2000, Holiday House: New York.
ISBN: 0823414841
159 pages
Annotation: This is a story of a slave girl, Eliza, fathered by the plantation owner. She is befriended by his daughters but then one of the daughters gets angry with her and sends her to the auction block.
Summary: Abram tells the story of his light skinned cousin, Eliza. Eliza was born five years after him. She is light skinned and has blue eyes, her father being the white plantation owner. Eliza is kept on the plantation because the breeding slaves are allowed to only keep their first born children. Eliza is taken to the master’s house every evening to play with the master’s young children. While she is there, the nanny is careful to teach her how to be a good nanny. But, one of the children gets angry at Eliza and tells her to never come back. Eliza is heartbroken and truly begins to learn the harsh realities of slavery when she is forced to work in the cotton fields, becoming freckled and burned because of her light skin. As the daughter’s of the master grow older, Eliza is seen from the house by one of their suitors. The suitor makes a comment about her light skin and who her father is. This comment eventually forces Eliza to be sent to the auction, but her cousin Abram raises money with the help of an abolitionist to purchase Eliza and set her free. Eliza is purchased and taken to New York City to work for a family there, being free to leave whenever she wants.
Rank: 4 Stars-Story about slavery and the harsh realities.
