"My pa died out there on the road. Auntie tried to help him, staunch the bleedin, clean the wound, but it weren't no use.
I watched all that were happenin, but I couldn't make no sense of it.
When pa died, I cried. Cried and cried, and I didn't even know why. He never hugged me. Never talked nice at me, never thanked me for nothin, never give me a name. He never let any soft come out of his hard, cold heart. But, still, I cried. Cried not for what I lost, but maybe for what I never had. Cried for what my mama had hoped for. Cried for all the sorrow my pa always made for hisself and everyone."
This is a superb, unflinching, honest book: its villains as horrific as Lord Voldemort and Wormtail, its story as relevant and moving for older readers as it is for younger ones.
Lovejoy shared this tantalizing tidbit with her readers in the Author's Note: "Because of the lack of written records and the necessary secrecy of the Underground Railroad, I'll never know for sure whether my family played a part in it, although they did attend abolitionist meetings. Despite their religion and pacifist beliefs, my great-grandfather Edwin Baker and my great-uncle Aaron Baker both enlisted in the Union Army and fought in the Civil War. I believe that they, like many Quakers who joined the cause, were fighting for their country and the abolition of slavery."
Sharon Lovejoy's other books and examples of artwork, gardening, and craft skills are on lavish display at her website, blogsite, Pinterest, facebook and other social media.
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