Bibliography
Curtis, Christopher Paul. 2007. Elijah of Buxton. New York: Scholastic. ISBN 0439023459
Summary
Elijah, an 11 year old boy, lives in Buxton, Canada, a
settlement for runaway slaves that is just across the border from Detroit.
Elijah is famous, because he is the first child from this community born into
freedom. While most people think of Elijah as a “fra-gile” child, he proves himself
when money is stolen from a friend of his – money that he had been keeping to
buy his family’s freedom. Elijah journeys into America after thief and
witnesses firsthand the horrors that his family bravely escaped.
Critical Analysis
A combination of humor and suspense make this an enjoyable
read for children, if they are able to tackle the realistic, but challenging,
dialect that Curtis employs. Elijah is definitely not a modern character, but
he is easy to connect to because even if you can’t personally relate to him,
you know someone who can. The emotional growth that Elijah undergoes as he
encounters the life his parents fled is reason enough to introduce Elijah to students.
Curtis does a brilliant job portraying what slavery was like without being
overly graphic so that his target audience can understand what this period in
time was like from Elijah’s point of view. Using Buxton as the setting and intertwining
real people such as Frederick Douglass and Reverend William King set this story
in reality. Then providing a description of this place and people at the end in
the author’s note help young readers to better understand the world that Elijah
lived in.
Review Excerpts
2007 Coretta Scott King Award winner
2008 ALA Notable Books for Children award winner
2008 Newbery nominee
Booklist – “A fine, original
novel from a gifted storyteller.” – Carolyn Phelan
School Library Journal – “Curtis's
talent for dealing with painful periods of history with grace and sensitivity
is as strong as ever.” – Kim Dare
Connections
This is a great book to include in any unit about slavery.
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