FREEDOM CROSSING by Margaret Goff Clark

READING TIME: 2 hours

WORDS: 30,868        PUBLISHED: 1980    READING LEVEL: 4.6

BOOK JACKET DESCRIPTION: COULD HE TRUST HER WITH HIS LIFE? Laura is furious when she overhears her brother, Bert, and an old friend talking about her as if she were a stranger. When her mother died, Laura went to live with an aunt and uncle in Virginia. Now she is back home and she discovers that her brother and father are helping runaway slaves escape into Canada. Her house is a stopover on the Underground Railroad. Laura believes that anyone helping a fugitive slave is breaking the law. Then she meets Martin Paige, a 12-year-old runaway slave who would rather die than be sent back to the South.

FAVORITE LINE OF DIVERSITY ACCEPTANCE: A person should have the rights of a human being, no matter what color he is.

MY THOUGHTS: An exciting historical tale. Laura is faced with choices that conflict with her beliefs. The changes she makes are believable and heartwarming. Great, well told story for boys and girls.

NEXT UP: THE FAMILY UNDER THE BRIDGE by Natalie Savage Carlson

MY MOTIVATION FACTOR: Still high. The temperature outside is 70 degrees as I sit in the stands at a football camp. About 300 kids participating. I’m not the only adult with a book in their hand, but I have a goal. The rest of these dedicated folks are just killing time.