AUTHOR: Shirley Lewis
ISBN: 0-9684559-7-2
LIST PRICE: $14.95

Gary Paulsen has written with enormous skill and sensitivity about the horrors of the slave trade in this searing young adult novel. It was selected by the American Library Association as a 1993 "Best Book for Young Adults" and made the ALA Notable Books list. It has been made into a major motion picture starring Beau Bridges, Barbara Lumbly and Allison Jones. The novel is suitable for grade 8 and up. Teachers need to know that the brutality with which the slaves were treated is not softened in any way, and needs to be dealt with as a part of the heritage of violence that slave nations have suffered. This is one of the reasons that Gary Paulsen wrote the novel as an integral part of the story.

The study guide provides information about the author and guides teachers through the study of plot, theme, characterization, style, vocabulary development, etc. The curriculum connections with American history and the slave trade are obvious and activities are suggested to explore these connections.