Language: PG (0 swears, 0 ‘f'); Mature Content: PG (Henrietta has a son, but doesn't reveal who the father is); Violence: PG-13 (slavery, vicious floggings, and describes her situation as being "in hell")
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ESSENTIAL
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
At the beginning of the novel, Henrietta Wood is 14. At the end of the story, she is 58 years old. This is a true story about Henrietta Wood's amazing life. She was born into slavery, eventually given freedom papers, and then kidnapped and sold back into slavery. On June 19, 1865, she was emancipated and was determined to seek justice. She sued the man who kidnapped her, Zebulon Ward. His lawyers stalled, but in the end, she was awarded $2,500 by an all white jury. This is still the "largest financial award granted by an American court as reparations for enslavement."
I liked this because it was written in prose. It was extremely interesting and it showed how Henrietta didn't give up during very hard times of her life. It helps young readers understand how unfair and terrible slavery was.
Henrietta Wood is African American.
Reviewer: A. Criswell, English Language Arts teacher
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