sent to the fields after she angers her masters.  The spirit won’t send her back, because it says that Sophie has some thing very important to do.  As the months continue on, Sophie’s old life seems more like an old dream.  

Though this book involves time travel, it is a solid work of historic fiction.  I will definitely include it on my list for our American History classes as an option for their novel project.  

MS – ADVISABLE.  Cindy, Library Teacher